Stay current with legal news in Tennessee. This page features the latest news for and about the Tennessee legal community, either produced by the Tennessee Bar Association or collected from news sources.
The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee today approved three judicial nominees, including Sri Srinivasan to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, Raymond Chen to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and Jennifer Dorsey to a federal district court in Nevada. Srinivasan, currently the principal deputy in the Office of the Solicitor General, was approved on a unanimous vote. If confirmed by the full Senate, he will be President Obama’s first nominee to a court often seen as a stepping stone to the U.S. Supreme Court. WRCB TV3 NBC has the AP story.
The Legal Services Corporation has submitted to Congress a 2014 budget request for $486 million, saying the increase is essential to meeting the overwhelming need for legal services and to fulfill the nation’s promise of “justice for all.” The request, which is $16 million more than requested last year, includes $5 million for a new grant program to encourage innovations in pro bono legal services. Read a summary of the budget request or download the full submission on the LSC's website.
Trucking companies suing Pilot Flying J over rebate fraud have hired the law firm of former FBI Director Louis Freeh to represent them, according to plaintiffs attorney Mark Tate. Freeh’s firm, Freeh Group International Solutions, has been involved in a number of high profile cases, including an investigation of Penn State’s handling of the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal and the New Orleans Saints’ response to the NFL’s bounty probe. The Nashville City Paper has the story.
The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday reversed a Knoxville district court ruling that a defendant’s confession was voluntary, finding that the investigation was "a stark example of police impropriety and deplorable interrogation techniques." The decision came in the case of Jeffery Siler, who was questioned about a series of burglaries after being arrested for probation violations. During the interview, Siler reportedly was told he would have immunity for any information provided about a stolen gun as well as for a host of other charges the department was considering against him. With those promises, Siler confessed to the burglary and to selling the gun. Later, he was charged federally for felony gun possession and moved to suppress the confession. The appeals court agreed, saying the investigator went too far in making promises he could not guarantee and breaking promises not to turn Siler over to federal prosecutors. Local 8 News has the AP story.
The TBA is offering new lawyers – whether currently employed or still looking for work – a unique opportunity to meet and engage with attorneys and judges from across Tennessee. Held in conjunction with the TBA Annual Convention, the new lawyer programming offers networking opportunities that can’t be duplicated in any other setting. The program kicks off June 12 with sessions on what to expect during the first year of practice, how the TBA can help new lawyers jump start their careers and opportunities for getting involved in the TBA Young Lawyers Division. Events planned as part of the 2013 Convention also are designed to help new lawyers expand their networks. This is an opportunity not to be miss! Learn more about the line up of programs being planned.
The cutoff to get special TBA hotel pricing for the Tennessee Bar Association Convention is this Sunday, May 19. Be sure to lock in the TBA rate of $155 and avoid higher prices and sold-out rooms by calling the Sheraton Nashville Downtown Hotel at (800) 447-9825 by Sunday. For those who are interested, the TBA also is offering a limited number of rooms at The Hermitage Hotel at a special $239 rate. Call the Hermitage at (888) 888-9414 to take advantage of this deal. The convention will take place June 12-15 in downtown Nashville.
The Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services (TALS) is currently seeking presenters for its 2013 Equal Justice University, scheduled for Oct. 9-11 at the Millennium Maxwell House Hotel in Nashville. Areas of interest include health, benefits, employment, family, housing, consumer, immigration, special education and juvenile law. The group also is interested in ethics and professionalism sessions. Perspective speakers should submit proposals by June 30 to afox@tals.org.
A workshop on combating human trafficking and modern-day slavery in the mid-south will be held May 23 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Rhodes College in Memphis. The training session is designed for service providers, medical professionals, religious leaders, translators, law enforcement, immigrant advocates or anyone concerned about the growing problem of human trafficking, slavery and exploitation. The event will be held in the McCallum Ballroom, located at 2000 N. Parkway. A fee of $15 covers all materials and lunch. For more information email Bonnie Blair or call her at (901) 752-0328.
Do you love drinking coffee and want to support Tennessee CASA at the same time? Then visit the group’s Just Love Coffee Roasters online store. Just Love Coffee Roasters is a brand of hand-roasted coffee produced by people who also have a desire to help others in their efforts to make the world better. A portion of the proceeds from purchases will go directly to Tennessee CASA.
The TBA Young Lawyers Division will host a membership event on May 23 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Carnegie Hotel in Johnson City. Heavy hors d’oeuvres will be served and a cash bar will be available. Young lawyers in the area are encouraged to drop by and to bring a stuffed animal for district’s public service project. “Bears from the Bench” will provide stuffed animals for local juvenile court judges to hand out to abused and neglected children who appear in their courtrooms. For more information about the membership event or the service project, email Rachel Ralston Mancl or call her at (423) 378-8871.
The Tennessee Supreme Court this week issued two orders suspending Tennessee-licensed attorneys who did not pay their registration fee to the Board of Professional Responsibility and/or did not file a mandatory compliance statement that eligible client funds are held in accounts participating in the Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts (IOLTA) program. Lawyers who since have complied with the requirements are noted as reinstated. See the updated lists and download the orders.
On May 8, Duncan Cates Cave received a public censure from the Board of Professional Responsibility for failing to prepare an order for the court. After being personally served with a show cause order commanding him to appear and show cause why he had not submitted the order, Cave failed to attend the hearing. The court held Cave in contempt of court for continually and willfully failing to comply with an order of the court and failing to appear. Download the BPR notice.
Law schools should substantially eliminate C grades, according to University of Little Rock law professor Joshua Silverstein. In a paper set for publication in the University of San Francisco Law Review, Silverstein says U.S. law schools should set their required grade point average for good academic standing at the B- level, giving C grades only for unsatisfactory performance. Silverstein says many law schools ranked in the top tier by U.S. News have essentially eliminated the use of C grades, while fourth-tier schools award large numbers of Cs, often under policies that encourage or require it. The ABA Journal has the story.
After announcing he would not seek re-election to the Senate seat he has held since 1971, Sen. Douglas Henry told the Memphis Daily News that his health and the high cost of campaigning were major factors. Henry, who turns 87 this month, said he had been disregarding his doctor's request that he not run again but finally decided to heed his advice. He also said the amount of money he spent on his 2010 election was "obscene." Henry's first year of the recent 108th Tennessee General Assembly made him the "longest serving member of the General Assembly ever in Tennessee history," according to legislative librarian Eddie Weeks.
Attorney General Eric Holder said the FBI's criminal investigation of the Internal Revenue Service could include potential civil rights violations, false statements and potential violations of the Hatch Act, which prohibits federal employees from engaging in some partisan political activities. Holder announced that the Justice Department was investigating the IRS after the agency acknowledged that agents had singled out conservative groups for extra scrutiny when they applied for tax-exempt status. "I can assure you and the American people that we will take a dispassionate view of this," he said. "This will not be about parties, this will not be about ideological persuasions. Anybody who has broken the law will be held accountable." The Memphis Daily News has the story.
After Gov. Bill Haslam vetoed the so-called “Ag Gag” bill, sponsors Rep. Andy Holt, R-Dresden, and Sen. Dolores Gresham, R-Somerville, are planning to try again in 2014. Knoxnews reports that the two legislators issued a joint statement saying there would be no override attempt, but they plan to file a new bill with revisions aimed at meeting objections from Haslam and questions about the bill’s constitutionality raised by Attorney General Bob Cooper.
Former Memphis assistant principal Clarence Mumford was sentenced to seven years in prison for organizing a teacher cheating scheme throughout Arkansas, Mississippi and Tennessee. According to prosecutors, between 1995 and 2010, Mumford falsified identification and enlisted teachers to impersonate others for teacher license exams, collecting more than $120,000. The Memphis Business Journal has the story.
District Attorney Randall York received approval from the Putnam County Fiscal Review Committee to apply for a three-year, $80,000-per-year Family Justice Center grant that would help fund a Family Justice Center, a domestic violence center to assist victims in Putnam and surrounding counties. York cited the criminal court docket to support why a Family Justice Center should be started, the Herald Citizen reports. “When you go to a docket that’s more than 50 percent domestic-related, what we’re trying to do is break the cycle of violence, and we can only do it if we address the problems head on.” he said.
The U.S. Judicial Conference has asked the White House for emergency funding, the Blog of the Legal Times reports. Court officials said the judiciary does not have the budget flexibility to absorb the large mandatory budget cuts that have caused furloughs in the nation's federal public defender and court offices. In a letter sent yesterday to the White House Office of Management and Budget, federal court officials said the courts need an emergency appropriation of $73 million — $41 million for federal public defenders and $32 million for court operations. The money would save 550 jobs in public defender and clerk offices, and prevent 24,000 furlough days for 5,000 employees, the letter says.
The Tennessee Supreme Court is now requiring electronic submissions of all interpreter invoices as well as compensation claims for attorneys representing indigent clients. Effective July 1, the order requires that “all claims for attorney compensation and expenses shall be submitted utilizing the system established by the AOC for electronic submission.” The Administrative Office of the Courts began development of the electronic filing system in 2010. Users have been phased in over several years and the system has been used on a routine basis since early 2012.
