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| Tuesday, April 05, 2011 |
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LSC starts pro bono task force in face of funding cuts
The Legal Services Corporation (LSC) Board of Directors is launching a Pro Bono Task Force to develop additional resources to help low-income Americans facing foreclosure, domestic violence and other serious civil legal problems.
The task force was announced today during a House Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on LSC's Fiscal Year 2012 budget request. It will be chaired by LSC Board members Martha Minow, dean of the Harvard Law School, and Harry J.F. Korrell III, a partner in the Seattle office of Davis Wright Tremaine LLP.
The move is in response to
U.S. Rep. Frank Wolf, R-Va., a longtime supporter of funding for civil legal aid who raised the subject of new funding ideas in January. Wolf said today during the budget hearing that private-sector lawyers aren't doing enough to help the nation's poor with legal problems, and warned that they might need to make up for expected cuts in federal funding. Wolf is chair of the appropriations subcommittee.
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TODAY'S OPINIONS
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STATE OF TENNESSEE, EX REL NATALIE L. DANCY v. PAUL L. KING
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Paul L. King, Memphis, Tennessee, pro se
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter, Joe Whalen, Associate Solicitor General, Warren Jasper, Senior Counsel, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellee, State of
Tennessee, ex rel Natalie L. Dancy
Judge: HIGHERS
The petitioner executed a voluntary acknowledgment of paternity shortly after the birth of a child. Several years later, after he was ordered to pay child support, he filed a petition seeking to rescind the voluntary acknowledgment of paternity, or alternatively seeking court-approved DNA testing, pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated section 24-7-113. The juvenile court denied his petition upon finding that he failed to prove fraud in the procurement of the voluntary acknowledgment of paternity. Finding that the evidence preponderates against the trial court's finding concerning fraudulent procurement, we reverse and remand for further proceedings to include parentage tests.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2011/dancyn_040511.pdf
ANTHONY V. JACKSON v. GINGER JACKSON
CORRECTION: On front page of opinion, the last name of attorney Karen Sedora Price has been added.
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Ginger Jackson, Hillsboro, Tennessee, pro se
Karen Sedora Price, Tullahoma, Tennessee, for the appellee, Anthony V. Jackson
Judge: HIGHERS
This appeal involves countless motions filed over a period of nearly nine years following the parties' contentious divorce. The mother appeals, challenging numerous rulings by the trial
court. We affirm in part, reverse in part, vacate in part, and remand for further proceedings.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2011/jacksona_COR_040511.pdf
PHILLIP McCORMICK v. STATE OF TENNESSEE
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Phillip McCormick, Coleman, Florida, pro se.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; David H. Findley, Senior Counsel; and Randall E. Nichols, District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: TIPTON
The Petitioner, Phillip McCormick, appeals pro se the Knox County Criminal Court's summary dismissal of his petition for habeas corpus relief from the remainder of his forty-year
sentence for a 1984 conviction. The Petitioner contends that (1) the trial court erred by finding that the State did not relinquish jurisdiction when it surrendered him to federal
authorities to serve concurrent federal and state sentences for felonies he committed while on parole, (2) the State violated his due process rights by failing to hold a parole revocation hearing before transferring him, and (3) the trial court erred by dismissing his petition without appointing counsel. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/mccormickp_040511.pdf
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| TODAY'S NEWS |
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Legal News
Passages
U.S. Supreme Court
Upcoming
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TBA Member Services
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| Legal News |
| Former Memphis lawyer Rossie gets parole |
| J. Richard Rossie -- who practiced law in Memphis with his partner, John Houser Parker, before they were both sent to prison for stealing millions from clients -- will be paroled in December. Rossie has served one year of a 10-year prison sentence, while Parker is serving a 22-year prison sentence. |
The Commercial Appeal reports
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| Editorial: Mosque debate marring city's reputation |
| An editorial in the Daily News Journal decries the national publicity received as "Murfreesboro has become the new ground zero for the mosque debate," citing last weekend's CNN documentary and other reports. The paper points out that city officials have approved the building of the Murfreesboro Islamic Center, but hate -- and law suits -- persist. Attorney Joe Brandon and others continue to challenge the ICM, "even after Chancellor Robert Corlew III denied their injunction to stop the county from issuing building permits," the paper says. |
Read the editorial
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| Hawkins County's new jail already full |
| Hawkins County's new jail, only about a year old, is already nearly full.
The county converted a former K-Mart into a Justice Center housing the circuit, sessions and juvenile court offices and courtrooms, the sheriff's office and the jail, which was completed in early 2010. On the bright side, the facility has been inspected by state officials and will be recertified.
"He (the inspector) was very complimentary" Sheriff Ronnie Lawson told the county commission. "He said the jail was cleaner and
more organized than it was the last time." |
The Rogersville Review has the story
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| Commission tries to quiet own member on legal issues |
| Shelby County Commissioner Terry Roland walked out of a closed-door meeting with lawyers representing the County Commission on a school consolidation case and began telling reporters what had been said.
On Monday, the County Commission voted 8-1 to stop Roland and any other commissioner from spilling secrets again. Noting that the resolution has few consequences, Roland said from the podium, "So we're voting on a resolution that don't mean crap."
He says he plans to file lawsuits in both state and federal courts to press for detailed billing records filed by the county's outside lawyers in the case involving the merger of city and county school districts.
County Attorney Kelly Rayne has said these records contain so much detail about what lawyers were doing that their release could jeopardize legal strategy. |
Read more in the Commercial Appeal
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| Passages |
| Nashville and Dresden services set for Gov. McWherter |
| The family of Ned McWherter has announced two memorial services honoring the former Tennessee governor who died on Monday.
A service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday in Nashville at the War Memorial Auditorium and another will be held at 1:30 p.m. Sunday on the front lawn of the governor's home in Dresden. |
The Tennessean has more
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| U.S. Supreme Court |
| 2 reprieves granted, new execution drug questioned |
| For the second time in a week, the U.S. Supreme Court has stayed an imminent execution to give the defendant's counsel more time to pursue an appeal.
Today it was a Texas man who won a reprieve approximately eight hours before he was to be given a lethal injection.
Earlier this week, the court stayed the execution of an Arizona man the night before he was to be put to death.
Both men claim ineffective assistance of counsel prevented them from arguing their innocence. They also contend that a planned new execution drug, pentobarbital, is neither appropriate nor the subject of adequate protocols. |
The ABAJournal tells you more
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| Upcoming |
| UT Colloquium to focus on public health law |
| The intersection of public health and the law will be the focus of the upcoming Public Health Law Colloquium, co-sponsored by the University of Tennessee College of Law, the Tennessee Bar Association, the Baker Center for Public Policy and the UT Center for Public Health. Programming will begin Thursday at 5 p.m. on the UT College of Law campus and continue Friday at 9 a.m. at the Baker Center. |
Register now for the free event
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| Your Practice |
| Should lawyers and nonlawyer be able to team up? |
| The American Bar Association Commission on Ethics 20/20 is seeking comment on whether lawyers and nonlawyers in the United States should be allowed to team up to form entities that provide legal services and, in some cases, do other work as well.
The commission is asking for input by June 1. |
Read the details
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| TBA Member Services |
| Get Connected: Sign up for TBA Connect today |
| Hundreds of your colleagues have already joined in to the TBA's Social Networking platform for members called TBA Connect. This service provides many of the same features of sites such as LinkedIn or Facebook, but access is limited to members of the Tennessee Bar Association and approved guests. |
Join TBA Connect now
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About this publication: Today's News is a compilation of digests of news reports of interest to Tennessee lawyers compiled by TBA staff, links to digested press releases, and occasional stories about the TBA and other activities written by the TBA staff or members. Statements or opinions herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Tennessee Bar Association, its officers, board or staff.
© Copyright 2011 Tennessee Bar Association
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