The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday heard arguments from Idaho and West Virginia on decisions by lower courts finding that laws banning transgender students from participating on sports teams that align with their preferred gender violate the U.S. Constitution and federal anti-discrimination law. Twenty-five other states, including Tennessee, have similar laws on the books. Reuters reports that the challengers argued that the Idaho and West Virginia measures discriminate based on an individual's sex or status as a transgender person in violation of the Constitution's 14th Amendment guarantee of equal protection under the law, as well as Title IX, which bars discrimination in education "on the basis of sex." Defenders of the bans said they are valid regardless of individual circumstances, and that physical advantages remain for trans women athletes despite medical treatments, making their participation in women's sports unfair.

Nashville is launching a Community Safety Task Force that will focus on gun violence and other crime, though officials want to go beyond police patrols and arrests to address issues such as mental health resources. Davidson County Juvenile Court Clerk Lonnell Matthews will co-chair the 29-member committee selected by Mayor Freddie O'Connell. According to WSMV, Matthews said the task force will bring Metro agencies and nonprofit leaders together to work towards a common goal of improving safety. “How can we do that in a very strategic, coordinated way to where we don’t have agencies or different groups working in silos,” Matthews asked. Answering his own question, he said, “Make sure that the entire city, the entire county feels like it has the resources, the programs and the individuals necessary to keep those communities safe.” The task force will hold its first meeting Jan. 15, from 4-6 p.m. CST at the Lentz Public Health Center, 2500 Charlotte Ave., Nashville 37209.

Longtime Oracle Corp. executive Rick Ewing will run on the Democratic ticket to represent state House District 59, the South Nashville seat being vacated by fellow Democrat Caleb Hemmer. In an interview with the Nashville Business Journal, Ewing said he wants to run as "an extension of the community work I've already been doing, that already excites me. In my family, that's just sort of what is asked and demand of you, and has been for generations. ... I like talking to people about what Nashville needs, what the state needs." Ewing is a manager of customer success for Oracle's health sciences clients. He joins retired state Highway Patrol Lt. Col. Mark Proctor in the Democratic primary. On the Republican side, Bill Hancock, an accounts executive with health care company Clinisys Inc. and an affiliate broker with Benchmark Realty, has indicated his intent to run.

A bipartisan funding deal would provide $9.2 billion for the federal judiciary in Fiscal Year 2026, boosting spending on court security and federal public defenders despite falling short of the judiciary’s overall request. Reuters reports that the bill fully funds requested increases for security, including $892 million for courthouse protection — a 19% increase — as judges face rising threats nationwide. It also provides $1.766 billion for defender services, a 22% increase aimed at easing a funding crisis that previously left thousands of court-appointed attorneys unpaid. Lawmakers say the funding is essential to address security risks, staffing shortages and constitutional obligations to provide legal counsel. The federal judiciary has been working to increase security for its personnel. In March 2025, it launched the Judicial Security and Independence Task Force and continues to operate the Vulnerability Management Program to protect judges’ personal information, among other measures.

As part of the TBA’s effort to help educate members about the Tennessee Supreme Court’s Sept. 16 order — which solicited comments on seven areas of possible regulatory changes to the legal profession — the TBA Legal Access and Regulatory Reform Task Force will hold a virtual town hall on Jan. 22 beginning at noon CST. This town hall, the first of several to be planned, will be geared toward attorneys who practice in rural areas. The event will start with a 20-minute presentation by University of Tennessee Winston College of Law Professors Ben Barton and Alex Long. Then McMinnville lawyer Mike Galligan will moderate a discussion about the seven issues presented in the order, including concerns and possible solutions. Attendees are encouraged to review the TBA’s Legal Access & Regulatory Reform resource page before attending. Register for the town hall here.

Troy Lee Bowlin II, an attorney in Knox County, was censured by the Tennessee Supreme Court on Jan. 14. Bowlin was hired by a Virginia resident for a potential dispute in Virginia though he is not licensed to practice law in Virginia. The court found that Bowlin failed to respond to inquiries from the client, and a few months later, his office prepared a pro se pleading for the client to file in Virginia. He also was found to have called opposing counsel to ask for a continuance, and gave the client advice about the Virginia filing. The court determined that these actions violated Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.16 and 5.5.

Rhea County lawyer Carol Ann Barron was censured by the Tennessee Supreme Court on Jan. 14. Barron is a notary public, and she needed to notarize her client’s signatures in a transfer of property. Her notary stamp was not in her office, but her assistant is also a notary. Barron received permission to use the assistant’s notary stamp, and Barron then notarized the signatures of her clients by signing the assistant’s name and using the assistant’s notary stamp on a deed. She did not indicate that she was signing someone else’s name “with permission.” The court found that these actions violated Rules of Professional Conduct 4.1 and 8.4(c).

The Knoxville Police Department (KPD) officers exclusively carry the the SIG SAUER P320 handgun. Critics of the gun, including plaintiffs’ attorneys and some law enforcement advocates, argue it is inherently defective, citing more than 100 lawsuits nationwide and accounts of alleged unintentional discharges that occurred without the trigger being pulled. They point to the gun’s pre-cocked design, short trigger pull and lack of external safeties on some models, noting that juries have sided with injured users and some police departments have moved away from the weapon. SIG SAUER and the KPD counter that the P320 meets or exceeds all safety standards, has been extensively tested and has performed reliably in KPD’s rollout, with officers firing more than 350,000 rounds without incident. Organizations like the Fraternal Order of Police say they are closely monitoring the gun's use for officer safety. WVLT Channel 8 has the story.

A proposal to place Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) under a state-appointed oversight board is advancing in the Tennessee legislature, though lawmakers remain divided over how much authority such a board should have. Memphis Republican sponsors Sen. Brent Taylor and Rep. Mark White have proposed an oversight board of local residents empowered to make final decisions on the district’s budget and superintendent. Chalkbeat reports that senate leaders have pushed back on limiting local political input, while Democrats oppose the measure outright, citing failed past state interventions. SB714/HB662 is likely headed to a conference committee after both chambers declined to adopt each other’s versions, setting the stage for a compromise. Last year, Taylor and White's legislation made its way through the committee process and was voted on by the House and Senate, but the two chambers could not reach a resolution. In related news, according to the Commercial Appeal, the Shelby County Commission on Monday voted to keep all nine MSCS school board seats on the ballot for reelection. Five MSCS board members and the district in December sued the Shelby County Election Commission, arguing that new state and county election changes unlawfully shorten their four-year terms by forcing them onto the 2026 ballot.

A number of events celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. Day are being planned in Chattanooga. These include a memorial march and parade, the city’s annual day of service, a community day at the Bessie Smith Cultural Center and Hunter Museum of American Art, and an event at the New Zion Baptist Church. See all upcoming events from NOOGAtoday.