In a new analysis of data from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the Tennessean found that for every 100,000 people working in the state in 2022, 89.5 filed formal charges with the EEOC. Only Illinois had a higher rate. An analysis of data from 2021 had found Tennessee had the highest rate of workplace discrimination charges in the nation. For both years, the most common type of complaint was for retaliation.

Tennessee lawmakers have scheduled a joint convention for Monday to vote on Gov. Bill Lee’s nomination of Shelby County Circuit Judge Mary Wagner to fill an upcoming vacancy on the state Supreme Court, the Tennessee Journal reports. Lee chose Wagner on Feb. 1 from a list of three candidates that also included Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Ross Dyer and Court of Criminal Appeals Presiding Judge Camille McMullen. Wagner will fill a vacancy that will occur when Justice Roger A. Page retires on Aug. 31. Wagner, 39, is a TBA member and alumna of the association's Leadership Law Program. She earned her law degree from the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law and was appointed to the circuit court in 2016 by then-Gov. Bill Haslam. She won reelection in 2018 and 2022.

The U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee unanimously advanced a bill today that would require TikTok’s China-based parent company ByteDance to divest the app or face a U.S. ban, The Hill reports. The “Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act,” advanced out of committee with overwhelming bipartisan support just two days after it was introduced by Reps. Mike Gallagher, R-Wisconsin, and Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Illinois, the top lawmakers on the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party. TikTok has pushed back on allegations that it poses national security risks based on its ownership by a Chinese company.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has issued an order soliciting comments on proposed changes to its Rule 13. The proposed revisions do not include any adjustments to the compensation rates and/or caps for appointed attorneys representing the indigent. But they do address the financial obligations of a child's parents, legal custodians or guardians when a guardian ad litem is appointed. The changes also address the crimes that affect the maximum compensation allowed for appointed criminal cases. Comments should be submitted by May 6 and should reference docket number ADM2024-00227.

Committees in the state House and Senate yesterday advanced two “vastly different” versions of a statewide school choice program that would allow students to use public dollars for private school. The House Education Administration Committee passed HB1183, a 39-page proposal that would also overhaul Tennessee's standardized testing requirements for public school students, make changes to teacher and principal accountability, and shut down the state’s Achievement School District by 2026. The Senate Education Committee approved SB503, a version of Gov. Bill Lee's plan, with additional accountability measures. The Senate version also allows "open enrollment to any school," permitting students to attend public schools outside of the districts for which they are zoned. The House version now goes to the House Government Operations Committee, while the Senate bill goes to the Senate Finance Ways and Means Committee. Read more about the bills in the Tennessean.

Chattanooga attorney Kisha Cheeks officially kicked off her bid for Hamilton County Circuit Court judge. She is running as a Democrat and will face current Hamilton County General Sessions Judge Alex McVeagh in the August general election. McVeagh won the Republican primary on Tuesday. Cheeks has served as the principal attorney at the Cheeks Rucker Firm for the past seven years. She says serving as a judge would be the “opportunity of a lifetime.” Read more about her campaign from Chattanoogan.com.

Join the Tennessee Lawyers Assistance Program (TLAP) on March 12 from noon to 2 p.m. CDT for QPR Gatekeeper Training, a free educational training program on suicide prevention. The event will take place in person in the Nashville office of Sherrard Roe Voit & Harbison, 150 3rd Ave S. #1100, Nashville 37201. "Question, Persuade and Refer" (QPR) is designed so that anyone can learn to help save a life from suicide. Those trained in QPR know how to recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis and how to offer help. Speakers include Lauren Castor, clinical case manager for TLAP and Erin Lynch, a member of the TLAP's Professional Clinical Team. Learn more and register.

Tennessee-based Baker Donelson has opened its first office in Charlotte, North Carolina, and named a local leader, the Nashville Business Journal reports. The new office, located in the One South tower at 101 S. Tryon St., Ste. 3600, will be led by managing shareholder Fred Wood. He will be joined by Thomas Hooper, Paul Osowski, Evan Sauda, William Starr and Noelle Wooten, all of whom are joining the firm from the Charlotte office of Nelson Mullins. Two other Nelson Mullins attorneys are joining Baker’s Raleigh and Charleston offices. The new office marks the firm's third location in the Carolinas since 2021. In October 2021, Baker Donelson opened its first North Carolina location in Raleigh and added a Charleston, South Carolina, location in September 2022. Since 2016, it also has had a presence in Columbia, South Carolina.

The University of Tennessee College of Law has received a $2 million gift from the Chattanooga law firm of Summers, Rufolo & Rodgers. The funding will support scholarships for students interested in pursuing legal careers in advocacy, as well as the College of Law Center for Advocacy and Dispute Resolution, the College of Law Legal Clinic and the Douglas A. Blaze Leadership Scholarship. Dean Lonnie T. Brown Jr. said that the firm’s sustained investment in helps ensure the college has the resources needed to prepare future leaders in advocacy. “We are incredibly grateful for this outstanding firm’s generous and continued support. It is making a profound difference in the lives of our students.” Read more in a release.

Speaking at yesterday’s funeral for Ramon McGee, who was found unresponsive in the Shelby County Jail covered in feces and bugs, and later died, Al Sharpton called for the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate the conditions of the jail and the various deaths inside. "The Justice Department needs to find out what is going on in Shelby County Jail," Sharpton said. Attorney Ben Crump, who is representing multiple families whose loved ones have died at the facility, also called for action. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is investigating McGee’s death, which was attributed to "severe neglect with malnutrition, dehydration, severe body insect infestation(s) and complications” by an independent autopsy. The Shelby County Sheriff's Office, which oversees the jail, has called the conditions of McGhee's death "completely unacceptable." The Commercial Appeal has more on the story.