Several national events and activities are being planned for this year's Law Day, which has been observed in the United States since 1958. This year’s Law Day theme, “The Constitution’s Promise: Out of Many, One,” celebrates what unites Americans as a country and a people. Tomorrow, the American Bar Association (ABA) will release results from the seventh annual Survey of Civic Literacy, which measures the public’s civics knowledge. On Thursday, the group will hold a virtual Law Day event with retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer and multiple panelists. Register here to receive the link. Finally, a special edition of the Civics 101 podcast, recorded live this month, is now available to stream. The program was sponsored by Civics 101, Discovering Justice, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts and the ABA Division for Public Education. Learn more about each of these programs, get resources for planning a Law Day event, or watch the Law Day launch program, which is now available to stream.

Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Paula Skahan has announced that she will retire in June, the Daily Memphian reports. Skahan has served on the bench since 2004 when she was appointed by former Gov. Phil Bredesen. In a letter notifying Gov. Bill Lee of her retirement, Skahan said, “…it has been an honor and pleasure to serve our citizens for the past 20 years. I am truly grateful for the experience and memories it has given me during this time.” Before being appointed as judge, Skahan worked as a criminal-defense attorney, a prosecutor and a public defender in Shelby County. She graduated from the Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law at the University of Memphis.

Shelby County lawyer Marti Lee Kaufman received a public censure from the Tennessee Supreme Court on April 25. The court found that Kaufman violated Rules of Professional Conduct 1.3, 1.4, 3.2 and 8.4 while handling two car accident cases and one civil fraud matter. In the first case, Kaufman delayed 17 months in filing a lawsuit against the driver of the other car involved in the accident and then failed to properly serve the defendant. In the second case, Kaufman took no action for 17 months, and then took no further action after filing a complaint. In the third matter, Kaufman was hired to represent a client in a civil fraud matter but failed to take action for 30 months. She ultimately refunded the client’s retainer.

Shelby County lawyer Curtis Douglas Johnson received a public censure from the Tennessee Supreme Court on April 24. The court found that Johnson knowingly failed to file fee disclosures required by the federal bankruptcy court, even after being instructed by the court to do so. The Supreme Court also found that Johnson failed to promptly notify his client that he had received and accepted a settlement offer in a wrongful eviction case, and later failed to notify his client that he had received the settlement funds. Johnson then distributed funds held in trust for a different client to the client before her settlement check was deposited and cleared. His actions violated Rules of Professional Conduct 1.4, 1.15(a) and (d) and 3.4(c).

The Tennessee Supreme Court on April 24 suspended 11 attorneys for failure to pay the annual registration fee; six of them also failed to file proof that client funds are held in an IOLTA-compliant account. View the fee suspension order and IOLTA suspension order. See the list of all lawyers suspended and reinstated for fee and IOLTA violations in 2025 or access all administrative suspensions dating back to 2005.

The Shelby County Mental Health Court Foundation will hold an evening of celebration and support on May 2 from 7-9 p.m. at Annesadale Mansion, 1325 Lamar Ave., Memphis 38104. The event is designed to raise awareness and funding for the work of the court. Tickets are available for purchase online. A $100 donation is suggested. Black tie dress is requested. For more information contact Tameria Bowling, 901-482-2426.

Memphis Area Legal Services and the Community Legal Center will hold a free legal clinic tomorrow in Memphis at the Idlewild Presbyterian Church, 1750 Union Ave., Memphis 38104. The event will run from 10 a.m. to noon CDT. Issues to be handled include debt and bankruptcy, divorce, child support and custody, foreclosure and eviction, expungement, personal injury, disability claims, employee rights, wills and estates and more. View a flyer for the event.

An executive order signed April 23 by President Donald Trump directs Education Secretary Linda McMahon to assess whether to suspend or terminate the American Bar Association (ABA) as the government’s official law school accreditor. The order claims that some accreditors engage in “discriminatory practices” by using “diversity, equity and inclusion … standards of accreditation.” It also states that such standards and “similar unlawful mandates must be permanently eradicated.” In addition, the order directs the attorney general and education secretary to “investigate and take appropriate action to terminate unlawful discrimination by American law schools” that is taken “under the guise of accreditation standards.” The move comes after U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi directed the ABA earlier this spring to immediately repeal its law school diversity rule and scrap a planned revision of the standard. That letter also stated that the government could revoke the group’s accreditation status. According to reporting by Reuters, removing the ABA from its accreditation role — which it has held since 1952 — could impact student loans, lawyer licensing and attorney mobility.

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The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee has announced its intention to amend the local rules of court effective May 15. Comments on the proposed changes are being accepted and should be emailed to localrules@tnmd.uscourts.gov by 5 p.m. CDT on May 1. The court says it will consider any comments received and make further amendments or orders as necessary. View the proposed changes in both a clean and redline version.