As the trusted leader in legal payments, LawPay is vetted and recommended by all 50 state bars, including the Tennessee Bar Association. Improve cash flow and give your clients more ways to pay by securely accepting debit, credit, and eCheck payments online, in your office or on the go. Learn more at lawpay.com/tba, where TBA members receive three months with no monthly fee.

The Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education (CLE) has filed a petition with the Tennessee Supreme Court asking the court to makes several changes to Rule 21, which governs operations of the commission. According to the commission, the amendments are primarily designed to overhaul the commission's regulations, which were adopted in 2008; align Rule 21 and its regulations; and improve processes for attorneys. One change highlighted by the commission in its petition is aligning attorney CLE statuses with the various inactive provisions of Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 9, Section 10.3. Under the proposed change, an attorney who chooses to make their law license inactive would also become inactive with the commission without an annual reporting requirement. The commission also proposes eliminating the current annual exemptions in favor of a simple active/inactive approach. Other proposals would make changes to commission leadership positions and how the commission’s website is referenced in the rules. Read more from the commission.

The National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis will commemorate the 57th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination with an event on Friday, according to the Commercial Appeal. This year’s ceremony, which will begin at 5 p.m. CDT, will feature performances, a keynote speech by Dr. Shavon Arline-Bradley, CEO and president of the National Council of Negro Women, and a wreath-laying at the Lorraine Motel balcony. This year's theme, "How Long, Not Long," is taken from King's speech on the steps of the Alabama state capital following completion of the 1965 Selma-to-Montgomery march. The event is free and open to the public. Those who cannot attend in person may watch via a livestream on the museum's website at civilrightsmuseum.org or on its YouTube and Facebook platforms.

The federal judiciary has released the results of its first-ever employee survey exploring workplace issues, along with a new report containing recommendations for improvements aimed at achieving the judiciary’s goal of fostering an exemplary workplace. According to a press release, survey results show that the overwhelming majority of Judiciary employees are satisfied with their workplaces, 84% are satisfied or very satisfied with their jobs. and 80% said they would recommend their court or office to others. News reports have focused on different numbers, including more than one third who experienced at least one instance of inappropriate behavior in the workplace and roughly 8% who reported harassment or abuse. According to the agency, most respondents who experienced wrongful conduct did not avail themselves of employment dispute resolution procedures. Areas targeted for improvement include reducing barriers to reporting misconduct and increasing confidence in resolution procedures.

U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín of San Francisco ordered the Trump administration to temporarily restore legal aid to tens of thousands of migrant children who are in the United States without a parent or guardian. According to NPR, the order will run through April 16. The administration on March 21 terminated a contract with the Acacia Center for Justice, which provides legal services for unaccompanied migrant children under 18 through a network of legal aid groups that subcontract with the center. Eleven subcontractor groups sued, arguing that the government has an obligation under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 to provide vulnerable children with legal counsel. The groups said some of the clients are too young to speak and others are too traumatized and do not know English.

A bill headed for both the House and Senate floors could clarify cases in which an abortion could be legal in Tennessee to preserve the life of the mother, the Nashville Post reports. According to bill sponsor Rep. Bryan Terry, R-Murfreesboro, SB1004/HB990 would not add specific exceptions, but would specify some cases in which an abortion could fall under the state ban’s sole exception of “serious risk of substantial and irreversible impairment of major bodily function.” Conditions in the bill include previable/premature rupturing of membranes, inevitable abortion, severe preeclampsia, mirror syndrome associated with fetal hydrops, and infection that could result in uterine rupture or loss of fertility. During a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting last week, co-sponsor Sen. Richard Briggs, R-Knoxville, said, “… this bill is simply about clarifying and elaborating on the existing ‘life and health of the mother’ exception in current law. Under this bill ‘reasonable medical judgment’ still applies.” In October, a three-judge panel ruled in Davidson County Chancery Court that doctors could perform an abortion from a list very similar to the one in the legislation. An alternative measure, which would have created an exception for “fetal fatal anomalies” was rejected by the Senate committee.

A bill proposing a one percentage point increase to Shelby County’s sales and use tax passed the Senate State and Local Government Committee on April 2, the Daily Memphian reports. The revenue generated from the tax increase would exclusively fund the construction of a new jail in Shelby County. If the bill were to pass this year, the law would not take effect until passed by the Shelby County Board of Commissioners and then by voters through a county-wide referendum. The legislation is designed to address deteriorating conditions within the jail, which have led to a string of deaths and subsequent lawsuits. Since 2019, the Downtown jail, also known as 201 Poplar, has seen 61 inmate deaths and five so far in 2025. The bill, SB337/HB308 is sponsored by Rep. John Gillespie, R-Memphis, in the House and Sen. Raumesh Akbari, D-Memphis, in the Senate.

A bill to reinstate voting rights for people convicted of certain felonies passed the Senate State and Local Government Committee on April 1, the Daily Memphian reports. SB336, sponsored by Sen. Raumesh Akbari, D-Memphis, would remove the requirements for persons convicted of certain felonies to have fully paid all court costs associated with their crime to be eligible to vote. It also would remove the requirement to be up to date on child support payments to be eligible to apply for a voter-registration card. Akbari said the bill would help alleviate concerns of financial hardship preventing voting-rights restoration for those who have completed all requirements of their sentence. The bill would not apply to “infamous” felony crimes, which are defined by the state. Individuals convicted of “infamous” crimes are forever ineligible for voting-rights reinstatement under current state law. The House version of the bill, sponsored by state Rep. Karen Camper, D-Memphis, was set for an April 1 vote but was postponed.

President Donald Trump approved a federal disaster declaration for all counties in the state of Tennessee following severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes and flooding that began April 2. The action authorizes the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to coordinate all disaster relief efforts to save lives; protect property, public health and safety; and lessen or avert the threat of a catastrophe. Specifically, FEMA is authorized to identify, mobilize and provide equipment and resources necessary to alleviate the impacts of the emergency. No individual assistance is authorized at this point. News reports indicate that a suspected tornado hit Selmer in West Tennessee early today. At least four people are dead in the state, Tennessee Lookout reports, including one each in Carroll, Fayette, McNairy and Obion counties. The Commercial Appeal has images from hard-hit Selmer.

The U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) recently launched an Anticompetitive Regulations Task Force to advocate for the elimination of laws and regulations that create unnecessary barriers to competition. As a first step, the DOJ Antitrust Division will initiate a process to seek information from the public and industry experts about laws and regulations that make it more difficult for businesses to compete effectively, especially in the areas of housing, transportation, food, agriculture, health care and energy. Comments should be submitted by May 26 to www.Regulations.gov (Docket No. ATR-2025-0001). Read more about the task force on the division’s website.