The Tennessee General Assembly has passed legislation that will remove two judgeships from Shelby County, despite local opposition, the Daily Memphian reports. HB2002/SB2517, approved by the Senate yesterday and the House today, removes Division 7 of Shelby County Circuit Court and Division 9 of Shelby County Criminal Court. The bill now heads to Gov. Bill Lee for his consideration. The Division 7 seat is currently held by Judge Mary Wagner, who was recently confirmed to the Tennessee Supreme Court. The Division 9 seat was held by former judge Melissa Boyd, who resigned recently after months of turmoil on the bench. Four candidates had applied to fill that seat.

The Davidson County Election Commission met Monday to set the rules for two ballot challenges scheduled to be considered at a May 2 special hearing. Democratic State Rep. Justin Jones' Republican opponent Laura Nelson is challenging his qualification to be on the ballot after he turned in 26 petition signatures, of which 25 (the legal minimum) were deemed valid. In addition, state Rep. Bo Mitchell, D-Nashville, is challenging the qualification of his Republican opponent, Metro Councilmember Jennifer Frensley Webb. Both sides in the cases will be allowed to submit supporting documentation ahead of time and present to the commission at the hearing. The Nashville Banner has more on this story.

A proposal aimed at strengthening oversight of Tennessee’s juvenile detention centers will not pass this year, WPLN reports. Despite a concerted push for reform, the proposal has been sent to a summer study committee. According to sponsors, the measure was introduced in response to media reports that seclusion was being used as punishment for minor rule infractions. The oversight proposal would have given an independent agency the power to require changes at facilities that violate state standards. Currently, the Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth responds to family complaints but does not have enforcement power.

The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments today in a case that will test whether a former president has immunity from prosecution for acts committed while in office. According to Reuters, conservative members of the court indicated some sympathy to the argument that presidents should have some immunity against criminal charges for certain actions taken in office, while the liberal members warned that giving a former president sweeping immunity might embolden sitting presidents to commit crimes while in the White House. Justice Neil Gorsuch summed up the gravity of the case, saying, "We're writing a rule for the ages." Former President Donald Trump has claimed that he is immune from criminal prosecution for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attacks on the U.S. Capitol. Trump argues that, because he was president at the time, he cannot now be tried. His trial in that case remains on hold until the Supreme Court rules.

A new TBA Legislative Updates podcast is now available. Join TBA attorneys and lobbyists Brad Lampley and Ashley Harbin with Adams and Reese as they provide an update on indigent representation funding; the TBA's adoption birth certificate bill, HB2645/SB2632, and adoption clean-up bill, HB2644/SB2633; and the upcoming adjournment. Legislative Updates airs each week the legislature is in session on the TBA’s Facebook page. It is also released as a podcast on the same day and can be found on the TBA’s website or wherever you listen to podcasts.

The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee and Chattanooga Chapter of the Federal Bar Association have announced the winners of the 6th Annual Civics Essay Contest, which centered on the question of whether social media platforms have a right to restrict political speech. Students were invited to share their views on laws that seek to regulate how social media platforms restrict, moderate and prioritize user-posted political content. Middle school winners are: Liam Smitherman (1st Place), William Lacy (2nd Place) and Anders Porth (3rd Place). High school winners are: Ryan Matthews (1st Place), Gracie Hibbs (2nd Place) and Amiya Phade (3rd place). All winners will receive cash prizes at a ceremony at the Joel W. Solomon United States Courthouse in Chattanooga on May 2 at 4:30 p.m. EDT.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has directed Davidson County lawyer Howard MacCarthur Romaine to resolve outstanding obligations with the Tennessee Department of Revenue, the Appellate Court Cost Center and the Board of Professional Responsibility by June 10 or it will dismiss his petition for reinstatement to active status. Romaine petitioned the court on March 25 to have his law license transferred from disability inactive status to active status. He has been on disability inactive status since Jan. 24, 2017.

American Bar Association (ABA) Business Law Section has established a Model Business Corporation Act Resource Center, a web-based tool that provides easy, public access to the current version of the Model Business Corporation Act (MBCA). The MBCA is a model act promulgated and periodically amended by the section’s Corporate Laws Committee. It provides a modern body of statutory corporate law that is regularly updated by the committee based on judicial decisions, recent legislative enactments and other legal and technological developments. According to the ABA, Tennessee has adopted the MBCA and codified it in Tennessee Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 48-11-101 et seq. Read more in a news release from the group.

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti has announced that Tennessee has received a payment of $146.1 million this year from major tobacco companies that joined the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement. Since 1998, Tennessee has received $3.9 billion from the settlement. The landmark agreement resolved Tennessee’s lawsuit against major tobacco companies for violations of consumer protection laws and deceptive marketing practices that caused damages to the state, including increased health care costs. Read more about the settlement.

The ACLU of Tennessee has challenged a state rule governing what gender is listed on a person's driver's license, the Tennessean reports. The organization filed the lawsuit on behalf of a Monroe County transgender woman and asked the court to block the rule. In 2023, the Tennessee General Assembly passed a law defining a person's sex based on "immutable" physical and genetic characteristics at birth. That same year, the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security implemented the policy that it would not change driver's license gender markers to something different than the sex given on a person's original birth certificate. In addition to arguing that the policy discriminates, the ACLU says the department did not go through the appropriate procedures required for creating a new rule under state law.