Shelby County lawyer Kelvin Arthur Massey received a public censure from the Tennessee Supreme Court on April 23. The court found that while under active suspension from the practice of law, Massey engaged in unauthorized practice by providing legal advice, drafting legal documents, providing legal services, and holding out to the public that he was an attorney licensed to practice law in Tennessee. His actions were determined to violate Rules of Professional Conduct 3.4(c), 5.5(b)(2) and 8.4(g).

The Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) new rules barring non-compete agreements for most employees, released yesterday, already have been challenged in two suits. The first was filed yesterday by a tax service in Texas. Today, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce filed in a different federal court in Texas. That suit alleges that the FTC lacks the power to adopt such sweeping rules. The ban, announced yesterday, is set to take effect in August, Reuters reports.

The state House on Monday passed HB1663/SB1834, sponsored by Rep. William Lamberth, R-Portland, and Sen. Jack Johnson. R-Franklin, which would authorize the death penalty to be considered in the sentencing of a person convicted of rape, aggravated rape and especially aggravated rape of a child. The legislation prohibits a person with an intellectual disability from being given the death penalty for any offense. Having already passed in the state Senate, the legislation now goes to Gov. Bill Lee, WATE reports. The bill may contradict a 2008 ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court, but supporters say the current court may rule differently. On Wednesday, the House gave final approval to legislation requiring websites with “substantial” amounts of sexual content to verify the age of users. Those who do not create systems to block minors’ access could face felony charges. The Tennessee Journal reports on this legislation.

Republican Gov. Bill Lee has “unchecked authority” under Tennessee law to pick whoever he wants to run the state Education Department, according to a new legal opinion issued by Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti. In the opinion, Skermetti writes: “… the General Assembly chose to grant the Governor unchecked authority to appoint the Commissioner of Education. It could have, but did not, subject the Governor’s choice to legislative confirm[ation]. Nor did it require a ‘certificate of qualification’ from some expert third-party board, as past laws had. In lieu of such checks, the General Assembly determined that the Governor should unilaterally judge who had the attainments necessary to lead the State’s Department of Education." The opinion came in response to an inquiry as to whether the legislature or any other party has the authority to challenge the governor’s choice for the position. Read press coverage from the Tennessee Journal.

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The Johnson City Police Department is the subject of a federal public corruption probe related to its handling of an alleged serial rapist, new filings in an ongoing class action lawsuit indicate. Attorneys representing women, who say police conspired to protect their assailant, have turned over 520 pages of emails and attachments to the “prosecution team for the federal public corruption investigation of the Johnson City Police Department,” the filing said. The Department of Justice has, for months, declined to confirm or deny any investigation, and the existence of a federal criminal probe had not previously been revealed. WJHL-TV reports on the new legal filing.

The U.S. Sentencing Commission has voted unanimously to curtail the ability of judges to impose longer sentences on criminal defendants based on conduct for which they were acquitted at trial. The move, according to Reuters, follows calls by members of Congress and defense lawyers to do away with the ability of federal judges to sentence defendants for "acquitted conduct," a practice critics called unjust. The U.S. Supreme Court last year sidestepped the question of whether the practice was unconstitutional, with several justices saying they would wait for the Sentencing Commission to first decide whether to address the issue.

Lawmakers were set to vote on a bill today that would amend the Tennessee Constitution to give Tennessee judges more discretion to approve or deny bail for the crimes covered by the 2022 “Truth in Sentencing” law, a mandatory-minimum law for violent offenses, News Channel 5 reports. The proposal would apply to violent offenses like acts of terrorism, second degree murder, aggravated rape of a child and more. It also would require those who commit those crimes to serve more of their sentence if convicted. The change would have to be approved by a simple majority of both chambers this year and by two-thirds of both chambers in 2025 before being placed on the November 2026 ballot as a yes/no question. House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, introduced the proposal in February. The measure has already passed the Senate.

Gov. Bill Lee says he is “extremely disappointed” that his proposed school choice plan will not make it into law this year. The comments came after the House and Senate appeared unable to negotiate on certain stipulations, including testing requirements, WKRN reports. According to the news source, the Senate had no issue with how schools administer tests, but House leaders wanted to limit end-of-course exams to increase instruction time. Lee said he was disappointed “for the families who will have to wait yet another year for the freedom to choose the right education for their child, especially when there is broad agreement that now is the time to bring universal school choice to Tennessee. While we made tremendous progress, unfortunately it has become clear that there is not a pathway for the bill during this legislative session.”

The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee ruled last week that Tennessee election officials cannot deny voter registration to eligible Tennesseans who have past felony convictions, and that they must inform potential voters of eligibility requirements for voting after a felony. The decision came in the case of NAACP, et al. v. William Lee, et al. The Campaign Legal Center, Free Hearts and Baker Donelson represented voters in the suit. The groups argued that many Tennesseans with a felony conviction never lost the right to vote, or since have had those rights restored, but continue to be treated as those who lost their rights. They also argued that Tennessee’s voter registration form misinformed potential voters on the law. According to the group, Tennessee has the second-largest disenfranchised population in the country and the highest rate of Black disenfranchisement in the country. Read the court’s decision or more from the Campaign Legal Center.