The 2023 Business Law Forum will be a hybrid program next Friday: in person at Bass Berry & Sim's Nashville offices or virtually via Zoom. Sessions will examine ethical uses of AI-driven platforms, such as ChatGPT, in the legal profession; current concepts related to transactional non-competes; lessons learned from cryptocurrency bankruptcies like FTX; and the legal constraints that celebrity executives and directors must navigate when balancing their public image with regulatory obligations. The program will run from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. CDT. A networking reception for in-person attendees will immediately follow the forum.

TBA members joined a virtual discussion today with Tara Stringfellow, author of the third quarter book selection “Memphis.” Stringfellow talked about her writing process, why she addressed specific issues affecting the Black community and who she considers her literary heroes — those included novelists Toni Morrison and Alice Walker and poets Sonia Sanchez and Phyllis Wheatley. TBA President Tasha Blakney kicked off the discussion and Memphis attorney Will Perry facilitated the conversation. Though no sequel is planned for the book, Stringfellow shared that her next project will be a book of poetry due out in 2024.

Police in Memphis will be directed not to make traffic stops solely for low-level offenses like improperly placed license plates or a single broken brake light after council members passed an “Achieving Driving Equality” ordinance this week. Passage was a win for advocacy groups who have pushed for the change since the death of Tyre Nichols, a 29-year-old Black man who died after being brutally beaten by Memphis police officers. Nichols was pulled over in a traffic stop before officers forced him from his vehicle, tased, chased and beat him. The Commercial Appeal has more.

The state will offer executive and judicial branch employees six weeks of paid leave following the birth or adoption of a child following legislative action on SB0276/HB0324. The policy was an initiative of Gov. Bill Lee, but the legislature cut his proposed 12 weeks of leave in half, the Nashville Post reports.

The Biden administration today proposed new privacy protections designed to prevent women's health information from being used to investigate or sue people who obtain or facilitate abortions. The proposal by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services amends the HIPAA privacy rule so that exceptions allowing the sharing of private health information do not apply to information related to reproductive health care for non-health care purposes. The rule is aimed at protecting women living in states where abortion is illegal who travel out of state for the procedure. It also would protect health care providers, insurers and other entities who perform or pay for abortions. Read more from Reuters.

The chair of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee announced yesterday that the committee will hold a hearing on ethical issues recently in the news with regard to Justice Clarence Thomas. In a letter to Chief Justice John Roberts, Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Illinois, urged the court “to immediately open … an investigation and take all needed action to prevent further misconduct.” He also said that if the court does not resolve the issue, the committee will consider legislation to resolve it. Above the Law reports on the development and has a copy of the letter.

The American Bar Association has released new bar passage data for 196 ABA-approved law schools. The data includes percentage pass rates based on race, ethnicity and gender from information collected from the 2022 exam. The ABA Journal summarizes some of the key findings, including that Black candidates continue to have the lowest pass rate, and that rate fell from 61% in 2021 to 57% in 2022. Rates for other ethnic groups include Native Americans with a 60% pass rate, Hawaiians and Hispanics with a 69% pass rate, Asians with a 75% pass rate, and whites with a 83% pass rate. The data also shows that female candidates saw lower pass rates than men: 77% compared to 80%. View the data.

The Tennessee Supreme Court yesterday issued an order adopting an amendment to Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 10B, Section 2.07. The amendment took effect immediately. The amendment added the following sentence to the end of the section: “Tenn. R. App. P. 39 (“Rehearing”) does not apply to the Supreme Court’s decision on an accelerated interlocutory appeal, and a petition for rehearing pursuant to that rule is therefore not permitted in such appeals.”

Judges, lawyers and law students are needed for the American Mock Trial Association’s 2023 national championship in Memphis this weekend. The tournament will feature 48 teams from universities and colleges across the country vying to take home the national title. Competition rounds will be held Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Sign up to help or reach out to the volunteer recruitment team at nct.judges2023@gmail.com with any questions.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has set dates for its June swearing in ceremonies. The court will hold virtual sessions on June 5 at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. and on June 6 at 10:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 3 p.m. CDT. In-person ceremonies will be held June 8 in Memphis at 9 a.m. and in Jackson at 1:30 p.m. CDT. On June 9, ceremonies will be held in Knoxville at 9 a.m. EDT and Nashville at 1:30 p.m. CDT. The TBA will be present at several events to connect with new lawyers and promote membership in the association.