The Tennessee Supreme Court last week suspended 26 attorneys for failure to pay the annual registration fee; nine of them also failed to file proof that client funds are held in an IOLTA-compliant account. View the October fee suspension order and October IOLTA suspension order. One lawyer has since been reinstated. See the list of all lawyers suspended and reinstated for fee and IOLTA violations in 2022 or access all administrative suspensions dating back to 2005.

Federal Defender Services of Eastern Tennessee Inc. is seeking an assistant federal defender in its Chattanooga office. Responsibilities include preparing pleadings, motions and briefs; reviewing discovery documents; interviewing witnesses; developing litigation strategies; meeting with clients; working with experts; assisting CJA panel attorneys; and appearing on behalf of clients in court. Get the full job description and instructions for applying on TBA’s JobLink platform.

The Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands will hold a veterans clinic this Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. CDT at Operation Stand Down, 1125 12th Ave. S., Nashville 37203. To volunteer for the clinic, contact Kendra Cheek, 615-780-7131. See all October clinics.

The TBA’s 34th Annual Health Law Forum took place in downtown Nashville yesterday and today. It was the first in-person presentation of the program since 2019. Close to 300 attendees heard presentations on regulatory and health care fraud, medicare reimbursement principles, artificial intelligence, the future after the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in the Dobbs case, home health and clinic trials. The program also included a legislative update and an ethics update. The keynote address was delivered by Dr. Morgan McDonald, commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Health. Section Chair Scott Shanker with Bass, Berry & Sims moderated the event, and at a luncheon today, passed the Section Cup to incoming chair Mark Ison with Sherrard Roe Voigt & Harbison.

The Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville and its Volunteer Lawyers & Professionals for the Arts (VLPA) program will hold a legal clinic on Nov. 2 from 6 to 8 p.m. CDT. Artists, musicians or other creatives are invited to attend and speak to an attorney at no cost for 30 minutes about any arts-related legal questions. Those who would like to participate should register here by Oct. 28. A VLPA staff member will contact registrants to gather more information and determine pro bono eligibility. To volunteer at the clinic email vlpa@abcnashville.org.

Black law school students lag far behind their white counterparts when it comes to landing jobs after graduation, according to a new report from the National Association for Law Placement. Within 10 months of graduation, just two-thirds of Black graduates had secured jobs that required passage of the bar exam, as compared to 81% of white law grads, Reuters reports. NALP’s report also notes disparities in median pay and federal clerkships. NALP Executive Director Jim Leipold summed up the report’s findings, “We see huge gaps in bar passage by race and ethnicity. We see huge gaps in employment opportunities by race and ethnicity. We see huge gaps in progression through the associate ranks to partner by race, ethnicity and gender.”

President Joe Biden yesterday promised to send Congress a bill codifying abortion rights in January if Democrats control the legislature next year. He said it will be the first bill he sends to Capitol Hill and promised to sign it, the Associated Press reports. As he has done in the past, Biden emphasized that only Congress can fully restore abortion access to what it was before the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson, which overturned Roe v. Wade. If however, the Congress is in Republican hands, he vowed to reject any abortion restrictions that may come to his desk.

The Shelby County District Attorney General’s Office has hired veteran defense attorney Lorna McClusky to head the office’s new conviction review unit, Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy announced yesterday. The new unit, the Post-Conviction Justice Unit, will review prior cases for possible errors and false convictions. The unit also will examine sentences that have already been handed down to assess whether or not those sentences were appropriate, taking into account changes in the law. McClusky graduated from the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law in 1994. In 1998, she became a member of the Massey McClusky Law Firm, where she rose to managing partner. She has nearly three decades of experience practicing criminal law, including extensive work on capital cases. Mulroy also recently named four new working groups for the office: Disproportionate Minority Contact, Post-Conviction Justice, Restorative Justice and Juvenile Justice. Read about the individuals who will lead these efforts from patch.com.

Early voting began today for the Nov. 8 election. Among the races, Republican incumbent Gov. Bill Lee is up for reelection, facing Democratic gubernatorial nominee Jason Martin along with eight independents. All nine of Tennessee's congressional seats are up for election. And voters will get the chance to weigh in on four amendments to the Tennessee Constitution. Visit the Tennessee Secretary of State’s website for information about voting locations, sample ballots and more.

Memphis lawyer Edward “Eddie” R. Young died at his home Monday after a long illness. He was 81 years old. A 1966 graduate of the Vanderbilt University Law School, he began his career with Newell Fowler, who was known as one of the first labor relations attorneys in the nation. Over a more than 50 year legal career, Young built a nationwide practice devoted to the representation of management in all aspects of labor relations and employment law. He co-founded the firm of Young & Perl PLC and served as a shareholder in the Memphis office of Baker Donelson. He also served both the Memphis mayor and Shelby County mayor as a special attorney dealing with fire department, police and sheriff’s department, and hospital authority issues. He also taught labor legislation at the University of Memphis. Funeral services were today in Memphis. Memorial donations may be given to the Memphis Jewish Federation, Anshei Sphard Beth El Emeth Synagogue, or Temple Israel.