Hinton & Company recently launched its Community Culture Index, a data-driven assessment tool meant to measure a region’s commitment to inclusiveness. The firm is launching the tool in partnership with the Urban League of Greater Chattanooga, the Hamilton County Herald reports. “We’re going to answer the question, ‘Have organizations in the Chattanooga region made strides the past two years?’” says attorney and company founder Wade Hinton. The index consists of an anonymous survey that asks organizations where they are with respect to inclusive practices such as recruiting, hiring and strategy. Hinton will use the responses to generate a detailed community report showing how various industry sectors and businesses rank against one another.

The Tennessee Attorney General’s office asked a Nashville court last week to throw out Shelby and Davidson counties’ challenge to the private school voucher law, the Daily Memphian reports. State lawyers argued before the Davidson County Chancery Court on Sept. 19 and in a Sept. 21 court filing that the counties do not have legal standing to challenge the Education Savings Account law because they cannot prove the law would harm the school systems or violate students’ right to a free public education. “No fundamental right is implicated by the ESA Pilot Program,” said newly installed Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti.

Tennessee Speaker of the House Cameron Sexton recently spoke to the graduates of the 16th Judicial District Recovery Court for Rutherford and Cannon Counties. The six graduates also heard from Circuit Court Judge Jimmy Turner, Recovery Court Director LaChelle Ricks and Tennessee Department of Corrections Commissioner Lisa Helton. During his remarks, Sexton reminded the group that everyone has things they struggle with, and although they will carry their addiction for the rest of their lives, they now have an opportunity to go out and help others. Judge Turner said the graduates “have worked hard to turn their lives around, and the community is better for it.” Read more about the event in a release from the court.

In an exclusive interview with CNN’s Chris Wallace, retired Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer warned his former colleagues against “writing too rigidly” in their opinions, saying that such decisions could “bite you in the back” in a world that is constantly changing. In a wide-ranging interview, Breyer also bemoaned his position in the court’s minority liberal bloc during his final year on the bench, addressed the court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade and condemned the leak of the court’s draft abortion opinion. CNN has a wrap up of the interview.

Legal Aid of East Tennessee will host a free clinic in Loudon County on Oct. 1. Attorneys interested in volunteering can sign up online or email Caitlin Torney at CTorney@laet.org. The clinic will focus on power of attorney, health care power of attorney and living will forms. It will be held from 9 a.m. to noon CDT at the Church of the Resurrection, 917 Pond Rd., Loudon 37774. The clinic is partnership between Legal Aid, the Tennessee Supreme Court’s Justice for All initiative and the Duncan School of Law. View a flyer for the event.

The Tennessee Supreme Court last week denied a petition from the Tennessee Lawyers’ Fund for Client Protection (TLFCP) to increase the annual attorney registration fee from $170 to $185 and to raise the portion of the fee it receives to $25. The court, however, said the petition “highlighted the need for a comprehensive review of the sufficiency of the annual registration fee and the allocation of funds” and that it would conduct such a review itself. At the completion of the review, the court said it would reconsider the request on its own motion. The court did grant two other TLFCP requests: (1) to modify the limitations on payments it may make by increasing the per-attorney cap and making the aggregate cap discretionary; and (2) to require it to publicize information about claims that are paid. These changes were made in Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 25, section 6.01(c), and Rule 9, section 28.11, and are spelled out in the attached order.

The U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations says it has uncovered “shocking long-term gaps in federal oversight, including hundreds of uncounted deaths in 2021 alone.” Committee Chair Jon Ossoff, D-Georgia, expounded on the findings, saying the investigation uncovered nearly 1,000 deaths in custody in 2021 that went uncounted by the Department of Justice. The committee reports that the Justice Department has been inconsistent with the publishing of data, despite the Death in Custody Act, which requires a count to be made each year. In 2000 and 2014, Congress again passed legislation directing the department to comply with the law but the committee says the department shows no sign it is about to restart reporting the data. Read more of the committee’s findings in a piece by Poynter (scroll to the last article).

TBA President Tasha Blakney joined the Young Lawyers Division Board for its Fall Meeting this past weekend in Orlando. Blakney spoke about her initiatives and TBA’s legislative priorities for the year and took questions from the group. She also joined board members for a networking event at Epcot. The TBA YLD Board held its Fall Meeting in conjunction with a Southeastern States Young Lawyers Regional Summit. See photos from the Fall Meeting and, in case you missed it, see photos from the Summit.

The Memphis firm of Rogers, Brackin & Davis PLLC is seeking an associate attorney to work in its Family Law Group. Candidates should have one to two years of experience. Duties will include conducting legal research, drafting pleadings, participating in court hearings and working with clients and opposing counsel. The ideal candidate will have some courtroom experience and strong legal research and writing skills. Read the full job description and learn how to apply on the TBA's JobLink platform.

The TBA’s Court Square Series is headed to Gallatin on Oct. 12. This three-hour program will provide attorneys with the latest developments in ethics, social security and elder law. Kick off the afternoon with a lunch and learn networking session with TBA President Tasha Blakney, followed by an ethics update from Board of Professional Responsibility counsel Eileen Burkhalter Smith. Chris George of George & George will be on hand to provide a Social Security 101 primer. Bryson Eubanks with Kane and Crowell will wrap up the day with a session on elder law. Programming will run from 11:30 a.m. until 3:15 p.m. CDT at Volunteer State Community College in the Mary Cole Nichols Dining Room B. Learn more and register here.