Asian American advocacy groups across the nation are calling on the Biden administration to withdraw the nomination of Casey Arrowood for U.S. attorney of the Eastern District of Tennessee, Tennessee Lookout reports. The groups, which include APA Justice, Asian American Scholar Forum, Tennessee Chinese American Alliance and United Chinese Americans, also are asking the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee to postpone any action on the nomination until an investigation of Arrowood has been conducted. The groups argue that Arrowood is not an appropriate choice given his wrongful prosecution of University of Tennessee professor Dr. Anming Hu. Through that prosecution, “Arrowood demonstrated his poor judgment, wasted valuable taxpayers’ dollars, failed to uphold justice and fairness, and eroded public trust,” the groups say in a letter. The move comes after Hu himself criticized the president’s choice.

The 2022 U.S. 6th Circuit Judicial Conference begins today in Louisville, Thomson Reuters reports in its Daily Docket newsletter. Speakers on the agenda include Kannon Shanmugam of Paul Weiss, Eugene Scalia of Gibson Dunn, Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Polite Jr., Paul Clement of Clement & Murphy and the chief justices of the Kentucky, Tennessee, Michigan and Ohio Supreme Courts.

Nahon, Saharovich & Trotz is accepting resumes for an associate attorney to join its Knoxville office. Applicants should have one year of legal experience, preferably in the personal injury field. A strong academic background is also required. Learn more about this opportunity and get instructions for applying on the TBA’s JobLink platform.

One of our most powerful tools to improve health, bolster relationships and just feel better is our smile. Research shows that Americans tend to smile more and wider than folks in other countries, and according to Axios, smiles are good for our mental and physical health. Science-backed benefits of smiling include stress relief, pain relief and strengthened relationships. And according to the Wharton School of Business, smiling at work can make us appear more trustworthy and deepen bonds with coworkers. Read more about the benefits of smiling.

The TBA is headed to Jamestown on Oct. 28 as part of its annual Court Square Series! Start the day with a lunch and learn networking session with TBA leadership, followed by an ethics update from the Board of Professional Responsibility. The program will run from 11:30 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. CDT. Learn more and get registered here. Not going to be in the area on Oct. 28? Head over to the TBA CLE website to find other stops in the 2022 Court Square Series!

A story in yesterday’s TBA Today mischaracterized newly installed Davidson County Chancellor I’Ashea Lynnae Myles. Chancellor Myles is the first Black female chancellor in the state, not just in Davidson County. Alert readers reminded us that Irvin H. Kilcrease Jr. was the first Black chancellor in the state. He was appointed by then Gov. Lamar Alexander in 1980 and died in 2012. See photos from Myles’s induction ceremony.

The Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services (TALS) Equal Justice University gets underway this week in Murfreesboro. The event, which runs Wednesday through Friday, brings together about 300 lawyers, advocates, social workers and pro bono attorneys involved in providing civil legal assistance across Tennessee. The Tennessee Bar Association is a sponsor of the event and TBA President Tasha Blakney will be speaking to the conference on Wednesday during the Leadership Luncheon. The group also will present it 2022 Access to Justice Awards on Thursday at the Access to Justice Luncheon. See the full schedule.

Judicial swearing in ceremonies are taking place across the state this month as new judges take office. On Friday, Nashville lawyer I’Ashea Myles was sworn in as the first Black female chancellor in Tennessee. U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Bernice Donald and Tennessee Court of Appeals Judge David Dinkins were on hand for the ceremony. In Jacksboro this week, TBA President Tasha Blakney introduced her former colleague Zack Walden to the court and presented him with a commemorative gavel. The ceremony took place at the Campbell County Courthouse. Walden, who worked with Blakney at Eldridge & Blakney in Knoxville, was recently elected Eighth Judicial District Criminal Court judge. He is also a member of the TBA Young Lawyers Division Board and current Mock Trial chair. See more photos. On Wednesday, Davidson County General Sessions judges will be sworn in at 2 p.m. CDT in Courtroom 1A of the Justice A.A. Birch Building, 408 Second Ave., N. in downtown Nashville. The TBA is collecting photographs of local swearing in ceremonies. Please send your submissions to tbatoday@tnbar.org.

In one of her last acts as Shelby County district attorney, outgoing prosecutor Amy Weirich announced Friday that her office has cleared several police officers of criminal charges in three separate fatal shootings. The Commercial Appeal reports on the cases, which involved Antonio Jackson, age 26, who was killed on Aug. 16, 2021; Kayla Lucas, age 25, who was killed on Dec. 15, 2021; and Terrance Dogan, age 27, and John Henry Taylor, age 18, who were killed by Arkansas State Police in Memphis on Dec. 16, 2021. Each of the cases was investigated by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, which then passed the findings on to the district attorney for a determination of any criminal charges. Weirich, a Republican, was defeated in an election earlier this month by Democrat Steve Mulroy.

Knoxville lawyer George W. Morton Jr. died Aug. 24 just days shy of his 95th birthday. A 1949 graduate of the University Tennessee College of Law, he served for many years with Morton & Morton PLLC. In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be made to the G.W. Morton & Birdie Mae Morton Memorial Scholarship at Lincoln Memorial University, Cumberland Gap Parkway, Harrogate, TN 37752. A private graveside service will be held at Greenwood Cemetery in Knoxville.