After Sumner County General Sessions Judge Jim Hunter announced in 2021 he would not seek reelection after nearly 20 years on the bench, several local attorneys took notice. Four are running as Republicans: Ron Blanton, Russ Edwards, Kee Bryant-McCormick and Bill Whalen. The winner of that race will run against attorney Tyler Templeton, an independent candidate, in the Aug. 4 general election. The five candidates answered questions from The Portland Sun about their views of the justice system and what they would do if elected.

A plea to halt the execution of Oscar Franklin Smith was denied this morning by U.S. District Judge Aleta A. Trauger, the Tennessean reports. In her ruling Trauger wrote: "He had his day in court. These facts, viewed in the light most favorable to the plaintiff, are simply not sufficient to establish a violation of his rights to due process, to a judicial remedy, or to access the courts.” Trauger did, however, grant Smith’s request not to have an autopsy performed after his execution based on his personal religious beliefs. Yesterday, Gov. Bill Lee said he would not intervene to stop the execution, denying clemency to the prisoner. Smith is set to be executed by lethal injection on Thursday. It will be Tennessee's first execution since 2020.

A new Memphis Suffrage Monument, "Equality Trail Blazers,” was dedicated last month, the Commercial Appeal reports. Nashville sculptor Alan LeQuire created the monument to honor a number of individuals instrumental in the woman suffrage movement. Six are recognized with busts while seven are honored with etched portraits and narratives in glass. Among those included is journalist and anti-lynching activist Ida B. Wells, Mary Church Terrell, Marion Griffin, Rep. Joe Hanover, Charl Ormond Williams and Lois DeBerry, the second Black woman elected to the state legislature and the first to be named speaker pro-tempore. The monument sits on the promenade behind the University of Memphis School of Law, facing the Mississippi River. The city also renamed a section of Fourth Street in the downtown in honor of Ida B. Wells. The Commercial Appeal has more on that story.

Vanderbilt University has named a new advisory board for its Project on Unity and American Democracy designed to help bridge the gap of political polarization in the United States. Chairing the board will be former Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and two Vanderbilt faculty: presidential historian Jon Meacham and political science and law professor Samar Ali. Other members include former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, former U.S. Attorney General and current Belmont University Law School Dean Alberto Gonzales, Bill Clinton's former White House Chief of Staff Erskine Bowles, former U.S. Ambassador to China and Washington state Gov. Gary Locke, and country music artists Martina McBride, Tim McGraw and Faith Hill. Read more in a release from the school.

The Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers (APRL) is recommending that the American Bar Association replace Model Rule 5.5 with a new rule "to better reflect the way lawyers practice in the 21st Century.” The group’s proposal would allow a lawyer admitted in any U.S. jurisdiction to practice law and represent willing clients without regard to the geographic location of the lawyer or the client, the forum where the services are to be provided, or the rules that would apply at a given moment in time. Lawyers would still be subject to judicial authority in each state and the disciplinary jurisdiction of their state of licensure and any other state where they practice. The proposal was developed by the APRL’s Future of Lawyering Committee and approved by its board in March. Read the committee report and a letter from APRL President and Memphis lawyer Brian Faughnan to the ABA explaining the proposal.

The Administrative Office of the Courts yesterday announced that Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Norma McGee Ogle will retire at the end of June. Ogle was appointed to the court by then Gov. Don Sundquist in 1998. It was a career move that wasn’t on her radar even though her husband Rex Henry Ogle was serving as a circuit court judge, the AOC relates. Prior to joining the court, Ogle was in private practice in Sevierville. She earned her law degree from the University of Tennessee College of Law in 1977. Reflecting on her time on the bench, Ogle says she has loved the work, has had wonderful colleagues and has never stopped learning. Looking to the future, she hopes to see more women on the bench. “We’ve come so far, but we’re still ... a very small minority on the intermediate courts. My hope is that in the future we’ll see more women apply.”

During a recent debate, challenger Sara Beth Myers accused incumbent Davidson County District Attorney General Glenn Funk of violating the state’s “Little Hatch Act” when he recruited several prosecutors from his office to speak during a campaign forum about domestic violence. The state law prevents public officials from using taxpayer resources for elections or pressuring employees to help them get elected. In a statement, Funk said that his employees were talking about their accomplishments prosecuting domestic violence cases and used personal time off to participate. WPLN has more on the story.

Politics within the Republican party have intensified as three high-profile candidates face permanent removal from the 5th Congressional District primary ballot. Morgan Ortagus, Robby Starbuck and Baxter Lee all face formal challenges that have been filed with the Tennessee Republican Party. The challenges trigger a technical removal from the ballot per party bylaws, the Tennessean reports. The state party’s executive committee will vote by Thursday whether to add the candidates back on the ballot.

For those who would like to learn more about conservatorship work, the TBA is offering a free one-hour Zoom discussion on best practices, with a focus on general practice and small and solo firms. Nashville lawyer Amy Willoughby Bryant and Lebanon lawyer Travenia Holden will present the session on April 25 from 2-3 p.m. CDT. An optional hour of CLE credit is available for $50. For more information or questions contact TBA’s Director of Education and Professional Development Jennifer Vossler.

Nashville lawyer Gerard Stranch IV with Branstetter, Stranch & Jennings and University of Tennessee College of Law Professor Paula Schaefer recently joined a panel discussion hosted by the Jacob Burns Center for Ethics at Cardozo Law School in New York City. The session “Big Law, Big Discovery, Big Trouble,” looked at misconduct by the law firm of Arnold & Porter in its representation of Endo Pharmaceuticals, which resulted in two default judgments against the company in Tennessee. The virtual program also included Georgetown University Law Center Professor of Law Maria Glover and Cardozo Law School Professor Anthony Sebok, co-director of the Burns Center. Endo was the subject of a number of opioid-related law suits in Tennessee. Read past TBA Today coverage of those cases.