As the Tennessee General Assembly begins to wind down for the year, TBA Public Policy and Government Affairs Director Berkley Schwarz and Adams and Reese attorney and TBA lobbyist Brad Lampley discuss where several TBA-sponsored bills currently stand on today’s episode of the Legislative Updates podcast. The TBA, with much help from President Michelle Greenway Sellers, was able to work with sponsors on an amendment that removed a cap on attorney’s fees from House Bill 1386/Senate Bill 282. The bill to eliminate the professional privilege tax, SB884/HB519, is currently in budget discussions and Lampley is optimistic that the tax will see “some degree of reduction.” All that and more on today’s episode, which can be found on the TBA’s Facebook page, website and anywhere you listen to podcasts.  

The news item on Jerry Morgan’s lawsuit against the Board of Professional Responsibility (BPR) in yesterday’s issue incorrectly stated Morgan's length of employment with the BPR. Morgan had worked at the BPR since 2019.

Nashville attorney Jerry Morgan has filed a federal lawsuit against the Board of Professional Responsibility (BPR) for what he claims is a violation of his civil rights, Nashville’s NewsChannel5 reports. The suit claims Morgan was terminated in December 2020 after an attorney under investigation by the BPR filed a motion accusing him of being an “extreme anti-Muslim bigot” and arguing that Morgan might be biased against the attorney whose wife is Muslim. The motion cited several tweets from Morgan posted during the 2016 and 2020 elections. In a December email, the BPR told Morgan that his “speech has adversely impacted your ability to successfully perform your job duties,” and he was let go. Morgan disputes that claim, citing lack of any ethical violation against him. “I was terminated solely based on my political speech,” Morgan said. Read the full complaint here.

West Tennessee Legal Services will host its annual Law Day event on May 3 from 1 to 2:30 p.m. CDT. West Tennessee native Jim Emison is set to present on this year’s theme, “Advancing the Rule of Law Now.” Emison is an award winning lawyer who has been investigating the civil rights cold case murder of Elbert Williams in Brownsville, Tennessee. WTLS will also be recognizing pro bono attorneys in the area for their continued commitment to providing access to justice for all West Tennesseans. The free event will be held virtually and online registration is now open.

U.S. District Judge Eli Richardson yesterday ordered the state to remove two men from the sex offender registry, the Associated Press reports. The ruling only affects two men who sued after being placed on the registry retroactively. Richardson had already ruled in February that parts of the law violated the Ex Post Facto Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which prevents people from being punished by a law passed after their crime was committed. Yesterday he ordered the state to stop enforcing any part of the law against the two plaintiffs and to remove their names from the sex offender registry.

Tennessee yesterday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reinstate a 48-hour waiting period for abortions while the case challenging it makes its way through the appeals process, Reuters reports. The 2015 law requires women to wait at least 48 hours before moving forward with an abortion. It was struck down by a district court judge in October who said the law placed an unconstitutional burden on women. The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in February denied the state’s request to stay the lower court’s order, but the appeal was allowed to proceed. In its filing with the high court, the state noted that 14 other states have similar laws, but that “Tennessee is the only state in the nation that cannot enforce its law because of a federal judicial decree.” It further defended the law, saying that “some women will choose abortion without making an ‘informed and deliberate’ decision ... and some will later come to regret that irreversible decision.”

The Appellate Court Clerk’s Jackson Office is mourning the recent loss of two employees. Mia Ladonna Myles, who served as a deputy clerk in the Appellate Court Clerk’s Office Western Division, died on April 3 after a brief illness. Her 25th anniversary with the clerk’s office would have been in October. Dorsey Lazenby, who served as a staff clerk in the same office died on April 5 after an accident. She had recently celebrated 25 years of service with the state. Clerk of the Appellate Courts Jim Hivner sent his condolences to the families. “Mia and Dorsey were both kind, dedicated, and vibrant individuals and will be dearly missed,” he said.

Attorney General Herbert Slatery has joined Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron in a lawsuit challenging a mandate from the Biden Administration in the American Rescue Plan Act, which was signed into law last month. The economic stimulus bill includes nearly $2 trillion and allocates roughly $200 billion to help state governments with COVID-19 relief. To receive the aid, the bill requires states to comply with a tax mandate that prevents it from lowering taxes for its citizens for four years. The lawsuit argues that the tax mandate unconstitutionally usurps the authority of each state’s legislature to enact beneficial tax policies. Tennessee expects to receive about $3.7 billion under the Act, more than one fifth of Tennessee’s annual general revenue. Read more from the AG’s office.

Attorney General Herbert Slatery has asked the U.S. Department of Education to cancel federal student loan debt for some students who attended ITT Technical Institute. The defunct for-profit school defrauded thousands by encouraging them to enroll and borrow money based on false and misleading information about the value of an ITT degree. The Department of Education is able to forgive federal student loans when borrowers were deceived in obtaining them. Slatery joined a coalition of attorneys general from 24 states and the District of Columbia who are asking for full relief for ITT students who attended the school between 2007 and 2011. Read more on the AG’s website.

Jury trials restarted this week in Nashville after more than one year of being shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Tennessean reports. Davidson County shut down most in-person court proceedings in March 2020 after the Tennessee Supreme Court issued a precautionary COVID-19 order. Two cases were docketed for Monday morning, but one was again delayed after the defendant was quarantined over the weekend. Concerns were raised by some in the criminal justice community about whether restarting jury calls during the pandemic would create unbalanced juries, with potential jurors limited by health conditions, access to childcare or other factors enhanced by the pandemic. Trial Courts Administrator Tim Townsend said it was “too early to tell,” if that is the case. He added that Monday’s pool of potential jurors was “a very good looking crowd as far as some diversity.”