Join the TBA for a free administrative law webinar on Sept. 26 from noon until 1 p.m. CDT. “An Administrative Law Primer for the Uninitiated” will cover administrative law basics and best practices and will be led by Lincoln Memorial University Duncan School of Law Associate Professor Akram Faizer. The event is free and open to all TBA members, however, there is a filing fee of $50 to receive CLE credit. Learn more and register here.

Adnan Syed, a Baltimore man convicted of the 1999 murder of Hae Min Lee, was yesterday released to home detention after a judge vacated his conviction, the ABA Journal reports. Syed, whose case was covered in the hit podcast Serial, was ordered to be released by Judge Melissa M. Phinn of Baltimore after prosecutors said the defense was never given information about two “alternative suspects.” Prosecutors said in the motion they wanted to vacate Syed’s conviction, but they would decide later whether they will move to drop the case. Their decision will depend on the results of their ongoing investigation, they said.

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti has joined Montana’s attorney general in heading up a coalition of 24 states in alerting three major credit card companies that a new “merchant category code” created to process firearms purchases from gun stores potentially violates consumer protection and antitrust laws. A letter from the coalition to American Express, Mastercard and Visa states that the monitoring and tracking of firearms purchases establishes a “list of gun buyers” and creates a risk that consumer information might be obtained and misused. “Giant financial companies must not use their combined market power to circumvent our representative democracy,” Skrmetti said in a release. Read more from the AG’s office.  

The TBA’s Court Square Series is headed for Clarksville on Nov. 2. This three-hour program will provide attorneys with the latest developments in multiple areas of the law. Kick off the afternoon with a lunch and learn networking session with TBA leadership. Other substantive CLE topics will be announced soon. Programming will run from 11:30 a.m. until 3:15 p.m. CDT at Clarksville’s Customs House Museum. Learn more and register here.

Members from across the state made their way to the Tennessee Bar Association today to tour the organization’s new office space and talk with staff and fellow members. The TBA moved to the new office, located at 3310 West End Ave., Ste. 590 in Nashville, earlier this summer after 20 years at its downtown location. 

The TBA Young Lawyers Division is partnering with the Tennessee Supreme Court Access to Justice Initiative, Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands, Legal Aid of East Tennessee, Belmont Law and others to offer a virtual debt relief clinic to Tennessee citizens. In celebration of Celebrate Pro Bono Month in October, the next clinic will be held on Oct. 8 from 9 to 11 a.m. CDT. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Charles Walker will begin the clinic with an overview about bankruptcy. Clinic clients then will be paired with volunteer attorneys in break-out Zoom rooms for counsel and advice about debt relief options, with referral for pro bono representation for those who qualify for chapter 7 bankruptcy. If you are able to serve on October 8 from 9 to 11 CDT, please sign up here. For questions, please contact Alix Rogers at Alexandra.rogers@belmont.edu.

Dickson County Chancery Court Clerk and Master Nancy Miller is set to retire this week after 50 years of service, the Tennessean reports. Miller was hired in 1972 and spent nearly five years as chief deputy to former Clerk and Master Jesse Miller. She was sworn in by Chancellor Alex Darnell in 1977 at the age of 26, becoming one of, if not the youngest clerk and master in the state. The 23rd Judicial Circuit Judges David Wolfe, Larry Wallace and Lockert-Mash have announced the appointment of Miller’s Chief Deputy Lynn Collins as the next clerk and master for Dickson County.

Knox County lawyer Daniel Forrest Wilkins was today temporarily suspended from the practice of law by the Tennessee Supreme Court. Wilkins failed to respond to the Board of Professional Responsibility regarding a complaint of misconduct, resulting in immediate summary suspension of his law license. Wilkins must cease representing existing clients by Oct. 15.

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti is joining 17 attorneys general in urging President Joe Biden to classify fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction in response to the increase in overdose deaths nationwide. “Fentanyl has caused too many tragic deaths on an individual level and, as we have seen overseas, it can also be weaponized to cause mass casualties,” Skrmetti said. He called on “governments at every level” to take a “broad-spectrum approach” to protect Americans from the drug. According to the AG’s office, classifying fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction would require the Department of Homeland Security and the Drug Enforcement Administration to coordinate a response with other agencies, including the Department of Defense. Read the letter from the attorneys general.

The University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law will host the second annual Counselor’s Closet Clothing Drive on Sept. 20 from 5:30 to 8 p.m. CDT. The event, co-sponsored by the Memphis Bar Association, aims to help all law students gain access to professional clothing. Donated clothing should be gently used, dry cleaned and ready to wear. To make a donation, drive to the back of the law school at 3720 Alumni Ave. and a volunteer will meet you and pick up your donation.