The Community Legal Center (CLC) and Memphis Area Legal Services Inc. (MALS) are joining forces to host a hybrid virtual/drive-through wills clinic this month. On Nov. 10 at 1 p.m. CST, attorneys will meet with qualified applicants via Zoom to gather information for the will. Applicants will then attend a drive-through event on Nov. 20 from noon until 2 p.m. CST to sign the wills and have them witnessed and notarized. The clinic is limited to advice only and there is no expectation that CLC, MALS or other volunteer attorneys will follow up with clients. Register for the event here.

State Sen. Brian Kelsey, R-Germantown, yesterday pleaded not guilty to charges that he violated campaign finance laws, the Daily Memphian reports. Kelsey appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeffrey S. Frensley and surrendered his passport before being released on conditions. He is charged with one count each of conspiracy, directing “soft money” to a federal candidate, directing soft money from a state officeholder, making excessive campaign contributions and accepting excessive campaign contributions. Prosecutors allege the charges stem from Kelsey’s 2016 Congressional run. In a statement last week, Kelsey called the investigation a “political witch hunt.” He is represented by attorney Ty Howard.

The 16th Judicial District Circuit and Chancery court judges have announced they will each be running for reelection in 2022. Judges J. Mark Rogers, Jimmy Turner, Barry Tidwell, B. Jo Atwood, Darrell Scarlett and Chancellor Howard Wilson currently serve in the 16th Judicial District, which covers Rutherford and Cannon counties. “As judges, they are dedicated to the administration of justice and committed to upholding our laws and constitution,” a press release from the campaign says. Read the press release for more information on each judge.

Wyatt Nowlin Taylor, a former judge in Bedford County, died on Oct. 25. He was 89. Taylor served in the U.S. Army for three years, then earned his law degree from the Nashville School of Law and went into private practice in Shelbyville in 1964. Throughout his legal career, Taylor served as city attorney and was a judge in the Bedford County General Sessions and Juvenile courts for 18 years. Visitation and funeral services were held over the weekend for Taylor in Shelbyville. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to New Destiny Dog Rescue, P.O. Box 42, Wartrace, TN 37183.

Join the TBA Administrative Law Section for its annual forum on Dec. 3 from 9 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. CDT. Worth two general and one dual CLE hours, the program will begin with a session covering Supreme Court changes to the Rules of Professional Conduct and the Rules for Disciplinary Enforcement. It will also feature a session on recent updates related to the Tennessee Public Records and Open Meetings Act and a panel discussion that explores the UAPA and environmental contested cases. Learn more and register for the program here.

The University of Tennessee College of Law has announced five finalists in its search for dean. Candidates are: Melanie B. Jacobs, Michigan State University College of Law; Zachary A. Kramer, Arizona State University, Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law; Lonnie. T. Brown Jr., University of Georgia School of Law; Nicola A. Boothe, Boston University School of Law; and W. Jonathan Cardi, Wake Forest University School of Law. Each finalist will give a community presentation on campus beginning next week. Visit the College of Law’s website for a presentation schedule and to read more about the candidates.

Legislators were expected to vote today on a measure that would allow the attorney general to temporarily replace local district attorneys on cases they refuse to prosecute, the Tennessean reports. The bill, sponsored by House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, advanced in the Senate and House yesterday. The new bill would allow the attorney general to ask the court to install a temporary prosecutor to handle all cases charged under an offense that a district attorney “peremptorily and categorically” announced they would not prosecute. The court would still retain the authority to decide whether the circumstances merited the district attorney pro tem. Supporters of the bill said it is aimed at prosecutors "taking a rogue approach on multiple issues and refusing to uphold their oath of office.” Rep. London Lamar, D-Memphis, opposed the measure. “This is muddying the water on the separation of powers just because we don’t like the court’s decisions and the way they let their district attorneys operate,” she said.

A juvenile who was incarcerated for three days in 2016 is suing Rutherford County Juvenile Court Judge Donna Scott Davenport and Juvenile Detention Center Director Lynn Duke for $15 million, the Daily News Journal reports. The plaintiff, who was 10 at the time of incarceration, was arrested for allegedly encouraging an off-campus fight which, according to the lawsuit, he was not actually present for. The suit pointed to a 2017 ruling by Chief U.S. District Court Judge Waverly D. Crenshaw Jr., which said that the juvenile center was illegally incarcerating children accused of misdemeanors based on Davenport's 2003 order and memorandum in asking officers to "arrest all" children facing charges. Last month, Rutherford County agreed to pay $11 million to settle a class action lawsuit brought on behalf of juveniles wrongly detained by the county. A report from Nashville Public Radio and ProPublica earlier this month revealed the county’s “staggering history of jailing children” and its use of an illegal filtering system for determining which children go to jail.

Knox County District Attorney General Charme Allen is expressing concern over proposed legislation that would alter the length of a life sentence in Tennessee, WATE.com reports. State law defines a life sentence as 60 years, with the possibility of parole after serving 85%, or 51 years. House Bill 1532/Senate Bill 0561 would allow parole eligibility after 60% of a life sentence is served, or 36 years. Allen says she’s worried the new bill would allow those who have committed first-degree murder to be released even earlier if they earn certain credits. Though the bill does require a 25-year minimum sentence, Allen believes a life sentence “should mean more than 25 years.” She says a fiscal note from the state shows the bill would impact 1,600 inmates and would also have a retroactive effect, which would allow inmates to become eligible for parole decades before victims’ families were expecting. The fiscal note estimates the bill would save the state $1.2 million in the first year and $2.46 million for the following nine years.

James H. “Jim” Ripley has announced his campaign for chancery court judge of the 4th and 5th Judicial Districts, which cover Sevier, Jefferson, Cocke, Grainger and Blount counties. Ripley, a Republican candidate, has practiced in the 4th and 5th districts since he was licensed in 1983. The Chancery Court has previously appointed Ripley as special master to hear testimony and provide legal opinions in complex legal matters. Ripley is a past president of the Sevier County Bar Association, a TBA member and a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates. Ripley says he “will bring 38 years’ experience with a focus on integrity, fairness and common sense in the finest tradition of my predecessors” if elected. Read his campaign announcement here.