Save the date for this year’s Animal Law Forum, taking place live and in-person at the Nashville Zoo on Sept. 24. Programming will run from 8:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. CDT and will provide attendees with a unique opportunity to brush up on trends and advancements in animal law, while networking and enjoying the fun and activities the zoo offers. The zoo’s president and CEO and the board’s general counsel will discuss conservation efforts and laws affecting procurement and care for zoo animals. Other topics include ethical considerations for animals and the law, legislative updates, laws governing farm animals and more. Zoo admission, breakfast and lunch are included with the program.

Friday is the deadline to submit nominations for the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services (TALS) annual access to justice awards. The Janice M. Holder Award, the B. Riney Green Award and the New Advocate of the Year award recognize those who have contributed to Tennessee’s equal justice community. The recipients will be recognized during the annual Equal Justice University (EJU) virtual conference Sept. 21-23. Visit TALS’ award nomination page for nomination instructions, the awards nomination form, and specific eligibility and criteria for each of the three awards.

Top aides to two Republican leaders in the state House are leaving their positions for other roles in government, the Nashville Post reports. James Dunn, top aide to House Majority Leader William Lamberth, R-Portland, is the new executive director of the Tennessee Commission on Aging and Disability. He succeeds Nashville Vice Mayor Jim Shulman. Holt Whitt, previously the interim chief of staff to GOP House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, has been hired as a senior human resources adviser in Gov. Bill Lee’s administration. Whitt was placed on paid leave in January after being questioned by the FBI as part of an investigation into Tennessee lawmakers. The Tennessean reports that federal prosecutors consider Whitt a witness to possible crimes, not a suspect. 

Judge Phillip R. Hilliard has barred public access to an informal hearing on the license suspension of a facility for unaccompanied migrant children in Chattanooga, the Associated Press reports. The license of the Baptiste Group was suspended after an employee was arrested and charged with sexual battery following an investigation by the Department of Children’s Services into child abuse claims. Representing the Baptiste Group, attorney Mark Baugh argued that the names of the children housed at the facility would not be revealed and asked that the proceedings be kept open to the public and news outlets. Hilliard ultimately ruled that the state had an obligation to ensure the privacy of certain records that he said “outweighs any right or need for the proceeding to be made open at this point.” 

The YMCA Virtual Nationwide Judicial Competition is searching for volunteers to help score and preside over Zoom court sessions on July 27-29. Teenagers from more than 12 states will be competing. Morning sessions will run from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. CDT and afternoon sessions are from 2 to 4 p.m. CDT. Sessions are two hours in length and volunteers will need time at the end to fill out score sheets. Volunteer evaluators are also needed in both mock and appellate divisions. Those interested can sign up to volunteer online.        

The Tennessee Court of Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board in recent weeks has made several key rulings regarding medical records. The opinions examined the admissibility of Form C-32 at two different stages—summary judgement and at an expediated hearing. Full descriptions of those opinions can be found on the Court of Workers’ Compensation’s website.

East Ridge City Court Judge J. Cris Helton has resigned and will step down from the bench effective Aug. 1, the Chattanoogan reports. City officials say Helton cited health reasons for his departure. Helton was elected to the bench in 2014, defeating incumbent Arvin Reingold.

A Nashville woman recently named Miss Tennessee has some special connections to the Tennessee Bar Association. Tally Bevis, the daughter of Springfield attorney and TBA member Charlotte Fleming and Dan Bevis, is also the niece of TBA IT Coordinator Dave Bevis. She took home the crown Saturday during the competition in downtown Memphis. Fleming is the managing partner of the Fleming Law Firm & Mediation Center. According to the Commercial Appeal, Bevis’ social impact initiative is a nonprofit she hopes will combat voter apathy called Vote with a Vision. Her current goals for the organization are registering 10,000 voters, engaging young voters and protecting voter access—something she worries is under attack. “We see people are disproportionately affected and disenfranchised because of long wait times, voter suppression and really strict voter ID laws,” Bevis said. "It is not only a responsibility to vote, but it is a constitutional right. And so I want to protect that in the next year." Next up for Bevis is the December Miss America competition in Connecticut. 

The Tennessee Supreme Court today reversed the dismissal of a lawsuit that had been refiled after having been previously dismissed ahead of trial. The decision stems from a 2014 lawsuit filed by Regions Bank against a Shelby County man. Finding that Regions did not timely prosecute the case, the trial court dismissed the suit, but did not give notice to either party. Upon learning of the dismissal, Regions asked the trial court to set aside the dismissal and allow the suit to proceed. The court denied that request but noted the dismissal didn’t prevent Regions from refiling at a later time. However, when Regions refiled the suit, the trial court dismissed it, citing res judicata. The Supreme Court unanimously held that the original dismissal did not prevent refiling the lawsuit because that dismissal had not resolved the lawsuit on its merits. Read the high court’s opinion authored by Chief Justice Jeff Bivins on the Administrative Office of the Courts website.

Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee & the Cumberlands will host two upcoming in-person legal advice clinics and one phone clinic for members of the public with questions about housing and renters’ rights, bankruptcy, medical bills, debt collection, domestic violence, SNAP benefits and unemployment benefits. The in-person clinics will take place Saturday from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. at the McHugh Clinic, 2005 12th Ave. S. in Nashville, and on Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. CDT at Operation Stand Down Nashville, 1125 12th Ave. S. The phone clinic will be held Tuesday from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. CDT. To volunteer, contact Andrae Crismon or Kendra Cheek or call 615-780-7131.