Retired 22nd Judicial District Judge Jim Travis Hamilton of Columbia died on Sept. 18. He was 81. Hamilton earned his law degree from Memphis State University School of Law in 1966. When he was just 26, Hamilton was elected mayor of his hometown, Selmer, Tennessee, making him one of the youngest mayors in the United States. Hamilton was elected to the bench for the 22nd Judicial District Circuit Court in 1982 and served until 2015. He had for 15 years been an adjunct professor for the Criminal Justice Department at Cumberland University and sat on the University Board of Trustees. He was also an adjunct professor at Martin Methodist College in Pulaski.

Nashville lawyer Robert Lee Ballow died yesterday. He was 91. Ballow, an east Nashville native, graduated from the Nashville School of Law at the top of his class in 1963. He opened King & Ballow with Frank S. King in 1969, growing it into a national law firm that represented newspapers and other media companies in every state. Ballow was a member of the Media Law Reporter Advisory Board and was previously a guest lecturer for the American Press Institute and Vanderbilt University. He is past president of the Southern Circulation Managers Association and twice served as chair of the Southern Newspaper Publishers Executive Clinic. A memorial service will be held at a later date.

A man sentenced to 162 years in prison for theft and forgery will soon be released after a judge cut back his sentence to 15 years, the Associated Press reports. Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Paula Skahan asked the district attorney’s office to investigate the sentence of Courtney Anderson, who was given the long prison term in 2000 after having been found to be a repeat offender. The DA found legal ground for reopening the case and Skahan cut Anderson’s sentence down to 15 years on Tuesday. “This was clearly an excessive sentence, the kind of overreaction that sows distrust in our system and doesn’t make us safer,” Shelby County District Attorney General Steve Mulroy said in a statement.

A new book on the life of the late Judge Gilbert S. Merritt is set to be released next month in Nashville. A Sense of Justice: Judge Gilbert S. Merritt and His Times was written by author and columnist for The Tennessean, Keel Hunt. It is a social biography of Merritt, who was one of the nation’s youngest U.S. attorneys, a congressional candidate, judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit and almost a justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. According to the book’s summary, it “depicts a much deeper weave of the power of friendship and loyalty, the influence of history upon individuals and generations, and of how communities of interest formed and evolved over time in our nation—and of how it is all connected.” A free book launch will take place on Jan. 17, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. CST at Parnassus Books in Nashville. Register for the event here.  

Baker Donelson is seeking an associate with three to four years of trial and complex litigation experience to join its Nashville office. The associate will work closely with senior litigators who will provide active mentoring and client contact. Preferred skills include analytical aptitude with deposition, discovery, motion practice and trial experience. The TBA’s JobLink page has more on the position and instructions on how to apply.  

If you missed out on attending this year’s “Raising the Bar: Recognizing Resiliency During Times of Change” program, it is now available online in a 1-Click package. Produced by the TBA Women in the Profession Committee, watch as an all-star lineup of female attorneys and judges from across the state discuss career adversity, flourishing in traditional and non-traditional legal careers, women helping women, productivity and much more. Watch the program now and earn 4.5 dual credits of CLE. Be sure to mark your calendar for next year's Raising the Bar program, which will take place on Nov. 2, 2023.

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti yesterday released a statement saying his office would continue to gather evidence and investigate complaints regarding issues with Ticketmaster’s presale of Taylor Swift tickets. The statement was released after Ticketmaster announced it would be giving some Swift fans a second chance at purchasing tickets. Skrmetti called the effort a “short-term solution for a long-term problem,” adding his Consumer Protection team was still investigating the incident. “We are working hard to deliver lasting change and a fair ticket-buying experience for all consumers,” Skrmetti said in the statement. Read more from the AG’s office.

Attorneys representing the City of Memphis have asked a judge to dismiss a lawsuit from rape victim Alicia Franklin, arguing Memphis police had no duty to investigate her case to the extent she believes was needed. Cleotha Henderson has been charged with Franklin’s 2021 rape and with the kidnapping and murder of Memphis jogger Eliza Fletcher. Franklin sued the city for failing to investigate her case properly, claiming the failure to arrest Henderson led to the death of Fletcher – a claim the city called “immaterial, impertinent and scandalous” in its Dec. 6 motion. The city is asking Circuit Court Judge Mary L. Wagner to dismiss the case or, alternatively, to strike all references to Fletcher and delays in the testing of rape kits from the plaintiff’s complaint. Read more from the Daily Memphian.

U.S. Supreme Court justices will again announce decided cases from the bench, a practice that was paused during the COVID-19 pandemic. Oral arguments before the court continue to be livestreamed to the public, but the court said its opinion announcements will not. Instead, audio of the opinions will be available from the National Archives next term. The last time the justices delivered an opinion from the bench was March 3, 2020. Since then, the court has released opinions online. Read more from Bloomberg Law.

A new episode of the TBA’s Sidebar podcast is now streaming, featuring Administrative Law Section members Jerry Taylor of Thompson Burton and Bill Penny of Burr & Forman. Taylor and Penny discuss judicial deference to agency expertise in federal and in state courts and how agencies evaluate and interpret rules and statutes. The episode was produced by the Administrative Law Section and its chair, Rita Gibson Rayford. The section will host its annual forum on Dec. 15 from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. CST at Burr & Forman in Nashville and also via Zoom. Register for the event here.