Butler Snow attorney and former TBA President Randall Noel last week testified before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee regarding an evaluation of U.S. Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett, the ABA Journal reports. Noel, who is chair of the ABA Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary, spoke about the committee’s evaluation process and explained how Barrett earned a “well qualified” rating. In his prepared remarks, Noel explained the evaluation is “based solely on its comprehensive, nonpartisan, non-ideological peer review of the nominee’s integrity, professional competence, and judicial temperament.” Noel is a partner at Butler Snow in Memphis and is engaged in a civil trial practice, with an emphasis on commercial, banking, antitrust, data security and products liability matters.

Davidson County attorney C. LeAnn Smith yesterday received a public censure from the Board of Professional Responsibility of the Tennessee Supreme Court. In a custody matter in which she was a party, Smith lied under oath during a deposition in response to questions about her use of alcohol in the presence of the child. Smith’s conduct was not done in the representation of a client and she admitted her conduct under oath in her trial testimony in the same proceeding. The public censure does not affect Smith’s ability to practice law, but she must complete an assessment with the Tennessee Lawyers Assistance programs within 60 days, and follow any recommendations they make.

Produced by the Dispute Resolution Section, this roundtable-style CLE session offers attendees an opportunity to interactively converse about non-monetary issues that arise in business and commercial disputes. The program will take place on Nov. 9 from noon to 1 p.m. CST via Zoom to allow attendees the opportunity to exchange ideas and thoughts with the speakers and other attendees. Dispute Resolution and Business Law Section members receive the discounted section member pricing. Register for the program here.

U.S. Attorney General William Barr will visit the Memphis Police Department's Ridgeway Station tomorrow afternoon to talk about Operation LeGend, the Commercial Appeal reports. The government describes Operation LeGend as an effort to bring additional federal officers to combat violent crime in Memphis. It is named after a young boy who was killed in gun violence. Memphis and several other cities are participating in the initiative.

Three people with Better Days Tax Service in Memphis have been charged with wire fraud and conspiracy to defraud the U.S. after allegedly fraudulently obtaining $1.1 million from COVID-19-related economic injury disaster loans, the Daily Memphian reports. U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee D. Michael Dunavant announced the charges today, accusing the defendants of filing 401 fraudulent applications for Economic Injury Disaster Loans for people impacted by the pandemic. The approved loans netted approximately $1.1 million. If convicted, each defendant faces up to 30 years in federal prison.

A poll worker in Shelby County was fired yesterday after he turned away voters wearing t-shirts and masks that said “Black Lives Matter,” the Commercial Appeal reports. While state law prohibits voters from wearing items with the name of a political party or candidate currently on the ballot into a polling location, statements like “Black Lives Matter” or “I Can’t Breathe” do not violate that law. “What he did was patently wrong and he was fired,” said Suzanne Thompson, spokeswoman for the Shelby County Election Commission. The worker was fired on the spot from the polling site at Dave Wells Community Center in Memphis after election officials confirmed the reports.

The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday declined to reinstate a law requiring first-time voters to cast a ballot in-person or show ID at the local election office before voting absentee, the Associated Press reports. The 3-0 decision maintains a lower court’s order last month. In Monday’s opinion, Judge Julia Smith Gibbons said “disrupting the new rules at this point poses significant risk of harm to the public interest in orderly elections.” Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, said the ruling, coupled with expanded eligibility, means “thousands of first-time voters should not be forced to risk their health in order to vote.”

The U.S. Supreme Court last week decided it would not consider Tennessee’s lawsuit against the federal government over refugee resettlement funds, the Tennessean reports. The SCOTUS decision ends a years long legal battle over the matter, which was originally dismissed by a federal judge in March 2018 and again by the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in July 2019. Attorneys for the state have argued that the federal government was forcing states to pay for refugee resettlement, violating the 10th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The lawsuit made Tennessee the first in the nation to sue the federal government over refugee resettlement under the 10th Amendment, which guides the split of powers between states and the federal government

The Tennessee Faith & Justice Alliance will kick off its fourth annual Pro Bono & Faith Days this month with virtual training programs for each of the state’s grand divisions. The programs will feature a panel discussion around the intersection of faith, pro bono and racial justice, legal resource trainings from Tennessee Access to Justice Partners and free virtual legal clinic information. These free programs are designed for faith and community leaders, but all are welcome. Registration is required for each event. The schedule is as follows: West Tennessee on Oct. 26, Middle Tennessee on Oct. 28 and East Tennessee on Oct. 30.

The TBA’s Young Lawyers Division will continue its virtual law school visits this week, with calls scheduled with students at the Nashville School of Law tomorrow and Vanderbilt University Law School on Wednesday. This year's program will focus on the “Road to Success” for 3L and 4L students. YLD members will share their experiences on topics including how they chose their practice area, bar exam study tips and habits, how to network as a law student and young professional, mental health wellness and more. For more information, contact YLD Coordinator Stephanie Vonhamme.