District Attorney Jody Pickens was honored last weekend by the Tennessee Constables Association, the Jackson Sun reports. Pickens, who serves Chester, Henderson and Madison counties, was named District Attorney of the Year at the association’s annual convention. It was the first time the association has held its annual convention in West Tennessee. In accepting the award, Pickens said he was humbled by the selection and said the group is an “important part of the judicial process ... in Madison County.”

Lincoln Memorial University Duncan School of Law Vice President and Dean Matt Lyon today announced Knoxville attorney Maha Ayesh has been appointed director of experiential learning and assistant professor of law. In her new position, Ayesh will oversee LMU Law’s externship program and help further develop the school’s experiential learning course offerings, designed to build students’ transactional and litigation skills. Prior to joining LMU Law, Ayesh practiced in employment and civil rights litigation at Jennifer Morton Law. Ayesh was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship in 2011, through which she worked and researched in the field of human trafficking and the rights of migrant domestic workers in Amman, Jordan. “One of the things that impresses me the most about LMU Law is its focus on producing practice-ready graduates who want to change their world for the better,” Ayesh said. 

The state Supreme Court today temporarily suspended attorney Robert R. Rexrode from the practice of law after he failed to respond to the Board of Professional Responsibility regarding a complaint of misconduct. Section 12.3 of Supreme Court Rule 9 provides for the immediate summary suspension of an attorney’s license to practice law if an attorney fails to respond to a complaint of misconduct. Rexrode must immediately stop accepting any new cases and must cease representing existing clients by Oct. 25.  The suspension will remain in effect until dissolution or modification by the Supreme Court, which Rexrode may for good cause request by petition to the high court.

TBA CLE will present the 2020 Environmental Law Forum on Dec. 2 from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. CST via Zoom Webinar. This year's forum will feature updates regarding PFAS litigation, OSHA compliance for environmental professionals, ethics and much more. Learn from seasoned professionals while earning three dual and one general credit hours of CLE. Zoom connection information will be emailed to registrants the week of the program.

District Judge Eli Richardson on Wednesday blocked a request from voting rights advocates asking him to remove a state law that imposes felony charges against anyone who shares absentee ballot applications, if they’re not an election commission employee, the Tennessean reports. Tennessee is the only state to impose such a restriction and plaintiffs in the case argued the threat of heavy criminal charges infringes on their right to constitutionally protected free speech by creating a system where fear of punishment overburdens those seeking to speak. Richardson ruled in favor of the state, refusing to temporarily block it from enforcing the felony provision.

On Monday, the Memphis legal community gathered on the steps of the Shelby County Courthouse to celebrate and honor the memory of the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The event was organized by attorney and TBA member Jessica Indingaro, who is the assistant county attorney and disproportionate minority contact coordinator for Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris’ office. Indingaro spoke to the Daily Memphian about Ginsburg, saying the justice had an unconventional career “because she had to be unconventional. Women in the South can really relate to that." Indingaro earned her law degree from Syracuse University College of Law and was previously an attorney with Glankler Brown in Memphis. She is a member of the Junior League of Memphis and the TBA’s Juvenile & Children’s Law Section.

For the first time since 1925, Dickson County court will now be held in the City of Dickson, the Tennessean reports. Health requirements related to the COVID-19 pandemic and a backlog of 1,200 cases prompted the venue change and trials will now take place at the War Memorial Building in downtown Dickson. Dickson County court was last held in the City of Dickson in 1925, the same year the state condemned the county’s courthouse on Main Street. Then, in April 1927, the county “quarterly court,” which was the previous name for the county commission, voted to move the Dickson County seat and courthouse to Charlotte. Dickson County Circuit Court Judge David Wolfe got the idea to use the 87-year-old War Memorial Building, noting that the courtrooms in Charlotte didn’t have enough space for jury members to stay six feet apart in the jury box. Wolfe said an improved sound system has been set up for the War Memorial Building space, and a YouTube channel has been created to view trials. Everyone who enters the court is also required to wear masks, including those who testify. 

Judge Amy Coney Barrett, a frontrunner to fill the U.S. Supreme Court vacancy created by the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, is a Rhodes College graduate, the Daily Memphian reports. Barrett, who was also a favorite in 2018 to fill a SCOTUS vacancy created by the retirement of Justice Anthony Kennedy, is a member of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. President Donald Trump met with Barrett yesterday and tweeted that he planned to nominate a woman to the post by the end of the week. Others on the short list are Appeals Court Judge Allison Jones Rushing and White House Deputy Counsel Kate Todd, according to reports. If selected, Barrett would be the second Rhodes College graduate to hold a seat on the U.S. Supreme Court, following Justice Abe Fortas, who graduated in 1930 from Rhodes when it was called Southwestern.

U.S. District Judge Jon McCalla on Monday agreed to several changes to a 41-year old consent decree governing police surveillance, the Daily Memphian reports, but rejected two other requests from the city. McCalla accepted many of the modifications agreed upon beforehand by the city and the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee, but he denied the city’s request that it be allowed to work jointly with other law enforcement agencies and its request to share information with private companies. McCalla ruled in 2018 that the city violated the decree when it conducted surveillance on protestors, prompting the city’s request for modifications.

Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands this week announced it has promoted Brittany Curry to serve as director of development. Curry joined LAS in 2017 as the firm’s hiring manager and Nashville office manager. In her new role, she will be responsible for managing fundraising strategy and fostering a culture of deep-rooted philanthropy and advocacy for the largest nonprofit law firm in Tennessee. Before joining Legal Aid Society, Curry worked as an office coordinator and account manager for TA Staffing. Her other previous work experience includes management, marketing and acting as a client liaison. See the full press release from LAS.