Gov. Bill Lee announced today that he has appointed Logan Hampton, president of Lane College, to the state Capitol Commission, the Knoxville News Sentinel reports. Lee also named Department of Finance and Administration Commissioner Butch Eley as the new chairman of the commission, replacing Stuart McWhorter, who was chairman before leaving the Lee administration to enter the private sector. The commission is responsible for deciding whether the keep or remove the controversial Nathan Bedford Forrest bust that sits on the second floor of the state Capitol. After hearing arguments from both sides in February, then-chairman McWhorter said the group would not decide until all its vacancies had been filled. Hampton replaces former Jackson Police Department Deputy Chief Tyreece Miller, who left the post after being nominated by President Trump to serve as U.S. marshal for the Western District of Tennessee. One vacancy is left to fill after the recent death of commission member Reavis Mitchell. Lee said he will call the commission to meet shortly after all vacancies are filled.

A bill that reforms Tennessee’s drug-free school zone law passed through the state House and Senate last week, but advocates of the reform say it doesn’t completely fix the problem. The drug-free law, which dates back to 1995, adds mandatory minimum sentences for drug sales that take place near schools, daycare facilities, public libraries, recreation centers and parks and upgrades convictions to the next felony grade. Under the new legislation, HB2517/SB2734, drug-free zones shrink to 500 feet, judges are allowed more flexibility in sentencing and those convicted under the law will now be eligible for parole. However, the bill is not retroactive and about 400 people who were sentenced under the old law will remain in prison. Nashville attorney Daniel Horowitz, who has already helped free one client and is working to free another, wants Gov. Bill Lee to commute the sentences of those serving time under the old law. WPLN has the full story.

Davidson County Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle has ruled that Metro’s Sports Authority violated the Open Meetings Act in November 2018 when it met to approve the contract for a new professional soccer stadium, WPLN reports. Lyle says that $192 million contract between Metro and Mortenson/Messer Construction Company has no effect. The ruling states that the delayed 48-hour notice of the irregularly scheduled meeting to approve the contract, “when there was no immediate urgency or emergency for such short notice, was inadequate notice to the public.” In the lawsuit, Metro said it hadn’t violated the Open Meetings Act because the public can only observe Sports Authority meetings, but there’s no allocated time for comments. Lyle called that argument “irrelevant.” Metro will now have to reaffirm the contract in a public meeting if it wants to move forward with the stadium.

The Tennessee Supreme Court today released a statement reinforcing its commitment to providing equal justice for all Tennesseans. To help ensure that justice is served for all, the high court will continue to provide implicit bias training for all judges and says it has also directed the Access to Justice Commission to “establish a new initiative to identify and eliminate barriers to racial and ethnic fairness and justice.” The commission will work to advise the court on how to effect change in the areas of education and training, the judicial environment and court policies and procedures that in any way lead to racial bias. “Change is needed and only can happen through listening, as well as valuing and respecting a myriad of voices with different perspectives and views,” the statement says. “Our commitment today is another step in what will be a long, sustained journey.” Read the full statement from the State Courts website.

A crowd of more than 150 people, most of them lawyers, marched through the streets of Memphis yesterday during the Bar Unity March to protest racism. The Memphis Bar Association, Ben F. Jones Chapter of the National Bar Association and the Association for Women Attorneys organized the event to show the Memphis legal community’s recognition of racism in the legal system and to show their commitment to creating change. Marchers gathered at the Walter L. Bailey Jr. Criminal Justice Center at 201 Poplar at 8:46 a.m., signifying the 8 minutes and 46 seconds a now-fired Minneapolis police officer knelt on the neck of George Floyd, ultimately causing his death. The crowd heard remarks from attorney leaders and observed 8 minutes and 46 seconds of silence in Floyd’s honor before marching to the Juvenile Courthouse and back. TBA Young Lawyers Division President Terica Smith spoke at the march and urged lawyers to “choose accountability and be a voice for those who are systematically oppressed and prejudiced.” Read more from the Commercial Appeal. 

The Tennessee Supreme Court ruled yesterday that it will not block a judge’s order allowing a vote-by-mail option for all eligible voters during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Tennessean reports. Davidson County Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle earlier this month ordered that expansion to protect the health of voters during the pandemic. The majority of the justices voted against stopping the absentee voting expansion pending appeal, but agreed with the state’s wish to fast-track the appeal without a lower appellate court considering it. State officials have opposed the expansion, saying it wouldn’t be feasible due to lack of money, personnel and equipment. The high court wrote that it considered those issues, but found that the state “has not met its burden of demonstrating that the balance of the relevant factors weighs in favor of a stay pending appeal." Voters can apply for an absentee ballot until July 30.

The Intellectual Property Law Forum originally scheduled for April 17 will now be a virtual CLE event, held over two days, July 15 - 16. The TBA's IP Section Executive Council has put together a compelling program to discuss IP with vices front and center. The first day of the program will provide accounts of bad actors running afoul of trade secret law, provide insight into the life of hackers and finish with ways to avoid trouble with online information. The sessions run from 1 to 4 p.m. CDT. Attendees can earn one dual and two general CLE hours. The program continues on day two exploring the various forms of available IP protection for the cannabis industry and ends with insights into how to best distinguish and protect your home brew from others. Those sessions run from 1 to 3 p.m. CDT. Attendees can earn two general CLE hours. In an effort to provide flexibility, attorneys can register to attend day one, day two or the full, two-day program.  Find out more about the sessions, speakers and registration options available by clicking here.

The Tennessee Lawyers’ Association for Women has issued a statement urging its members to “confront and combat” racism. The statement comes in response to the murder of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis, as well as the killings of Ahmad Arbery, Breonna Taylor and others. “As officers of the courts and defenders of the rule of law, we stand uniquely positioned to support all our Black colleagues in the pursuit of justice and equity,” the statement reads. “We urge all of our members to confront and combat all forms of racism, whenever and wherever we see it, to speak out against racism in institutions that are not proactive in preventing it and against individuals who perpetrate it.” Read the full statement on TLAW’s Facebook page.

The University of Tennessee College of Law has hired Charisse Heath to serve as the director of its Academic Success Program, the law school’s website reports. Heath will be responsible for providing instruction, counseling and providing assistance to students throughout the course of their academic careers at the College of Law. She’ll also offer guidance for students preparing for the bar exam. Heath earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Yale University and her law degree from Yale Law School. Most recently, she was assistant dean at the University of Detroit Mercy and has previously taught courses in contracts, sales law, secured transactions, commercial transactions and food and drug law.  

The Tennessee General Assembly passed a bill last week requiring jails and prisons to provide healthy meals and medical care to women both before and after they give birth, WPLN reports. The legislation, SB1839/HB1651, passed unanimously through the House and Senate. The Tennessee Department of Correction already has policies in place to provide special diets for pregnant inmates, but pregnancy-related care is not uniformly administered in the correctional system, especially among the dozens of county jails. The bill is meant to standardize access at both prisons and jails.