Davidson County Chancellor Anne Martin heard arguments via teleconference from the state and Davidson and Shelby counties on Wednesday over Gov. Bill Lee’s education savings account program, the Nashville Post reports. Both counties sued the state over the voucher program, arguing that it unfairly targeted the state’s two largest school systems. The law, which would give qualifying students in Davidson and Shelby counties $7,000 to spend on private-school tuition, was opposed by most lawmakers from both counties. Additionally, Metro attorneys argued the program was designed to benefit only students from high-performing schools. Martin said she would rule on the motions to dismiss or to enjoin the voucher plan’s implementation within a week, a timeline expedited by the stalled application process for next school year.

Two hundred sixty-six pretrial detainees and jail employees at 201 Poplar have been tested for COVID-19, with more than 70% testing positive, the Daily Memphian reports. According to numbers provided by Shelby County Health Department Director Dr. Alisa Haushalter on Wednesday, of those 266, 155 inmates and 37 employees were positive. Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner said detainees who tested positive had been quarantined in a sterilized environment and that all of them were asymptomatic. The inmates who tested positive are in the jail on felony charges with the most serious charge being first-degree murder. Two jail employees are in the hospital and Jeremy Smith, a 201 Poplar corrections deputy, died from complications of the virus on April 21.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has been detrimental for so many, but, according to Massachusetts attorney and author of the LawSites legal blog, Bob Ambrogi, the legal profession might be changed for the better. In an article he wrote for Above the Law, Ambrogi lists seven ways in which the pandemic has changed the practice of law. That list includes changes to legal education, an acceleration of innovation and online services in the courts and lawyers who are more likely to embrace technology rather than fear it. Ambrogi writes that he believes many of these changes will be for the “betterment of the legal system and those it is intended to serve.” Read Ambrogi’s “7 Ways The Pandemic Will Forever Change Law Practice” article at Above the Law.  

The Tennessee Justice Center (TJC) is hosting a “MOMentous” weeklong celebration this week in honor of mothers and the organization’s 2020 Hall of Fame inductees. On May 1 at noon CDT Bill Purcell will emcee a virtual live gathering to celebrate these heroic moms and those who champion them. Watch the luncheon on Facebook live or RSVP to watch on Zoom.

TBA President Sarah Sheppeard recently announced that the 2020 TBA Annual Convention, originally scheduled to take place in-person in Knoxville, is being converted to a virtual event. The conference will take place during the week of June 15 and will include programming, networking opportunities and a virtual Lawyers Luncheon featuring award presentations and the passing of the gavel to President-elect Michelle Greenway Sellers. Scheduling and registration information will be circulated next week. “TBA appreciates its members now more than ever during this unprecedented time,” Sheppeard wrote to TBA members. 

U.S. District Judge Freda Wolfson in New Jersey on Monday ruled that lawsuits over talc products made by Johnson & Johnson can proceed, Law.com reports. There are more than 16,000 lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson nationwide, all alleging that the company’s talc products contain asbestos and can cause ovarian cancer. Johnson & Johnson sought to stop the plaintiffs’ experts from testifying, but Wolfson ruled that five of those experts could appear before juries. Wolfson’s decision comes after she held a weeklong hearing to review the admissibility of eight experts, five for the plaintiffs and three for the defense, all of which were approved, setting the stage for a battle of the experts.

All inmates at the Trousdale Turner Correctional Facility will be tested for COVID-19, the Tennessee Department of Corrections announced today. The Tennessean reports that of the 3,810 inmates tested so far at the facility, 93 are positive for the virus. Across the state, 756 inmates at seven facilities have tested positive. The vast majority of them are asymptomatic. Eight inmates were hospitalized, TDOC reported.

The Tennessee Supreme Court today upheld the Chancery Court of Davidson County’s decision to suspend Nashville attorney George H. Thompson III. After filing a nonsuit on behalf of a client, Thompson failed to refile his client’s case in a timely manner, resulting in the personal injury claim being barred by the statute of limitations. Thompson later paid the client to settle their malpractice claim against him, but failed to advise the client that they should seek independent legal counsel in reaching a settlement. The Board of Professional Responsibility imposed a one-year suspension, with 30 days active suspension and the remainder served on probation, which the Chancery Court later affirmed. The Supreme Court today concluded that Thompson failed to show that the imposed sanction was inappropriate. Read the unanimous opinion in George H. Thompson, III v. Board of Professional Responsibility of the Supreme Court of Tennessee or view the BPR's press release.

Watch the TBA’s online CLE Building the Appellate Record and Preserving Issues for Appeal: Federal Courts and quiz yourself on hot topics in appellate practice. Join Chattanooga lawyer Robert Parsley as he addresses preserving issues for appeal, the forfeiture rule and its rationale in federal appellate courts and building the appellate record in federal district courts. Available May 1 for one general CLE credit.

After six weeks of working from home, state legislative employees are headed back to the office on Monday, but under new protocols, the Tennessean reports. Those protocols will keep the Cordell Hull office building in Nashville closed to the public. Visitors, including lobbyists and constituents, will need to make an appointment with legislators to gain entry into the office, but few legislators are likely to be in the building for the next few weeks. The protocols also call for employees to wear masks, maintain six feet distance between other people and to wash their hands frequently. The legislature recessed on March 19 and will resume session on June 1, but will likely hold committee meetings in late May. The reopening comes as thousands of the state's executive branch employees have been told to work they will continue working from home until May 26, the Tennessee Journal reports.