Knox County lawyer Daniel Forrest Wilkins was today temporarily suspended from the practice of law by the Tennessee Supreme Court. Wilkins failed to respond to the Board of Professional Responsibility regarding a complaint of misconduct, resulting in immediate summary suspension of his law license. Wilkins must cease representing existing clients by Oct. 15.

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti is joining 17 attorneys general in urging President Joe Biden to classify fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction in response to the increase in overdose deaths nationwide. “Fentanyl has caused too many tragic deaths on an individual level and, as we have seen overseas, it can also be weaponized to cause mass casualties,” Skrmetti said. He called on “governments at every level” to take a “broad-spectrum approach” to protect Americans from the drug. According to the AG’s office, classifying fentanyl as a weapon of mass destruction would require the Department of Homeland Security and the Drug Enforcement Administration to coordinate a response with other agencies, including the Department of Defense. Read the letter from the attorneys general.

The University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law will host the second annual Counselor’s Closet Clothing Drive on Sept. 20 from 5:30 to 8 p.m. CDT. The event, co-sponsored by the Memphis Bar Association, aims to help all law students gain access to professional clothing. Donated clothing should be gently used, dry cleaned and ready to wear. To make a donation, drive to the back of the law school at 3720 Alumni Ave. and a volunteer will meet you and pick up your donation.

Six attorneys have submitted an application for an open Hamilton County magistrate position. The applicants are: Robert T. Davis, James Micah Guster III, Charles D. Paty, Rachel Winfrey Ortwein, Elizabeth Schmidt and Andrew Trundle. The vacancy was created after Magistrate Andrew Basler announced he was leaving the post to join the District Attorney's Office. The County Commission will interview candidates on Monday at 1:30 p.m. EDT. Read more from The Chattanoogan.

Prosecutors in Baltimore yesterday asked a judge to vacate Adnan Syed’s conviction in the 1999 murder of Hae Min Lee, the Associated Press reports. The murder and Syed’s subsequent conviction were documented in the hit podcast “Serial.” In a circuit court filing, Baltimore’s state’s attorney said a lengthy investigation uncovered possible involvement of two alternative suspects other than Syed. Prosecutors did not argue Syed’s innocence, but said they lacked confidence “in the integrity of the conviction” and recommended he be released on his own recognizance or bail. If the court grants the motion, it would effectively put Syed in a new trial status. His convictions would be vacated, but the case would remain active.

The TBA’s Real Estate Law Section will present its annual Hot Topics in Real Estate program on Nov. 4. The CLE, produced in cooperation with the Tennessee Land Title Association, is now being offered as a virtual-only program. Topics at this year’s program will include legislative and case law updates, ethics, an Airbnb panel discussion, horizontal property regime issues and more. The program will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. CDT.

The Memphis Bar Association this week announced it has selected 11 law students to participate in its 2022 MBA Leadership Scholars Class. The new program, created by MBA President Tannera Gibson, is designed to equip rising 2Ls and 3Ls at the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law with leadership skills as they transition from law student to lawyer. The inaugural class includes: Alexander Perkins, Christina Mulliford, Danielle Quadrani Riartes, Derrick Ranson II, Hilaria Mbati, Renna McCartney, Kentavius Whitt, Rajanne Jones, Remon Youssef, Trenton Woodley and Wai-Lin Danieley. Read more about the program from the MBA.

The Sevier County Bar Association is sponsoring the 8th Annual Sevier County Juvenile CLE Seminar on Oct. 25, with all proceeds benefiting the Women’s Recovery Home. The virtual program will include seven hours of CLE credit and will cover juvenile law topics applicable statewide. The registration fee is $125.

Former federal judge and U.S. Solicitor General Ken Starr died today at 76, The Hill reports. Starr was nominated by former President Ronald Reagan to the federal appellate court for the D.C. Circuit in 1983, where he served until becoming solicitor general during the first Bush administration. Starr headed up the Whitewater investigation into former President Bill Clinton, which ultimately led to his impeachment. In 2019, Starr headlined the Bench/Bar program during the TBA’s annual Convention in Nashville, where he shared his experience as independent special counsel. According to this family, Starr passed away in a Houston hospital following complications from surgery.

Chattanooga law firm Summers, Rufolo and Rodgers has announced it will give $1.2 million to a scholarship program at the University of Tennessee, WBIR reports. The gift will go to UT Promise – a last-dollar scholarship program that guarantees free tuition and mandatory fees for qualifying Tennessee undergraduate students with a family income of under $60,000 after other financial aid is received. The gift will help graduates from 12 Chattanooga-area high schools. “Working families have relied on our firm to protect their interests and their lives since 1969, and we hope that this gift continues that work by creating pathways for students to find their future through UT,” firm member Jimmy Rodgers said. “This is our way of giving back to the community.”