This appeal concerns a tenured teacher?s challenge to her transfer to a different job position. Susan Weaver-Jones1 (“Jones”) sued the Knox County Board of Education (“the Board”) and Dr. James McIntyre (“McIntyre”), Superintendent of Knox County Schools, (“Defendants,” collectively) in the Chancery Court for Knox County (“the Trial Court”). Jones alleged that her transfer from Instructional Coach to classroom teacher was arbitrary, capricious, and contrary to law. Defendants filed a motion to dismiss pursuant to Tenn. R. Civ. P. 12.02(6).

WKRN reports 13 inmates were released from the Rutherford County Jail without having to pay bond following an order issued Friday by Judge Kevin Sharp. The inmates were being held on the basis of a Pathways Community Corrections violation of probation warrant. PCC, formerly Providence Community Corrections, is named in a federal lawsuit. In a statement, PCC said, “We are disappointed in the court’s ruling, but will continue to comply with all state and federal laws while reviewing our legal options.”

A $615 million water-rights lawsuit filed against Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division, the city of Memphis and Tennessee will result in a 22 percent rate increase for MLGW customers. The increase is associated with the lawsuit and will add an average of $3.21 a month to customers’ water bills, The Commercial Appeal reports. The lawsuit, filed by Mississippi, claims the defendants have "forcibly" taken its water through excessive pumping from an aquifer underlying both states. The U.S. Supreme Court in June granted Mississippi’s request to file suit. 

Nashville Criminal Court Judge Mark Fishburn sentenced former 3 Doors Down bassist Robert "Todd” Harrell to two years in prison following a fatal crash, The Tennessean reports. Police found alprazolam and oxycodone in his system on the night of the 2013 accident. The conditions of Harrell’s probation include speaking at six schools while he is on probation about drug addiction and he is required to work with the Governor’s Highway Safety Office on its new anti-DUI campaign.

The Greeneville Sun reports the Greene County Recovery Court held a Christmas celebration for the participants and their families on Dec. 17 at the Greene County Courthouse. The Recovery Court program currently has 20 participants. “We hope that we can continue to grow the program because we know the need for this program exists, and we know the value of helping those with addictions getting control of their life back,” General Sessions and Juvenile Court Judge Kenneth Bailey Jr. said.

Retired Judge Robert Cupp was honored with a portrait unveiling in the Washington County Justice Center, where Cupp sat on the bench five years before his retirement last year. The portrait will hang outside Courtroom 2. “This is a man who intended to change lives if they’d just let him. A man that wanted to change the system, make the system more personal,” Attorney Jim Bowman said. Read more from the Johnson City Press.

The 2016 Mendes Hershman Student Writing Contest, hosted by the American Bar Association Business Law Section, is accepting entries. Authors must be a student enrolled at an ABA-accredited law school at the time of submission and papers must have been written in the 2015-2016 or current academic year. Submissions are due Jan. 15, 2016. Prizes include up to $2,500 and an all-expense paid trip to attend the ABA Business Law Section Spring Meeting in Montreal, Canada.

Knox County lawyer John Mark Hancock was publicly censured on Dec. 18 by the Tennessee Supreme Court. Hancock was previously suspended for misconduct by the Tennessee Supreme Court and remains suspended. While still suspended, Hancock committed the unauthorized practice of law by drafting a contract for an individual to whom he was providing investment advice. Read the BPR release.

The Tennessee Supreme Court temporarily suspended Campbell County lawyer Conrad Mark Troutman on Dec. 18 from the practice of law upon finding that Troutman misappropriated funds and poses a threat of substantial harm to the public. Troutman is immediately precluded from accepting any new cases and he must cease representing existing clients by Jan. 17, 2016. Read the BPR release.

President Barack Obama today signed a $1.8 trillion funding package that funds federal agencies through next fall, Reuters reports. According to the American Bar Association, the package includes $385 million for the Legal Services Corporation and $2 million for the John R. Justice Prosecutor and Defender loan repayment programs. As previously reported, the package also includes funding for a new federal courthouse in Nashville.