Bass, Berry & Sims PLC announced that W. Brantley Phillips Jr. was appointed to serve as chair of the firm’s litigation and dispute resolution practice group, the Nashville Post reports. Phillips will oversee more than 100 attorneys and staff working in Knoxville, Nashville, Memphis and Washington, D.C. Phillips joined Bass in 1998 and has been serving as co-chair of the firm’s securities and shareholder litigation practice group.

Monypeny & Associates, a Memphis-area tax litigation firm, announced today it will open a Nashville office in the Fifth Third Center. The Nashville Post reports Tyler DeWitt, a principal attorney and CPA with the firm, will oversee the Nashville office.

In 2003, an employee sustained injuries to his spine, pelvis, and shoulder while working for his employer. In 2007, the trial court determined that the employee was permanently and totally disabled as a result of the work-related injury and that his employer was responsible for authorized future medical treatment directly related to the work-related injury. In 2013, the employee filed a motion to compel medical benefits, asserting that his employer had refused to pay for medical treatment determined to be reasonable and necessary by his authorized treating physician.

Former Henderson County Sheriff Ricky Lunsford, who was sentenced to prison after opening fire on his wife in a bar parking lot, will receive a new trial. According to the ruling handed down Friday by the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals, the trial court failed to properly instruct the jury. Lunsford has remained free on bond throughout the appeals process, WBBJ reports.   

General Sessions Part III Court Coordinator Lisa Bell has entered the race for Rutherford County's new General Sessions Court Judge. The Rutherford County attorney has been appointed a special judge on numerous occasions, WGNS reports. Two attorneys previously announced their candidacy for the judgeship.   

A Chicago woman filed a federal lawsuit last week that accuses Starbucks of misleading customers about the ice-to-product ratio in its cold beverages, The Wall Street Journal Law Blog reports. The suit, which seeks class-action status, claims “a Starbucks customer who orders a Venti Cold Drink receives only 14 fluid ounces of that drink – just over half the advertised amount.” 

Tomorrow, May 3, is Middle Tennessee’s largest online giving day: The Big Payback. During the 24-hour giving cycle, you can support Tennessee’s Youth Courts by donating at least $10 online. The program allows students who are facing misdemeanor accusations to go before a jury of their peers and provides education about the legal system. The Big Payback is offering prizes/incentives for the nonprofit with the most donations from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. (CDT), and for the nonprofit with the largest number of unique or individual donors.

The American Counseling Association said a new Tennessee law that allows counselors to deny service based on their own “sincerely held principles” is in direct violation of the ACA’s code of ethics. The association has also called the measure an “unprecedented attack” on the counseling profession. “(The measure) not only disproportionately affects LGBTQ Tennesseans seeking counseling, but will also have unintended consequences that will reach Tennesseans in all walks of life,” ACA spokesman Art Terrazas said. Read more from Associations Now. 

“Do some votes matter more than others?” The Tennessean's Frank Daniels III breaks down the argument over whether Tennessee should be required to recount votes in its 2014 election, which included Amendment 1. The measure amended the state constitution to "explicitly eliminate abortion as a right in Tennessee." U.S. District Judge Kevin Sharp recently ruled that the secretary of state must do a recount; but, Sharp’s ruling came a day after Circuit Court Judge Michael Binkley ruled the state's vote counting procedure was sound. The article includes a look at John Jay Hooker’s 2014 gubernatorial run against Gov. Bill Haslam, when Hooker asked for clarification on how votes for amendments would be tabulated.

The petitioner, Tiffany Amos, appeals the post-conviction court’s denial of relief from her theft and criminal impersonation convictions, arguing that she received ineffective assistance of counsel and that her guilty pleas were unknowingly and involuntarily entered. After review, we affirm the denial of the petition.