Officials announced an $18.7 billion settlement with BP today that resolves years of litigation over the deadly 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill. The rig blast killed 11 workers and sent millions of barrels of oil gushing into the gulf for nearly three months on to the shorelines of several states including Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas. WREG has more.

New personal financial disclosures from the Supreme Court show that Chief Justice John Roberts and two other justices are maintaining significant investments in individual companies' stock. The details of investments held by Roberts, Justice Samuel Alito and Justice Stephen Breyer are in annual financial reports released today by the federal judiciary. Federal law allows judges to defer taxes on any money they make when they sell a stock in order to avoid a conflict of interest. WSMV has the story from the AP.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam applauded the work of Memphis-based Youth Villages Monday, joining the youth services agency in unveiling the results of a clinical trial on the effectiveness of its program to aid young people who age out of the foster care system. YVLifeSet provides participants with help and guidance with housing, education, and life skills, the Commercial Appeal reports.

The law license of John Jay Clark was suspended on June 26 based on four complaints of misconduct. Clark failed to remit $24,000.00 in attorney’s fees to the law firm at which he was employed; altered a verification from a pleading to make it appear the document was executed on a later date; notarized the verification and filed the pleading with the Juvenile Court without the knowledge or consent of his client. Clark attempted to visit clients in jail on at least 29 occasions while his license to practice law was suspended for non-compliance with CLE requirements. In mitigation, Clark fully reimbursed his former law firm for the fees and cooperated with the Board in the disciplinary proceedings. View BPR notice.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has ruled that a widow whose husband died after a five-year battle with lung cancer will get a new trial to determine the amount of damages owed by her husband’s employer as a result of its negligence in contributing to her husband’s illness. The Supreme Court, which agreed with the Court of Appeals that a new trial should not have been granted and that the suit should not have been dismissed, now returns the case to the Knox County Circuit Court with directions for a new jury to determine the proper amount of damages. The Administrative Office of the Courts has more. 

Supporters of the Confederate flag protested President Barack Obama's visit to Nashville today, the Tennessean reports. The flag has come under fire as a symbol of hate and racism after the apparently racially motivated shooting at an African-American church in South Carolina. During his remarks today at Taylor Stratton Elementary School, Obama lauded Tennessee's history of bipartisan efforts to expand health care access as an example of how the nation can move past the recent acrimony to make the U.S. health care system better.

The American Bar Association today issued a new Formal Ethics Opinion addressing what file materials belong to client under the ABA Model Rules. The scenario examined for context details a client teminating sevices of a long-time lawyer. The opinion addresses the ethical duties of a lawyer when responding to a former client’s request for papers and property in the lawyer’s possession that are related to the representation. Read the opinion here.

“Tech Science: Cell Phone Forensics for Lawyers” is available now online at TBA CLE. Learn about the realities of cell phone forensics, the basics of how cell phones record and store data and what and when you can recover information from cell phones. This is a hot topic for lawyers and parents.

Jim Henry, the head of the state Department of Children's Services, will be the next top adviser to Gov. Bill Haslam, the Tennessean reports. Henry takes over Aug. 1 for Mark Cate, who announced earlier this year his decision to leave the administration to work in the private sector. Cate has served as Haslam's only chief of staff since Haslam took office in 2011. Haslam noted Henry’s experience leading DCS and the Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities in announcing the appointment.

All 95 Tennessee counties are ready to or are already issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples following the ruling of the U.S. Supreme Court overturning bans on same-sex marriage, the Tennessean reports. Some county clerks are refusing to perform those marriages, however. According to the publication, clerks are legally allowed to refuse to perform the marriages, but must issue the licenses. State Sen. Ken Yager, R-Harriman, announced Tuesday that he plans to introduce state legislation that would allow county clerks across the state to exempt themselves from supporting same-sex marriage if the issue conflicts with their religious beliefs. The Herald News has more.