The Nashville law firm Barrett Johnston LLC on July 1 will change its name to Barrett Johnston Martin & Garrison, including Jerry Martin and Dave Garrison as named partners. Scott Tift has been promoted to partner as well. In a press release, the firm also announced it has moved offices to the Bank of America Plaza in downtown Nashville.

If Amendment 2 fails in the November election, it could potentially open the door for political grandstanding in a branch of government that was intended to be fair and impartial, Nashville attorney Nancy Krider Corley states in an opinion piece published Monday in the Tennessean. “The goal of appellate courts is to create a fair and impartial judicial system that will review each case for its merits and rule according to the law,” Corley states. “It is critical that our courts are not subject to partisan politics and these tactics.”

As the Nashville Scene celebrates its 25 anniversary, it put together a list of 25 people who had a “sizable, demonstrable impact” on Nashville over the past 25 years. Attorneys David Tarpley and Gordon Bonnyman were among those listed, noted for their work with the Legal Aid Society and Tennessee Justice Center, respectively, as was former mayor Bill Purcell, who was lauded for "shaping a city vision here that rocks us to this day."  The publication also declared, “David Tarpley and Gordon Bonnyman, two consummate Southern gentlemen, exemplify the best of Nashville's legal profession.”

Charles Robert Bone formally launched his mayoral campaign last night with an event full of entrepreneurs, lawyers and lobbyists. Bone, an attorney, businessman and Democratic Party fund-raiser, pledged to keep Nashville moving ahead as a business and tourism hub while also tackling its toughest problems, including poverty, homelessness and deficiencies in the mass transit system. Bone’s only declared opponent right now for the August 2015 election is Metro Councilman Megan Barry, though the Tennessean predicts other candidates are surely coming as Dean prepares to leave office after two terms.

According to a Tennessean editorial, the Department of Children’s Services’ four-year-old computer system TFACTS is still riddled with glitches, an issue that the newspaper claims was made rosier than the reality in a recent progress report. The system, which tracks child deaths, caseloads and other core tasks, was supposed to be fixed in January but will not be completed until October at the earliest. “This is not a case about a computer system,” U.S. District Judge Todd J. Campbell said. “It’s about actual care for actual foster children.”

Tennessee Supreme Court Chief Justice Gary Wade sat down last week with mayors, judges, a police union representative and lawyers in Chattanooga to broaden support for his and his fellow justices’ retention in the Aug. 7 election. Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey has pushed to oust Wade and fellow justices Connie Clark and Sharon Lee. Speaking with local media at the Davis and Hoss Law Firm late Friday afternoon, Wade said he’d never endorsed another justice and that the criticisms fall short, as he is allowed to “uphold the integrity” of the court by speaking favorably of judges whose work he reviews. The Columbia Daily Herald has more.

When District Attorney Glenn Funk takes office on Sept. 1, one of his tasks will be to change the "culture in the community" surrounding domestic violence. In a statement released yesterday, Funk said he plans to establish a six-attorney Domestic Violence Unit that will meet with both victims and investigating officers prior to court in order to be completely prepared to handle the case. “The DA's office will partner with agencies from across the county to work on this issue, because in order to change the culture in the community, the whole community needs to be involved." Fox 17 News has more from Funk, who will be only the second DA to serve the county in the past 27 years.

Family and friends gathered Tuesday to honor the retirement of longtime McMinn County General Sessions Judge James Watson. McMinn County Mayor John Gentry presented Watson a framed resolution honoring his service. The resolution was passed unanimously by the McMinn County Commission at its meeting on June 16. Watson was elected as General Sessions Judge in 1986. He decided not to run for re-election this year and will be succeeded on July 1 by Wylie Richardson. The Daily Post Athenian has more.

Former Senate Majority Leader Howard Baker died today at his home in Huntsville, the Associated Press reports. He was 88. Baker, who served 18 years in the U.S. Senate, was the first Republican to be popularly elected to the Senate from Tennessee, and later served as a chief of staff to President Ronald Reagan and as U.S. Ambassador to Japan. Baker was a major figure in national politics for many years. During the 1973 Watergate hearings, Baker helped focus a nation’s attention on President Richard Nixon’s involvement, turning what many had seen as a political scandal into a phenomenon that would shake up American politics. In 1984, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor. “Howard Baker was Tennessee’s favorite son, one of America’s finest leaders and for Honey and me an indispensable friend,” U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander said in a statement. “He built our state’s two-party political system and inspired three generations to try to build a better state and country," The Tennessean reports. Baker was also a well-respected lawyer with Baker Donelson, the firm that his grandfather founded. He spoke about the importance of the law and the profession during a 2005 interview for the Tennessee Bar Association.

The U.S. Supreme Court has struck down President Obama’s three recess appointments to the National Labor Relations Board, the ABA Journal reports. In his opinion for the court today, Justice Stephen G. Breyer said Obama lacked the power to make the recess appointments during a three-day recess in January 2012 because the time period was too short. The Court also ruled today that a Massachusetts law banning abortion-clinic protests within a 35-foot buffer zone violates the First Amendment rights of protesters. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. wrote the opinion for the court, which said the 35-foot buffer zone isn't narrowly tailored to carry out the state's aims of ensuring safety, preventing harassment and keeping clinic entrances free of obstruction. In a major decision yesterday, the Court ruled that police generally must get a warrant before searching the cellphone of a person who is arrested. Several more decisions are expected before the Court wraps up its session on June 30.