Learn about the legal issues Tennessee business lawyers face through the life cycle of a business combination transaction at an upcoming TBA CLE program from the Business Law Section. The May 4 program will offer an in-depth examination of selected topics in merger and acquisition law and practice. The sessions will emphasize legal and practical considerations for both transactional lawyers and litigators in Tennessee.

The deadline to register for volunteer attorney training has been extended to Friday. Hosted by the Access to Justice Commission and The Faith & Justice Alliance, the April 27 event is designed for pro bono volunteer attorneys to prepare them to assist low income Tennesseans in high needs areas of law. For more information, contact Laura McKenzie at (615) 741-2687.

All three female justices on the Supreme Court came together yesterday to pay tribute to the life and continuing legacy of former Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, the first woman to serve on the high cour. Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan attended a ceremony at the National Museum of Women in the Arts honoring O'Connor, 85, who served on the court from 1981 to 2006. The Seneca Women Global Leadership Forum hosted the event. Gavel Grab has more from the Associated Press. 

Lincoln Memorial University has dedicated the courtroom of the LMU-John J. Duncan Jr. School of Law in honor of Robert H. Watson Jr., a university trustee and prominent Knoxville attorney who passed away in 2014. University officials gathered with Watson’s family, friends and legal colleagues at the dedication to unveil his portrait in the courtroom last Friday. Watson, a partner with Watson, Roach, Batson, Rowell and Lauderback, played an integral role in the founding of the school. Middlesboro Daily News has more.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has rejected as too lenient a 30-day suspension of the law license of Knoxville attorney Robert Vogel, who admitted to a sexual relationship with an indigent addict — an ethical lapse that Vogel blamed on sex addiction, the Knoxville News Sentinel reports. In a rare move, the court is stepping in to hold its own hearing on what Vogel’s fate should be. Records from the U.S. District Court in Knoxville and the state Board of Professional Responsibility reveal Vogel continued to practice law in Knoxville and several East Tennessee counties while the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General carried out a secret probe of his actions. The result in both probes kept Vogel’s law license intact, albeit temporarily suspended, and netted him no ban on practicing in U.S. District Court, although he can no longer serve as a court-appointed attorney for the poor.

The Shelby County General Sessions Environmental Court is expected to begin operating full time next week, Memphis Daily News reports. Created in 1983 by the city of Memphis, the court handles violations of its health, fire, building and zoning codes, centralizing violations before Judge Larry E. Potter.

Improvements to a public address (PA) system at the Carter County Courthouse and Justice Center Annex have been completed and soon training will begin for officeholders and employees on how to use the system in an emergency. The county first began looking into a PA system after a bomb threat was called in at the courthouse a few years ago, County Mayor Leon Humphrey told the Elizabethton Star.

Nashville attorney Joanne Bregman will be the Chattanooga Tea Party’s guest speaker tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. at The Century Club Banquet Hall, 3221 Harrison Pike, the Chattanoogan reports. Bregman has been involved in policy work at the Tennessee legislature and will speak on the constitutional relationship between federal, state and local governments, especially involving refugee resettlement programs.

The Tennessee House has voted to create a $500 lifetime handgun carry permit, The Associated Press reports. The chamber voted 90-3 on Monday to approve the measure sponsored by Rep. John Holsclaw Jr., R-Elizabethton. Current handgun carry permits are valid for five years. Under the bill, people with lifetime permits would still have to undergo background checks every five years and the Safety Department would still be able to suspend permits for people who are charged with crimes. The Memphis Daily News has the story.

Hawkins County leaders agreed Tuesday to make more space available for two programs that are helping reduce jail expenses by providing treatment to offenders with addiction and mental health issues. Judge J. Todd Ross addressed the County Commission's Buildings Committee to request that a custodian office in the Justice Center be converted into extra space for his Drug Court. Hawkins County’s Recovery Court and Frontier Health’s Community Justice programs have been sharing an office in the Justice Center across from Sessions Court. The Times News has more.