Supreme Court Associate Justice Holly M. Kirby received a standing ovation last week after a speech to the Kiwanis Club in Columbia. Kirby grew up in Memphis but her family moved to Columbia for her last two years of high school. “Those growing-up years in Columbia have informed my work as a judge,” she said. “From living in Memphis, I already knew how families in urban areas live. Moving to Columbia gave me a broader view, so that I could understand the day-to-day lives of folks in smaller towns and in rural areas.” The Columbia Daily Herald has more.

Legislation proposing a $5 fee for criminal court cases in Knox County is under fire from defense attorney Mike Whalen, who said it hurts the poor. Knox County Criminal Court Clerk Mike Hammond said the fee would generate at least $100,000 a years and cover the cost of court services for which his office can't bill, particularly in the 4th Circuit Court. Knoxnews has more.

A Tennessee court ruled against former judge and television personality Joe Brown’s appeal of the five-day jail sentence he was given after a heated exchange with a juvenile court magistrate in 2014. Brown’s, outburst, which he characterized as zealous representation of his client, centered around his refusal to acknowledge the authority of Magistrate Harold Horne because of Shelby County’s current practice of letting the elected juvenile court judge appoint all of the magistrates beneath him. The Commercial Appeal has more.

Seven school boards filed suit today, claiming the state is not fully funding education and forcing schools boards and communities to fill the gap, the Commercial Appeal reports. The lawsuit was filed in Chancery Court in Davidson County by school boards in Hamilton, Bradley, McMinn, Marion, Grundy, Coffee and Polk counties and names Gov. Bill Haslam, Speaker of the Senate Ron Ramsey, Speaker of the House Beth Harwell, along with the nine members of the state board of education.

The state Legislature on Monday passed a bill allowing workers to sue their employers if they are fired for storing guns in cars parked on company lots, Knoxnews reports. The state in 2013 enacted a law to give handgun-carry permit holders the right to store their firearms in vehicles on company lots regardless of their employers' wishes, but an Attorney General's opinion later found that while the law decriminalized the actions of those who ignored posted gun bans on private property, employers could still terminate workers for violating company firearms policies.

Legislation that would impose new fees on trucks traveling Tennessee highways is unconstitutional because the levies would apply disproportionately to trucks owned by out-of-state companies, Attorney General Herbert Slatery said in an opinion. SB354, introduced by Sen. Paul Bailey, R-Sparta, and Rep. Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, would impose a new "surcharge" on diesel fuel and a "highway maintenance fee" per mile traveled within the state for each commercial motor vehicle weighing 60,000 pounds or more. Slatery says that arrangement violates both the commerce clause and the equal protection clause of the U.S. Constitution by discriminating against out-of-state companies. Knoxnews has more.

The Rutherford County Circuit Court has returned to a previous software system after a series of glitches occurred when a new system from New Dawn Technology went live, the Daily News Journal reports. The county extended its agreement for the old court-management system weeks before its 25-year-old agreement was set to expire, though officials say it is not a long-term solution for the court.

The Race Judicata 5K benefiting Memphis Area Legal Services will be held Saturday at Mississippi River Park in Memphis. Check-in starts at 4 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. Contact Preston Battle for more information.

The law license of William A. Davidson was transferred to disability inactive status on March 17. Davidson may return to the practice of law after reinstatement by the Tennessee Supreme Court upon showing of clear and convincing evidence that the disability has been removed. View the BPR notice.

Gerald Stanley Green of Memphis was publicly censured based upon two related complaints of misconduct arising from his representation of a client during the appeal of a criminal conviction. View the BPR notice.