Rutherford County commissioners this week endorsed the pilot launch of a Veterans Court, the Daily News Journal reports. The pilot Veterans Court will start out serving veterans who are participating in the county's Drug Court and DUI (driving under the influence of alcohol) Court, said Trey King, the coordinator for the courts. To go beyond offering a pilot, the county hopes to win grants to fund Veterans Court.

A federal judge yesterday morning put a 90-day hold on all of the so-called Engle Progeny tobacco pending lawsuits in the Florida federal courts after being notified of a settlement agreement. Attorneys from the Nashville office of Lieff Cabraser have won several high-profile verdicts against cigarette manufacturers in recent months, including a $41 million verdict in October, the largest victory in the Engle cases. The Nashville Scene has more.

A federal law banning "revenge porn" will be introduced sometime this spring, Rep. Jackie Speier, D-California, told Digital Trends. Currently, 16 states have passed legislation effectively banning revenge porn. Under the federal legislation, not only would individuals who upload and share content without someone else's consent be liable, but so would people who run revenge porn websites. There will be no minimum penalty for revenge porn, though the bill does set a maximum penalty that includes jail sentences. WRCB has more.

Attorneys for the Tennessean and a coalition of media agencies on Monday asked the state Supreme Court to reverse a lower court's decision creating what media representatives fear is a broad public records exemption for law enforcement. The media agencies have been fighting in Davidson County and appeals courts for access to third-party records used in the investigation of a rape involving two former Vanderbilt University football players. Arguments in the case are scheduled before the court in May.

President Barack Obama urged immigrants thrown into legal limbo this week to keep planning for eventual relief, WRCB reports from the Associated Press. A Texas federal judge put a hold on the President's executive actions, but Obama said he is confident that his deportation directives won't be thrown out in court. Obama said he expects to win when a U.S. Circuit Court hears his appeal, but added that his administration will "take it up from there" if the appeal fails, in an apparent reference to the Supreme Court.

Ramsdale O’DeNeal Jr. was reinstated to the practice of law Monday (Feb. 23). O’DeNeal had been suspended on April 7, 2009, for one year. View the BPR notice.

Shannon Michele Lovins was suspended for five years subject to conditions imposed by the North Carolina State Bar. Lovins’ license to practice law in North Carolina was suspended upon finding that Lovins pled guilty to several criminal offenses involving illegal drugs, disorderly conduct, and driving while under the influence of an impairing substance. Lovins also failed to conduct the requisite reconciliations of her trust account, commingled funds by leaving her attorney fees in the trust account, over-disbursed funds from the trust account to third parties, and failed to follow mandatory management and record-keeping procedures. View the BPR notice.

On Feb. 20, Clayton F. Mayo of Jackson was suspended for three years based on six complaints of misconduct alleging that Mayo missed trial dates, neglected clients’ matters, failed to communicate with clients and finally abandoned his practice. View the BPR notice.

Andrew Nathan Hall received a public censure on Feb. 12 for taking no action in a case for over a year after he was retained to represent clients in bankruptcy proceedings. When the clients called Hall’s office, they were repeatedly told the bankruptcy petition would be filed shortly, but nothing was done until the clients filed a disciplinary complaint against Hall. View the BPR notice.

New features and new topics are available at this year’s Law Tech UnConference tomorrow from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Nashville. There is no late fee to register and free materials are available here. Also, bring your support staff from noon to 2 p.m. to give them a chance to visit our sponsors for free. New to our Law Tech UnConference? Learn more about this unique “open-house” concept of delivering CLE.