The Supreme Court on April 14 reinstated Martin Lynn Howie to the practice of law subject to several conditions, including the use of a practice monitor and continued compliance with his TLAP monitoring agreement. Howie had been suspended for three years, with one year to be served as an active suspension, retroactive to Feb. 8, 2011. View the BPR notice.

The state House has voted to express "profound regret" for slavery and segregation in Tennessee, but stopped short of an outright apology. The chamber voted 97-0 in favor of the resolution sponsored by Democratic Rep. Mike Turner of Nashville, but the Republican-controlled chamber removed language from the original resolution that sought to offer "profound apologies" for slavery. The slavery measure followed the unanimous approval earlier in the session of a resolution expressing regret for the forced removal of more than 15,000 Native Americans in the 1830s. The Trail of Tears resolution was later approved by the Senate and signed by Gov. Bill Haslam yesterday. The Chattanooga Times Free Press has more from the Associated Press.

Democrats in the U.S. House today opened an “inquiry” into whether Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam’s administration might have violated federal labor law by attempting to tie state incentives for expansion of the Chattanooga Volkswagen plant to the outcome of an election over representation by the United Auto Workers union. The probe is yet another chapter in the ongoing debate over whether Republican officials, including Haslam and U.S. Sen. Bob Corker, may have interfered in the February election in which workers voted 712-626 to reject the UAW, the Tennessean reports.

The Capital Punishment Enforcement Act, which would allow the state Department of Correction to use the electric chair for executions if lethal injection chemicals are unavailable, passed in the House by a 68-13 vote, the Tennessean reports. HB 2476 sponsored by state Rep. Dennis Powers, R-Jacksboro, allows the department to petition the governor to use the electric chair if it is unable to obtain the proper chemicals for administering a lethal injection. Having passed the Senate last week 23-3, the bill now heads to Gov. Bill Haslam. State Attorney General Robert Cooper issued an opinion in March that deemed the bill constitutionally defensible, the Nashville Scene notes.

Early voting began today in Republican and Democratic primaries. Election Day is May 6. Winning in May means advancing to general elections in August. In Shelby County, voters will decide who holds 11 countywide offices, including Shelby County mayor and district attorney general, as well as 13 seats on the Shelby County Commission, the Memphis Daily News reports. Offices on the ballot in Sumner County include several 18th Judicial District posts as well as two General Sessions judgeships.  Visit the Tennessean to learn more about the Sumner County candidates and for more election coverage. 

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia yesterday delivered what he referred to as his “stump” speech to roughly 1,000 people in Cox Auditorium at the University of Tennessee as part of the College of Law’s annual Rose Lecture. He discussed the famous 1986 flag-burning case, First Amendment rights and his position as an “originalist” — someone who interprets the U.S. Constitution as the founding fathers intended it, not as a “living” document that evolves with society. Scalia’s delivery of the Rose Lecture marked the third visit by a sitting Supreme Court justice in the past four years. Knoxnews has more.

As political campaigns begin to heat up, the U.S. Supreme Court is deciding whether false accusations and mudslinging made during an election can be punished as a crime. Next week, justices will consider a challenge to an Ohio law that bars false statements about political candidates, WATE reports. During the 2010 election, the Susan B. Anthony List, an anti-abortion group, planned to launch a billboard campaign accusing then-Democratic Rep. Steven Driehaus of supporting taxpayer-funded abortion because he backed President Barack Obama's health care overhaul. Driehaus urged the Ohio Elections Commission to block the ads, arguing that the proposed billboard was false under Ohio law. Given the threat of legal action, the billboard owner declined to run the ad.

On the one-year anniversary of the day the FBI raided Pilot Flying J’s Knoxville headquarters, Aubrey Harwell — attorney for CEO Jimmy Haslam — said Haslam is no longer a target in the federal investigation but there may be future indictments against other Pilot employees. This week Haslam issued an anniversary statement and called April 15, 2013, an "extremely embarrassing and humbling day" and the company has tried to "make things right." WBIR News 10 has the story.

Following Knoxville attorney Bruce Poston’s arrest yesterday, WBIR News 10 anchor Robin Wilhoit sat down with University of Tennessee College of Law professor Dwight Aarons to learn more about the consequences lawyers may face when they are convicted of a crime. Aarons said lawyers with active cases should notify clients of their arrest and discuss whether or not the clients want continued representation. A lawyer's arrest also can affect previous cases, Aarons says, if former clients unhappy with their outcomes argue the lawyer did not give his full and best effort due to the alleged criminal activity.

Republican state Sen. Jim Tracy has maintained his campaign fundraising lead over incumbent Rep. Scott DesJarlais, according to the candidates’ latest disclosures to the Federal Election Commission. From Jan. 1 through March 31, Tracy reported raising $172,061 while DesJarlais reported raising $76,102. The Chattanooga Times Free Press has more.