The University of Tennessee College of Law will host the 14th annual Julian Blackshear Jr. Scholarship Gala on Feb. 28 at the Holiday Inn World’s Fair Park in Knoxville. Paulette Brown, president-elect of the American Bar Association, will give the keynote speech. The dinner and formal program will begin at 7 p.m. To order tickets, or for information on table sponsorship at the gala, please contact Rynn Dupes at (865) 974-6691.

American Bar Association President James Silkenat sent letters to leaders of the House and Senate committees with tax oversight to warn that proposed changes to allowed accounting methods would overburden many law firms and other types of professional service businesses throughout the country, the Hamilton County Herald reports. Sections of the "Tax reform Act of 2013" would require all law firms and other personal service businesses with annual gross receipts of more than $10 million to use the accrual method of accounting rather than the traditional cash receipts and disbursement method of accounting. The ABA contends that the mandatory accrual accounting provisions in the draft House and Senate bills would create unnecessary complexity in the tax law, increased compliance costs and significant new financial burdens.

The majority of the percentage increase in minority associates in law firms over the last three years is due to increasing numbers of Asian associates, the ABA Journal reports. According to an article published by the National Association for Law Placement, of the 21 percent of associates in 2013 who were minorities, 10.48 were Asian, 4.10 were black and 3.82 were Hispanic. About 7 percent of partners are minorities. Among all partners, 2.67 percent are Asian, 1.78 percent are black, and 1.99 percent are Hispanic.

While a deal to build a Hyatt Regency hotel on its property in downtown Nashville fell through, the Higgins Firm is still moving to a nearby building it  bought at 525 Fourth Ave. S. The 17- person firm was looking to move for two reasons: they're running out of space and because of the prospective hotel proposal. The developer, Denver-based Swerdling & Associates, declined to renew contracts late last year, effectively killing the project, property owners told the Nashville Business Journal.

The Senate voted 23-8 today to approve a bill to allow grocery stores, big-box retailers and convenience stores to sell wine, the Tennessean reports. After seven years of debate, senators agreed to legislation that would let voters in 49 counties decide as soon as this November to determine whether to allow wine on their grocery store aisles. The Senate vote does not send the legislation to Gov. Bill Haslam’s desk, however. The House still must approve a companion measure, and there are subtle differences between the two plans.

Sen. Lamar Alexander will be the keynote speaker in April for the 11th Annual Bobby Dunavant Public Service Awards. Named in honor of the late Shelby County Probate Court clerk, the awards go to one local elected official and one non-elected official who show the attributes of public service that Dunavant personified. The Memphis Daily News reports that any citizen can nominate someone for the awards through entry forms on the Rotary Club of Memphis East website. Nominations are due by March 14.

Hawkins County Sessions Judge J. Todd Ross told County Commissioners Monday that the juvenile court needs to be increased from two to five days per week, and the judge position changed from part-time to full-time. Times News Net reports that Ross told the commission he was speaking on behalf of the Hawkins County Bar Association, as well as Juvenile Judge Daniel Boyd, who was substituting in Ross’s Court Monday morning.

The U.S. House of Representatives voted yesterday to bar federal subsidies to Americans signing up for health insurance plans that cover abortion, the Associated Press reports. Republicans led the House in voting 227-188 for the measure that they insist is necessary to permanently bar any taxpayer dollars for abortion. The administration says that the health care law and companion executive order prohibits federal funds for abortion is sufficient. The measure "would go well beyond these safeguards by interfering with consumers' private health care choices," the White House said. News Channel 5 has the story.

Clayton Mayo was temporarily suspended from the practice of law upon finding by the Board of Professional Responsibility that Mayo has abandoned his practice and that he poses a threat of substantial harm to the public. Download the BPR notice.

Judge Seth Norman will seek a fourth term as judge of Division 4 of the Criminal Court for Davidson County. Judge Norman is the founder and judge of the Davidson County Drug Court. He also presides over the Drug Court in the 13th Judicial District, as well as the Morgan County Residential Recovery Court.