The House sent President Barack Obama legislation that prevents interest rates in new federal student loans from doubling. The bill, which has been approved by the Senate, passed by a 392-31 vote yesterday evening in the House. According to the Memphis Business Journal, the bill allows federal student loan rates to be tied to the yield on 10-year Treasury notes. "This permanent, market-based plan ends the annual game of Congress playing politics with student loan interest rates at the expense of students planning their futures," said state Sen. Lamar Alexander.

While U.S. Sen. Bob Corker is no fan of President Obama’s health care reform, he does not support the latest effort by several Congressional Republicans including Marco Rubio, Rand Paul and Ted Cruz to oppose any spending bills that include money to support the law. "I think it's a silly effort, and what people are really saying who are behind that effort is, 'We don’t have the courage to roll up our sleeves and deal with real deficit reduction and spending decisions. We want to take ourselves out of the debate and act like we are being principled to the American people by saying if there is one dime of funding for Obamacare we are not going to vote for the (continuing resolution),"' Corker said Tuesday on MSNBC. The Memphis Business Journal has the story.

U.S. District Judge Richard Leon on Wednesday struck down federal regulations on debit-card transaction fees, finding that the Federal Reserve adopted rules that "inappropriately" inflated fees by billions of dollars, the National Law Journal reports. The ruling won't change transaction fees just yet, though. Judge Leon ordered the Federal Reserve to vacate the rules, but simultaneously said he would stay that order to give the agency time to replace the problematic sections. 

The Senate Judiciary Committee took a step forward on legislation to protect reporters and the news media from revealing their sources by agreeing to legislation sponsored by Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-New York, a key supporter of a federal media shield law. The measure would codify many of the regulations proposed earlier this month by Attorney General Eric Holder. The panel approved it on a voice vote, although the lawmakers put off until September a broader debate over whether Congress defines who is a journalist, WATE reports.

A former trial attorney with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) who now represents employers in lawsuits, Paul Patten, says several recent EEOC cases highlight the increasing government scrutiny of employers that use blanket criminal background checks to screen applicants. The EEOC recently sued Goodlettsville, Tenn.-based Dollar General and a U.S. unit of German automaker BMW AG, alleging the companies refused to hire applicants with criminal records, when the companies should have individually considered each applicant. Patten will discuss rapidly evolving employment law trends, along with a panel of industry experts, Aug. 8 in a seminar sponsored by The Daily News.

Sen. Lowe Finney, D-Jackson, will not run for re-election when his second term in the legislature ends, Nashville Public Radio reports. Finney, who chairs the chamber’s Democratic Caucus, said “change is good” in making the announcement. The 37 year-old lawyer praised those who serve for decades but said "there are other things in life to consider at this point" including spending more time with his family.

The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee will hold a portrait unveiling and recognition of "change of status" in honor of Chief Judge Jon P. McCalla. The event will be held Aug. 23 at 2 p.m. in Courtroom One of the Clifford Davis-Odell Horton Federal Building in Memphis. The event is free and open to the public. Please RSVP by email or phone to (901) 495-1237.

The percentage of female equity partners at America’s top 200 law firms “remains stalled at an unacceptable 15 percent, with little progress over the past 10 years,” according to ABA President Laurel Bellows. In a panel discussion on CNN, Bellows, National Association of Women Lawyers President Beth Kaufman, and four other lawyers weighed in on the problem—and solutions— to the lack of women in leadership and the unequal compensation between men and women equity partners. The ABA Journal also highlighted a story by the Daily Beast on the “female lawyer exodus” that drives women to leave the legal profession later in life.

Two federal appeals judges voted to deny an en banc rehearing of a decision requiring police to get a warrant before searching cell phones, the ABA Journal reports. The First U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had ruled earlier that Boston police violated the Fourth Amendment rights of Brima Wurie when they searched his cell phone after observing what appeared to be a drug sale. Chief Judge Sandra Lynch and Judge Jeffrey Howard denied the rehearing in an order released this week. Both also issued statements saying the matter needs to be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Tennessee’s top rankings for everything from low debt to net job growth were showcased by Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey and other Northeast Tennessee lawmakers at a Kingsport Chamber of Commerce Legislative Barbecue Tuesday night, the Times News reports. “Tennessee is getting award after award and recognition after recognition for the way we’ve run the state,” Ramsey, R-Blountville, said at the event attended by about 150 business leaders at the Kingsport Farmers Market.