As a result of the severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes and flooding that began on April 2, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) issued a disaster declaration for the entire state of Tennessee. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) then extended various federal due dates to Nov. 3 for taxpayers located in the disaster area. Consistent with the IRS’s decision to extend federal due dates, the Tennessee Department of Revenue will approve, on a case-by-case basis, extension requests from affected taxpayers who are unable to file returns for Tennessee taxes because of the impact of the storms and flooding beginning on April 2. If the department grants the extension request, it will apply to filing and payment due dates that occur between April 2 and Nov. 3. Affected taxpayers will have until Nov. 3 to file returns and make any payments (including quarterly estimated franchise and excise tax payments) originally due during this period. Read more from the department.

In the first quarter of 2025, the Davidson County Grand Jury declined to indict 47 felony cases — including three first-degree murder cases — an unusually high number compared to the previous average of just three per quarter, according to the Nashville Banner. This increase has raised concerns among legal experts, including Nashville attorney David Raybin who tells the paper that the jury may have applied an unusually high burden of proof. Others argue that the surge in non-indictments could delay justice and reflect potential bias. The grand jury also conducted an independent investigation into whistleblower allegations against the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD). The group says it found a toxic culture marked by favoritism, retaliation, and the mishandling of sexual misconduct and racial discrimination complaints, and called for further investigation by a special prosecutor. The group also raised concerns about what it called a lack of transparency in an investigation being conducted by Memphis lawyer Ed Stanton into MNPD and a recent raid of his firm by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. Finally, it urged systemic reforms and more robust support for past victims.

West Tennessee Legal Services (WTLS) will host a virtual expungement clinic for clients in Madison County on April 22 and 23. Attorney volunteers can participate from anywhere by using WTLS automation software. Volunteers will be provided with a time to call the client to complete the petitions. WTLS will coordinate with the clients to get the documents signed. All clients will be prescreened for eligibility. Sign up to volunteer via this link.

Nashville attorney and former TBA president Jacqueline Dixon was recognized as the Tennessee Lawyers Assistance Program's (TLAP) Volunteer of the Year at the Annual Camp TLAP held April 4 -6 at Montgomery Bell State Park in Dickson. She currently serves as board chair of the Tennessee Bar Foundation, vice-chair of the TLAP Commission and chair of the TLAP Foundation. She is a past president of the Tennessee Lawyers Association for Women. Dixon also currently gives back to the community by serving on the boards of two non-profit organizations: A Step Ahead Foundation of Middle Tennessee, a provider of free long-acting reversible birth control, where she is a founding board member and past board president; and First Steps Inc., a provider of education and care for special needs children alongside their typically developing peers. Dixon has been instrumental in advancing TLAP as a top program and providing financial assistance via the TLAP Foundation to those in need of mental health or substance use disorder services through TLAP according to the organization.

The TBA Creditors Practice Section Executive Council will hold a section social event at Noble's Central, 2292 Rosa L Parks Blvd., Nashville 37228 on April 30 from 5:30-8 p.m. CDT. Section members are invited to join colleagues for drinks, appetizers and opportunities to network with the executive council and fellow section members. Get more information and RSVP here.

A new Marquette Law School Poll national survey shows strong support for the judiciary. The survey found that 70% of adults agreed that judges should not be impeached for ruling against elected leaders, while 83% of respondents said that presidents must obey a U.S. Supreme Court ruling. And while the Supreme Court has reached its highest approval rating in three years at 54%, many are still concerned about the influence of partisan politics, with 50% of respondents believing that the justices’ decisions are influenced by politics. Read the full survey results in a press release from the school.

Vanderbilt University Law School has moved up five spots from 19 to 15 in the latest U.S. News & World Report rankings released last month. New rankings for other Tennessee law schools include the University of Tennessee College of Law at 55 (down from 52 from last year), Belmont University College of Law at 84 (up from 91 last year), University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law at 146 (down from 140 last year), and Lincoln Memorial University Duncan School of Law at 169 (down from 165 last year). According to Reuters, the U.S. News rankings have traditionally been viewed as the single-most influential measure of the law schools among prospective students, but that may be on the decline. In a new survey of law school admissions officers by test prep company Kaplan, 62% said they believe the rankings “have lost some of their prestige over the last couple of years.” View the full list of rankings.

Sen. Brent Taylor, R-Memphis, is sponsoring SR120, urging the Tennessee Supreme Court to create a disciplinary body explicitly for elected district attorneys, similar to the Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct, which oversees judges in in the state. Taylor told the Commercial Appeal, "If you have a complaint with a judge, you can file that complaint with the Board of Judicial Conduct. If you have a complaint with the district attorney, you have two options. You can either live with it or you can take the nuclear option and try to remove them. There's nothing in the middle." Taylor notes that the Board of Professional Responsibility (BPR) deals with "transgressions as it relates to being a licensed attorney" but the new board would focus "on the actions of performing their job as a district attorney or a public defender." Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy, who has been a target of Taylor's was asked about the need for such a disciplinary body. He tells the paper, "It's too early to answer that question, because there have been no details worked out. One thing I can say is that the process should not be duplicated: either a person should be investigated by the BPR or by some new body, but not both."

A bill proposed by Rep. Shaundelle Brooks, D-Nashville, would hold responsible those who knowingly provide firearms to those who are not allowed to possess them. HB0947/SB1191, which is named "Akilah's Law" for Brooks' son who was killed in the shooting at an Antioch Waffle House in 2018, passed the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee on March 26 with bipartisan support and no substantive debate. The bill would create a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by a sentence of imprisonment not greater than 11 months, 29 days, or a fine not to exceed $2,500, or both, for those who sell, offer to sell, deliver, or transfer a firearm to a person knowing that the person has, within the previous five years, been admitted, either voluntarily or involuntarily, to a mental institution unless the treatment was voluntary and solely for an alcohol abuse disorder and no other secondary substance abuse disorder or mental illness. The House Judiciary Committee is scheduled to consider the bill tomorrow. The Nashville Banner has more on the proposal.