Memphis events scheduled to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr.'s life and legacy include Volunteer Memphis' 2024 MLK Days of Service, which will take place between Jan. 11-15 and include a youth and education day and a community clean up. King Day at the National Civil Rights Museum will be celebrated on Jan. 15 with free admission to the site. The museum also will accept donations of money and food for the Mid-South Food Bank and Vitalant will host a blood drive. Also on Monday, the Memphis Grizzlies, National Civil Rights Museum, City of Memphis and Shelby County will host the 22nd Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Game as the culmination of other events, which include a community service day and a panel on the intersection of race and sport.

A story in Monday's issue of TBA Today incorrectly identified the office Larsen Jay is planning to seek. He will run for mayor of Knox County.

The Tennessee Bureau of Workers' Compensation (TBWC) is seeking presenters for its 27th annual educational conference, set for June 12-14 in Murfreesboro. Topics sought include improving injury outcomes, cooperation between stakeholders and the quality and efficiency of the Tennessee workers' compensation system. Requests to present should be sent to tn.workcomp@tn.gov by April 1. Read more in the bureau's announcement.

Four more women have joined a lawsuit challenging Tennessee's restrictive abortion law, which first was filed in September 2023, bringing the total number of plaintiffs to nine, including two doctors. The Associated Press reports that three of the women were denied abortions while experiencing severe pregnancy complications, forcing them to travel out of state for the procedure. The plaintiffs argue that the law violates pregnant patients’ right to life as guaranteed by the state’s constitution and are asking a three-judge panel to clarify the circumstances that qualify patients to legally receive an abortion. Among the circumstances they want included are fatal diagnoses. The Center for Reproductive Rights, which is representing the plaintiffs, also recently requested a temporary injunction on enforcing the law as the court case proceeds.

Tennessee House Republicans will not pursue last August's temporary sign ban when the legislature convenes Tuesday, The Tennessee Journal reports. A judge last year blocked the sign ban on First Amendment grounds and the temporary rules expired with conclusion of the special session. House Majority Leader William Lamberth, R-Portland, said that for the regular session, small handheld signs will be allowed so long as they are not held up to obstruct the view of others.

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti, along with the attorneys general of Montana and Kansas, on Friday led a coalition of 19 states in submitting a public comment letter challenging the legality of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s “Businesses Diversity Principles” proposal. The proposal would push businesses to “strive to meet diversity targets in their long-term workforce plans” and assess DEIA performance using “demographic data across all levels and departments.” The attorneys general argue that the policy violates the law and promotes racial discrimination. Read the press release and the letter.

Knox County At-Large Commissioner Larsen Jay is the first candidate to officially announce his intention to run for mayor of Knox County. The Knoxville News Sentinel reports that Jay, a Republican, was elected to the county commission in 2018 and again in 2022, and he served as chairman from 2020-2021. Current Mayor Glenn Jacobs is term-limited and ineligible to run again in the 2026 election.

A new program in Nashville aims to guide currently jailed potential voters through the voting process. The Tennessee Lookout reports that voter registration, navigating the absentee ballot request process, voting rights restoration support and civics education will be a part of the new program, which started in late December. Some people with felony convictions are permanently barred from voting under Tennessee law. Others with felony convictions may have voting rights restored. People with misdemeanor records alone or no criminal record at all can continue to vote, including from jail using absentee ballots.

Tadarrius Bean, one of the former Memphis police officers accused in the beating death of Tyre Nichols, is requesting that his federal criminal trial be moved outside Memphis. According to the Daily Memphian, Bean's attorney John Keith Perry wrote in his request and separate memorandum of support that he was requesting the move due to the amount of media coverage in the case and comments from city officials. He acknowledged that prosecutors would likely oppose a venue change given coverage of the case has been so widespread that moving the trial likely would not impact the outcome. The federal trial is currently set to begin May 6.

The U.S. Supreme Court today declined to hear an appeal of venue change in a lawsuit accusing Exxon, Koch Industries and the American Petroleum Institute of worsening climate change. The refusal to hear the appeal sends the suit back to the state court in Minnesota. The court has similarly rejected appeals in cases in California, Colorado, Rhode Island, Hawaii, Maryland and elsewhere. The justices also rejected an appeal by X Corp, formerly known as Twitter, to consider whether the social media company can publicly disclose how often federal law enforcement seeks information about users for national security investigations. Additionally, the court rejected an appeal from Intel and Edwards Lifesciences to revive part of their lawsuit challenging a U.S. Patent and Trademark Office policy that reduced the number of patents the federal agency reviews. Reuters has more in depth coverage of the decisions.