The Franklin office building that once housed IRS employees is now listed for sale, with an undisclosed asking price. The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) terminated the IRS lease for the building at the start of March, Williamson Scene reports. A CoStar listing appeared on March 12, and a sign outside the building indicates it is available for sale or lease. According to the DOGE website, the lease termination resulted in a savings of $31.95 million, with the annual lease cost being $4.6 million. A dozen federal offices in Tennessee, including the Social Security Administration office in Nashville, are scheduled for lease termination.

The Memphis Police Department has withdrawn its accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA), a credentialing organization that ensures law enforcement agencies meet professional standards, The Daily Memphian reports. CALEA accredits 7% to 8% of U.S. law enforcement agencies, with standards covering topics such as hiring practices and patrol strategies. A regional program manager for CALEA’s Southeast region said it is common for agencies to voluntarily withdraw, with reasons ranging from budgetary issues to staffing shortages or the need to revise policies after significant events. Other local and state departments, including the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department and the Knoxville Police Department, remain accredited by CALEA.

More Tennesseans were employed in February than the previous month, with 88 of 95 counties reporting a decline in unemployment rates, the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development announced Thursday. In two counties, unemployment rates remained the same as in January, while five counties saw an increase. Eighty-four counties recorded unemployment rates of less than 5% and the remaining 11 had rates between 5% and 10%. Tennessee’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate has held steady at 3.7% for six consecutive months. The national rate in February was 4.1%.

An investigation by the Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Administration (TOSHA), released Wednesday, found that workers at an East Tennessee plastics company who died in flooding from last year’s Hurricane Helene had time to evacuate, though by “makeshift routes,” the Associated Press reports. The report concluded that Impact Plastics Inc. “exercised reasonable diligence to dismiss employees and direct them to leave the site in this emergency situation.” An attorney representing one of the families of a worker who died alleges that TOSHA’s report overlooks witness testimony, critical text messages, emergency alert logs and photographic evidence. The report relies on the fact that some Impact Plastics employees did escape the flood and notes that the investigation was hindered by “phone service disruptions, language barriers and other challenges,” and that the flooding destroyed the company’s workplace safety records. In addition to TOSHA, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is probing the six deaths, with that investigation still ongoing.

TBA lobbyists Berkley Schwarz of Pier Strategies LLC and Brad Lampley and Ashley Harbin of Adams and Reese discuss Gov. Bill Lee’s budget amendment in the latest episode of the TBA Legislative Updates podcast. They highlight funding for the proposed indigent representation plan from the Administrative Office of the Courts on behalf of the Tennessee Supreme Court, key TBA bills moving through the legislature, including an amendment to SB1331/HB1331 related to child custody and the upcoming vote on the state budget. Listeners can support the TBA's lobbying efforts by contributing to LAWPAC. Those with legal questions related to weather issues can contact the helpline at 844-HELP4TN (844-435-7486). Tune in to the podcast on the TBA website or through this link.

The Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education (CLE) has filed a petition with the Tennessee Supreme Court asking the court to makes several changes to Rule 21, which governs operations of the commission. According to the commission, the amendments are primarily designed to overhaul the commission's regulations, which were adopted in 2008; align Rule 21 and its regulations; and improve processes for attorneys. One change highlighted by the commission in its petition is aligning attorney CLE statuses with the various inactive provisions of Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 9, Section 10.3. Under the proposed change, an attorney who chooses to make their law license inactive would also become inactive with the commission without an annual reporting requirement. The commission also proposes eliminating the current annual exemptions in favor of a simple active/inactive approach. Other proposals would make changes to commission leadership positions and how the commission’s website is referenced in the rules. Read more from the commission.

The federal judiciary has released the results of its first-ever employee survey exploring workplace issues, along with a new report containing recommendations for improvements aimed at achieving the judiciary’s goal of fostering an exemplary workplace. According to a press release, survey results show that the overwhelming majority of Judiciary employees are satisfied with their workplaces, 84% are satisfied or very satisfied with their jobs. and 80% said they would recommend their court or office to others. News reports have focused on different numbers, including more than one third who experienced at least one instance of inappropriate behavior in the workplace and roughly 8% who reported harassment or abuse. According to the agency, most respondents who experienced wrongful conduct did not avail themselves of employment dispute resolution procedures. Areas targeted for improvement include reducing barriers to reporting misconduct and increasing confidence in resolution procedures.

U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín of San Francisco ordered the Trump administration to temporarily restore legal aid to tens of thousands of migrant children who are in the United States without a parent or guardian. According to NPR, the order will run through April 16. The administration on March 21 terminated a contract with the Acacia Center for Justice, which provides legal services for unaccompanied migrant children under 18 through a network of legal aid groups that subcontract with the center. Eleven subcontractor groups sued, arguing that the government has an obligation under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008 to provide vulnerable children with legal counsel. The groups said some of the clients are too young to speak and others are too traumatized and do not know English.

The U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) recently launched an Anticompetitive Regulations Task Force to advocate for the elimination of laws and regulations that create unnecessary barriers to competition. As a first step, the DOJ Antitrust Division will initiate a process to seek information from the public and industry experts about laws and regulations that make it more difficult for businesses to compete effectively, especially in the areas of housing, transportation, food, agriculture, health care and energy. Comments should be submitted by May 26 to www.Regulations.gov (Docket No. ATR-2025-0001). Read more about the task force on the division’s website.

The Tennessee Bar Association’s online renewal for 2025-2026 is now open! Renew your membership to continue your access to TBA Today, the Tennessee Bar Journal, three free hours of CLE, resources for starting and building a new firm, and free legal research through vLex Fastcase, as well as savings on a range of products and services. Be sure to check out TBA's Preventing Legal Malpractice providers and Law Firm in a Box, and watch for more information this fall about TBA’s Group Health Insurance enrollment. Attorneys not participating in the TBA's firm billing program can log in and renew through their MyTBA dashboard. The TBA membership team will be working with firm administrators for those participating in firm billing so check with your firm administrator if you have questions about that process.