Law School Admission Council (LSAC) data released today shows that more students of color are applying to law school, with applicants in nearly all ethnic categories increasing, the ABA Journal reports. The results follow a four-year trend of applicants of color increasing about 1% each year. In related news, Reuters reported a growing number of law schools are experimenting with small-scale admissions programs that do not rely on the Law School Admission Test, a move they hope will broaden applicant pools and bolster diversity.

The Tennessee Defense Lawyers Association (TDLA) recently presented its inaugural Nathan E. Shelby Emerging Leaders Award to AJ Parker in the Nashville office of Rainey, Kizer, Reviere & Bell. The award recognizes a member of the association who participates in the Emerging Leaders Program and demonstrates development of leadership skills. The award honors Shelby, who was TDLA president-elect in 2022-2023 and, according to the group, was known for his strength in identifying and mentoring young lawyers to fulfill their potential as effective civil defense lawyers and leaders in the association. Shelby died Sept. 6.

Attorneys Shane Cortesi, Charles Gilbreath and Stephan Wright, based in both Nashville and Chattanooga, have announced the establishment of Wright, Cortesi & Gilbreath. According to the Nashville Post, the firm will handle civil and intellectual property litigation, patent work, trademark and copyright filings, contracts and employment law. Cortesi is joining the firm after working as a solo practioner in Nashville. He will remain in Nashville. Wright and Gilbreath both worked in the Law Office of Stephan Wright in Chattanooga. Learn more online.

Alicia Campbell, the director of victim services within the Williamson County District Attorney General’s Office, recently entered a guilty plea to charges of fraudulent use of a debit card, the Tennessean reports. Campbell, who resigned her position in August, entered the plea after investigators discovered she had made 14 personal purchases totaling $1,804.55 using a debit card assigned to the Victims of Crime Assistance Program. Campbell was granted judicial diversion relief, placed on a year probation and ordered to pay restitution. The full investigative report is available from the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury.

Local and state elected officials, members of the local legal community and judges gathered with the family of former Hamilton County judge and state representative Mike Carter this week to unveil his official portrait in the Hamilton County Courts Building. Carter was praised for his four decades of service to the community, which included serving as general counsel for the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, as a Hamilton County General Sessions judge and as a state representative for District 29. Carter died in 2021. Chattanoogan.com has photos from the ceremony and comments from local officials.

Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Melissa Boyd was indicted yesterday for coercion of a witness and harassment, the Daily Memphian reports. She was booked into the Shelby County Jail today, posted $5,000 bail and was released. The indictment accuses Boyd of attempting to coerce her campaign manager Lashanta Rudd to testify falsely or withhold truthful testimony in 2022 while Rudd was a witness in an unidentified “official proceeding.” The indictment came from Judicial District 28 District Attorney Frederick Agee since the Shelby County District Attorney’s Office recused itself from the case. Boyd has received two reprimands from the Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct for failing to abide by the terms of an earlier suspension. The board referred her case to the Tennessee General Assembly last month following issuance of the second reprimand.

One of the most important responsibilities of the TBA is to advocate for the legal profession and our system of justice with Tennessee lawmakers. TBA’s Government Affairs team is committed to affect positive change on behalf of Tennessee attorneys when the 2024 session of the 113th General Assembly reconvenes on Jan. 9, and we need your help! Please consider joining TBA’s Grassroots Advocacy efforts to receive action alerts as relevant policy issues arise, including indigent representation. Respond to this survey to ensure that your voice is heard. 

The 16th annual Law Department Operation Survey from Blickstein Group and Deloitte found that a significant number of legal departments want their outside counsel to use generative AI, reports Law.com. The survey, which included 77 in-house legal and legal ops professionals from separate companie, found 68%, believe that the value of law firms’ legal services will increase if they leverage generative AI. 

Twenty-one people in West Tennessee are facing federal charges for their involvement in an organized drug trafficking scheme, according to U.S. Attorney Kevin G. Ritz for the Western District of Tennessee. The charges are the culmination of a yearlong investigation by FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives with local police departments. Read the full press release.

An audit conducted by the Tennessee's Comptroller's office has found Tennessee prisons may have violated federal law by mishandling sexual assault cases, reports the Tennessean. The report also found triple-digit staff turnover rates at CoreCivic-operated facilities. In addition, the audio showed multiple examples of TDOC and CoreCivic staff violating federal Prison Rape Elimination Act standards, including closing sexual assault investigations before receiving rape testing results. In its formal response to the audit, TDOC pledged to provide "training for the appropriate staff" to improve compliance with the federal law.