Bar Buzz is back with a new episode featuring Linda Warren Seely, pro bono counsel for Butler Snow LLP, interviewed by TBA's Executive Director Sheree Wright. BarBuzz is a monthly show from the TBA Podcast Network that recaps legal happenings from across Tennessee, upcoming events at the bar, attorney shout outs and more. Check out the September episode and discover past shows in the Bar Buzz archive.

Three lawyers at Southwest Airlines have received a reprieve from a judge's order requiring them to take "religious-liberty training" from the Christian legal group Alliance Defending Freedom, Reuters reports. The Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals recently put on hold Dallas-based U.S. District Judge Brantley Starr’s order directing the lawyers to attend the training. The order has drawn a judicial misconduct complaint from a reform advocacy group Fix the Court.

Funding that would have been given to the state of Tennessee for low-income family planning services will now be given to Planned Parenthood of Tennessee and North Mississippi to serve Tennessee residents, the Commercial Appeal reports. The state was disqualified from receiving federal Title X funding in April after an audit revealed that service providers were not in compliance with federal guidelines that stipulate patients must be informed of all options available to them, including abortion. The state condemned the decision at the time, arguing it was counseling patients on all options legal in the state. Planned Parenthood of Tennessee and North Mississippi is receiving the funds as a subgrant from the Virginia League for Planned Parenthood and Converge Inc., a Mississippi group that focuses on reproductive health in the south.

The Shelby County District Attorney's Office said yesterday that it will not charge the Memphis police officer who fatally shot Jaylin McKenzie. Others involved in the pursuit of McKenzie also will not be charged. The Commercial Appeal reports that District Attorney Steve Mulroy said there were concerns about the incident, but no evidence suggested that police shot at McKenzie for reasons other than self-defense. The officers involved in the pursuit were given "refresher training" for the various violations, which included not having body camera turned on, not notifying a supervisor about the pursuit, not turning on lights and siren during the high-speed chase, and failing to separate officers after the shooting.

U.S. District Court Judge Waverly Crenshaw has granted Brian Kelsey’s request to stay out of prison on bail while he appeals a 21-month sentence for directing a scheme to violate federal campaign finance laws, Tennessee Lookout reports. The former state Republican senator was to report to prison in mid-October. In a court hearing last week, Kelsey’s lawyer argued that federal prosecutors violated a plea agreement after Kelsey reneged on a guilty plea. Prosecutors countered that Kelsey broke the agreement first by trying to take back his guilty plea, which caused him to commit perjury. In November 2022, Kelsey pleaded guilty to directing a secret plan to funnel about $109,000 from his state campaign through two political action committees to the American Conservative Union, which bought ads for his failed 2016 congressional campaign.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has approved $3.5 million in federal grant money for Memphis and Shelby County, Action 5 News reports. The city of Memphis will receive $2 million to equip 2,200 sworn officers with body-worn cameras and to establish a comprehensive camera-use policy to enhance transparency and accountability in policing. Shelby County will receive $1.5 million to strengthen its rape kit initiative, including investigating the backlog in testing and using genealogy in John Doe cases. “The grants announced today will improve accountability in policing in Memphis and bring to justice perpetrators of sexual assault in our community,” said U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Memphis, who announced the funding.

Consulting firm McKinsey & Co has agreed to pay $230 million to resolve lawsuits by hundreds of local governments and school districts that accused the firm of fueling the opioid epidemic by advising drugmakers how to successfully sell the painkillers. According to the lawsuit, McKinsey provided sales analysis and marketing advice to manufacturers to help them sell the highly addictive drug and convince doctors to prescribe them. McKinsey already has paid out more than $640 million to resolve suits over its opioid work, including a suit brought by 50 state attorneys general. U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco must approve the settlement. Read more from Fortune.

A federal judge in Atlanta has rejected a bid by an anti-affirmative activist group to bar a venture capital fund from awarding grants to businesses run by Black women, reports Reuters. U.S. District Judge Thomas Thrash denied a request by Edward Blum's American Alliance for Equal Rights for a preliminary injunction blocking Fearless Fund from considering applications for grants only from businesses led by Black women. Blum's group was behind the U.S. Supreme Court case that struck down affirmative action in college admissions this July. The lawsuit is one of three that Blum's group had filed challenging grant and fellowship programs designed to help give Black, Hispanic and other underrepresented minority groups greater career opportunities.

More than 500 guests filled the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition facilities in Nashville Friday for the 3rd Annual InterNASHional Night Market fundraiser. Featuring food from 23 different vendors from almost that many countries, the event celebrates Nashville’s wide range of immigrant and refugee communities and provides funds for serving those communities. See photos from the event.

The University of Tennessee College of Law announced seven new faculty members today. Lonnie T. Brown Jr., dean and Elvin E. Overton distinguished professor, said in a website announcement that “these talented scholars and teachers bring a wealth of knowledge, experience and immense talent that will further enrich our vibrant law school community.” The new members include Tyler Dougherty, Rebecca Eshbaugh, Kristina Kersey, Nicholas Nugent, Tomer S. Stein, Rachelle Ketchum West and Carlos A. Yunsan. Visit the school’s website to learn more.