Key members of the newly appointed 2023-2024 Young Lawyers Division (YLD) Board are meeting in Memphis this weekend for a spring retreat to make plans for next year's programs and projects. President-elect Quinton Thompson, who will take over as YLD president at the TBA Convention in June, welcomed the group to the downtown office of Morgan & Morgan this afternoon. He provided an overview of the upcoming bar year and introduced his new initiative "Diversity Law Week." Board members also heard a presentation on leading with purpose with attorneys Amber Floyd, Nicole Grida, Charlotte Knight Griffin and Terrence Reed and Memphis Councilman J.B. Smiley Jr. Committee members will continue to meet through tomorrow.

Joseph Byrd has joined the Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts as the lead attorney for the newly created Indigent Services Team. In his new role, Byrd will manage the team that oversees the indigent representation program, which provides court-appointed attorneys in certain types of legal cases. He most recently was an assistant attorney general in the civil law division at the state attorney general’s office. He previously was disciplinary counsel for the Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility and attorney for Bradley County. In private practice, he served as a court-appointed defense counsel in criminal and post-conviction cases and as a guardian ad litem in dependency, neglect and abuse cases. Read more from the AOC.

A grand jury in Hamilton County has issued a report calling for updates to the juvenile detention center, more resources for officers and updated cameras in school classrooms. With regard to the detention center, the group writes that it is “essential that the county/city budget find the money to immediately update the current facility, as it is in much needed repair.” They also say it needs to be expanded, noting the facility currently does not offer space for any outdoor recreation. Read the full report from Chattanoogan.com.

Following a one-week delay in the release of its new law school rankings, U.S. News now says it will delay the results indefinitely. The rankings based on new criteria were supposed to have been unveiled this week but the magazine delayed the release until April 25. Yesterday afternoon, it said it would further delay release with no new date announced. Above the Law reports that law schools have challenged pre-release data as full of errors. It has a copy of the message sent to deans about the postponement. A Yale Law spokesperson told Law.com, “Many scholars and deans have expressed serious concerns about the company’s inability to produce accurate, error-free rankings.”

Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti will be the keynote speaker for the Jackson-Madison County Bar Association and West Tennessee Legal Services Law Day celebration on May 12. The event will take place at noon at St. Luke's Episcopal Church, 309 E. Baltimore St., Jackson 38301. Tickets are $25 for attorneys and $15 for non-attorneys and can be purchased online. Lunch will be provided. For questions contact Andy Cole, president of the Jackson-Madison County Bar Association, at JMCBarAssociation@gmail.com.

A new episode from Nashville Public Radio’s “This is Nashville” podcast reflects on the life and legacy of Nashville lawyer Z. Alexander Looby, who played a pivotal role in the civil rights movement in Middle Tennessee. The episode looks at his involvement in the legal aftermath of the 1946 Columbia race riot and the night a bomb exploded his home. While he and his wife escaped unscathed, the bomber behind the assassination attempt was never identified. Learn more about his story.

Gov. Bill Lee yesterday appointed Jamie Brooks as chancellor for the Seventh Judicial District. The appointment is effective immediately. Brooks fills a vacancy created by the resignation of Chancellor Nichole Cantrell. Brooks is currently a solo practitioner at Wilson & Brooks. He brings more than 37 years of varied legal expertise to the bench, including in real property law, family law, wills and estates and criminal defense. Brooks earned his law degree at the University of Tennessee College of Law. The judicial district covers Anderson County. Read more from the Administrative Office of the Courts.

Nominations for the Fourth Estate Award: Honoring Courageous Reporting on Justice and the Law are due tomorrow. Don't miss your chance to nominate a Tennessee journalist or media organization for reporting that promotes public understanding of the rule of law and our system of justice. Learn more about the award and access the nomination form.

The U.S. Supreme Court announced today that access to the abortion pill mifepristone will remain unchanged through at least Friday. Justice Samuel Alito, who handles emergency requests from the Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, announced the extension through Friday at 11:59 p.m. EDT. The order gave no indication of how the court intends to proceed. Last Monday, the Court of Appeals issued an emergency stay of U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk’s ruling, which invalidated the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the pill citing insufficient research but imposed that new restrictions on the pill's distribution. Last Thursday, the Biden administration asked for an emergency intervention from the Supreme Court to allow access to the pill through mail order and without first seeing a physician. Read more about today's ruling in The Hill.

The Commercial Appeal reported today that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has sent a letter of intent to distribute $4 million in funds earmarked for HIV prevention and treatment services through the United Way of Greater Nashville. The amount is less than half of previous grants. The rare move bypassing the Tennessee Department of Health comes three months after the department said it would no longer accept and distribute federal funding for HIV prevention-related services. Tennessee's health commissioner told a state Senate committee that federal funding would be replaced with $9 million in state funding. It is estimated that the loss of federal funds could impact more than 20,000 residents in western Tennessee and Shelby County, one of the highest areas of HIV transmission rates in the country. Read more at the Tennessean.