TikTok Inc. is planning to go on a lawyer hiring spree as efforts to ban the popular social media app or force its sale in the United States continue, Bloomberg Law reports. The company — owned by Beijing-based ByteDance Ltd. — says it plans to hire 60 lawyers globally this year. An online job board lists in-house legal positions in regulatory affairs, product monetization, privacy, litigation, employment, compliance, and anti-money laundering.

The 42nd Annual Tennessee State High School Mock Trial Competition will take place March 17-18 at the Historic Davidson County Courthouse in downtown Nashville. The roster of competitors is now set with 14 teams: Aaron Academy and Signal Mountain High School from Chattanooga; Clarksville High School; two teams from Agathos Classical School in Columbia; Jefferson County High School in Dandridge; Unicoi County High School in Erwin; Farragut High School in Knoxville; two teams from St. Mary's Episcopal School in Memphis; Central Magnet School in Murfreesboro; and Christ Presbyterian Academy, Harpeth Hall School and Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville. The state competition is produced by the TBA Young Lawyers Division and will involve several hundred students, attorneys, sitting judges and law student volunteers. Thank you to Belmont University College of Law, Lincoln Memorial University and Lincoln Memorial University Duncan School of Law for sponsoring this year’s competition.

The Biden administration is reportedly considering reviving the practice of detaining migrant families who cross the border without documentation — the same policy the president shut down over the past two years, the New York Times reports. Under the current policy, migrant families are released into the United States with ankle bracelets, traceable cellphones or other methods to keep track of them until a court hearing date. Some suggest the move may be in response to an expected border surge after May 11, when a public health measure that has allowed authorities to expel migrants expires. Officials told the paper that the Department of Homeland Security is outlining what it would need to do to restart temporary family detention by early May.

Pleasant View Municipal Judge Greg Smith recently completed a position paper advising the Parliament of Ukraine on how to revamp its small claims courts, the Administrative Office of the Courts reports. The parliament had reached out to the National Judicial College (NJC) for assistance with reforming its courts and the NJC asked Smith to handle recommendations for the small claims court system. Smith has taught for the NJC for the past nine years and has authored the Municipal Judges’ Bench Book. Of the experience, Smith said, "I'm humbled to be entrusted with this important task by the National Judicial College and the Country of Ukraine … Of all the judges that you could find, why me was what I was thinking.” Smith believes the paper has been translated from English to Ukrainian and is now headed to the parliament for review.

The U.S. Department of Justice today said it will conduct a review of the Memphis Police Department. The review, to be conducted by the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, will look at policies, practices, training, data and processes related to the department’s use of force, de-escalation and specialized units. At the conclusion of the review, a public report outlining findings and recommendations will be issued. The DOJ also announced it would undertake a broader review of specialized law enforcement units across the country. That effort is designed to help police chiefs and mayors assess the appropriateness of specialized units and ensure the necessary management and oversight of such units. The decision comes as the Memphis City Council yesterday adopted several new ordinances designed to change how police interact with citizens during traffic stops. The Commercial Appeal has more on those proposals.

The Shelby County District Attorney’s office announced yesterday that it is entering into a memorandum of understanding with the national reform group Justice Innovation Lab. The move is designed to enhance data transparency within the office, the district attorney said. According to News Action 5, the reform group — which is composed of former prosecutors and data analysis experts — will review the office’s data and interview staff for the next 12 to 18 months. It also will help clean up the office’s data and design a public-facing “data dashboard” on the DA’s website.

Shelby County Criminal Court Judge James Jones Jr. today signed an order blocking the release of nearly 20 hours of additional footage from the scene where Tyre Nichols was beaten by multiple Memphis police officers in early January, as well as accompanying charging documents. Jones wrote in his order that public release will “be delayed until such time as the state and the defendants have reviewed this information,” the Commercial Appeal reports. The Memphis Police Department and the Shelby County District Attorney's office supported release of the information. The motion to block it came from Blake Ballin, the attorney representing Desmond Mills Jr. — one of five officers charged in Nichols’ death. The other four officers also signed onto the petition.

The U.S. Sentencing Commission tomorrow at 9 a.m. EST will host the second day of a public hearing on proposed amendments to the federal sentencing guidelines related to areas including firearms, conflicts among the U.S. appeals courts, career offenders and criminal history. Arizona U.S. Attorney Gary Restaino will represent the DOJ at the hearing, and law professor Leslie Scott will represent the federal defender perspective. A livestream of the hearing will be available here.

University of Tennessee College of Law has announced that Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Sharon G. Lee will serve as the University of Tennessee College of Law’s Spring 2023 commencement speaker. “We are thrilled and honored to have Justice Lee as our 2023 commencement speaker,” Dean Lonnie T. Brown, Jr. said. “She truly epitomizes all that is good about the legal profession, and I am so glad that our 2023 graduates will get to hear from such a wonderful role model.” The College of Law’s commencement will take place on May 18 at 7:30 p.m. EST in Thompson-Boling Arena.

Belmont University Law School’s moot court teams were recently named regional champs at the National Appellate Advocacy Competition (NAAC) in Brooklyn, New York. Samantha McCaleb was named Eighth Best Advocate in the region, and Frank Toub and Carli Tuttle were Belmont’s regional semifinalist team. The regional champion team will travel to Washington, D.C., for the national finals in April. This is Belmont’s seventh year to compete in the NAAC competition, as well as its seventh straight year to be regional champions and advance to nationals.