Nashville’s NewsChannel 5 reports that Maegan Hall, a former LaVergne police officer who was fired along with the police chief and four other officers, is suing over sexual misconduct within the department. The federal suit names two supervising sergeants, the police chief and the city of LaVergne for alleged civil rights violations. Hall says a culture of sexual misconduct and pressure to engage in “sexual antics” led to her to participate "under duress." The city has not yet responded to the lawsuit.

The ABA will host its Law Day 2023 Launch Program on Monday from 4-5 p.m. EST. The program — held virtually with free registration — will provide suggestions and guidance to inspire people to plan and lead their own Law Day celebrations on May 1, the national day set aside to celebrate the rule of law. This year's theme is “Cornerstones of Democracy: Civics, Civility and Collaboration.” Register for the launch program and access Law Day resources online.

The American Bar Association Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility released a formal opinion today that provides guidance covering which jurisdiction’s ethics rules should apply to lawyers who handle matters in more than one jurisdiction. Formal Opinion 504 states that, “A lawyer must comply with the ethics rules of the jurisdiction where the lawyer’s conduct occurs or, if different, where the predominant effect of the lawyer’s conduct occurs.” The opinion provides guidance to assess where “predominant effect” occurs and offers scenarios for topics such as fee agreements, law firm ownership, reporting professional misconduct and confidentiality. Read more about the opinion.

Former Tennessee Attorney General Herbert H. Slatery III today joined the Knoxville law firm of Egerton, McAfee, Armistead & Davis as a principal. He returns to the firm after serving as a shareholder there prior to his government service. Slatery served as attorney general from October 2014 through August 2022. He previously served as counsel to Gov. Bill Haslam. Read the firm’s release.

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti has joined a coalition of 21 states in filing an amicus brief before the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in support of a Louisville wedding photographer who has declined to take custom photographs at a same-sex wedding. Read more about the filing.

An opinion included in yesterday’s issue of TBA Today has been withdrawn after the court notified TBA that the opinion was filed prematurely. Please do not rely on the Court of Criminal Appeals decision in the case of Adolphus Lebron Hollingsworth v. State of Tennessee included in the Feb. 28 issue of this newsletter.

Nearly five years after agents from multiple federal agencies detained Latino workers during a Grainger County slaughterhouse raid, a judge has finalized a class action settlement for the workers, Tennessee Lookout reports. First approved in September 2022, the settlement awards more than $1 million to the 104 members of the class, with $475,000 going to the seven workers who originally filed. Agents with the Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement had planned the raid for more than a year before entering the Southeastern Provision plant in Bean Station on April 5, 2018. Court records showed the agencies misled a federal judge about the purpose of the raid, telling a federal judge they were seeking to gather records for a tax evasion case against the owner James Brantley.

As of today, Nashville's oldest law firm has a new identity. The firm formerly known as Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis LLP is now officially part of Holland & Knight LLP, the Nashville Business Journal reports. Matt Burnstein, who was chair of Waller, now has the title of executive partner of Holland & Knight's Nashville office. He is one of three Waller lawyers to gain seats on Holland & Knight's policy-making body. Holland & Knight’s managing partner Steven Sonberg says the acquisition enhances the firm’s position in the health care sector and will accelerate future growth.

The family of Lisa Edwards, a Knoxville woman who died following arrest in early February, plans to sue, possibly against the Knoxville Police Department (KPD) and the hospitals that treated Edwards. The Knoxville News Sentinel reports that the family is working to gather as much information as possible about what happened during her medical emergency and eventual death. Edwards was arrested Feb. 5 outside Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center, where she had been treated. Hospital security staff called police when Edwards declined to move off the property after she was discharged. The family maintains that Edwards was physically disabled and unable to use her left side due to a 2019 stroke. Officers struggled to get Edwards into a police van and then into the backseat of a cruiser, where she later became unresponsive. She was taken back to the medical center where the Knox County District Attorney's office said Edwards died of a stroke the next day. The DA's office says none of the officers who handled her arrest will face criminal charges.

Attorneys general from 36 states, including Tennessee, have written Congressional leaders of their concern with the National Human Trafficking Hotline. Polaris has operated the National Human Trafficking Hotline since 2007 with funding authorized by Congress. The letter says that Polaris only forwards tips to state law enforcement about adult victims in limited circumstances. This practice is contrary to what Polaris advertises, to what states and organizations have come to expect from this partnership, and, the attorneys general believe, to what Congress expects from its funding.