Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands recently added three new employees. Amia’ Butler joins the organization as development manager, the Nashville Post reports. She will oversee fundraising, philanthropy and advocacy efforts, including the annual Campaign for Equal Justice. In addition, Elizabeth Leiserson and Zane Jud have joined the firm’s Eviction Right to Counsel pilot program for low-income renters. Leiserson will serve as project director overseeing the existing group of housing attorneys, while Jud will serve as project coordinator. Leiserson previously was with Southern Migrant Legal Services, where she served as a staff attorney. Legal Aid is partnering on the pilot with Conexión Américas and the Nashville Hispanic Bar Association. WGNS Radio News has more on the program and the new hires.

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti has joined a coalition of 17 attorneys general in filing an amicus brief in the case of Carter v. McDonough. That case, brought by a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) nurse, challenges a new rule from the department that he said “purports to authorize taxpayer-funded abortions and abortion counseling for veterans and their beneficiaries.” The brief opposes the rule saying the VA does not have the legal authority to issue such a rule. In November, Skrmetti joined a coalition of 14 attorneys general in sending a letter to the VA warning that it lacked authority to impose the new rule.

While the number of trials in Shelby County increased from 2021 to 2022, it is still far less than during pre-COVID times, causing the backlog of trials to grow and concern among some that the slow pace is hindering a fair criminal justice process, the Daily Memphian reports. That article cites data from the Shelby County Criminal Court system and compares it with other local courts and national trends. According to the article, there were 11,595 felony arrests in Memphis in 2022. 10,557 of them were adults and 1,038 were juveniles. The county’s Criminal Court system conducted 35 trials last year. 

The University of Tennessee College of Law has named Professor Michelle Kwon as its new interim associate dean for diversity, inclusion and community engagement. In her new position, Kwon will develop and advance diversity, inclusion and belonging at the College of Law with an emphasis on lawyers’ professional obligation to seek justice and protect individual rights. Consistent with the university’s land-grant mission, Kwon will also lead the college in utilizing its resources and expertise for the betterment of the Knoxville-area community and the state, especially among underserved populations. “As the child of a native Hawaiian-Korean father and a German mother, and the only person in my family to go to college, I am honored to lead the College of Law’s diversity and inclusion efforts,” Kwon said. Read more from the College of Law.

The TBA Young Lawyers Division (YLD) Board held its winter meeting last weekend at Fall Creek Falls in Spencer. YLD President Brittany Faith gave special recognition to Samantha Ellis, Darius Walker Jr. and Angela Williams as the Stars of the Quarter, while also noting that all of the board members are doing outstanding work. The Diversity Leadership Institute’s (DLI) Class of 2023 met for the first time and networked with members of the YLD. Billy Leslie, Jeffrey Moore, Princess Rogers and DLI co-chair Angela Williams held sessions with the law school students to help prepare them for their future career. See pictures from the event here.

Davidson County Chancellor I'Ashea Myles has ruled against the state’s request to prevent public disclosure of records detailing the treatment of death row inmate Henry Hodges, the Tennessean reports. Hodges filed suit over the psychological and physical care he received after an October incident in which he severely injured his own genitals. The Associated Press and the Nashville Banner filed freedom of information motions over the records the state had sealed, including video footage of Hodges taken inside Riverbend Maximum Security Prison in Nashville. Myles ruled that all content produced in the course of discovery is subject to the court order to "unseal certain portions of the judicial records" and to "conduct further in camera review" of any other portions that remain under seal.

The Trial Court Vacancy Commission is now accepting applications for a chancellor in the 7th Judicial District, which covers Anderson County. The vacancy was created by the resignation of the Judge M. Nichole Cantrell, effective Jan. 31. Applicants must be at least 30 years of age, have resided in the state for five years and be residents of the 7th Judicial District. Those interested should submit the Trial Court Vacancy Commission application to the Administrative Office of the Courts by noon CST on Feb. 6. The commission will interview applicants during a public hearing on Feb. 24 at 9 a.m. EST at the Anderson County Courthouse, 100 N. Main St., Clinton. Read more from the Administrative Office of the Courts.  

The U.S. Sentencing Commission is seeking public comment on a proposed amendment to federal sentencing guidelines that would eliminate the imposition of longer sentences for conduct that was acquitted at trial. Though the U.S. Supreme Court has upheld the practice, some lawmakers, defense lawyers and judges have criticized it as unfair and a potential violation of defendants' civil rights, Reuters reports. Comments are due by March 14. The proposal is part of the commission's 2022-2023 rules package. Read more about other proposed changes.

The Tennessee Court of Appeals issued two orders on Tuesday dealing with the time available for oral arguments. The first, ADM2023-00038, provides that oral argument before the court shall be limited to 15 minutes per side unless otherwise ordered by the court. The second, ADM2023-00053, adds a new Rule 16 to the Rules of the Court of Appeals providing for 15 minutes per side for oral argument unless otherwise ordered by the court. The court indicated that the amendment took effect immediately.

New data from the National Association for Law Placement (NALP) indicates that the percentage of law students of color serving as summer associates at U.S. law firms grew two percentage points last year — bringing the total to 43% of all summer associates. That number exceeds the percentage of lawyers of color serving as law firm associates (28%) and partners (11%). In commenting on the findings, NALP Executive Director Nikia Gray said, “We are nowhere near achieving the progress one would expect.” Reuters has more on the report.