The 2022 class of the TBA Public Service Academy met for its final session of the program on Nov. 18-19 at the Nashville office of Adams and Reese. The academy is a nonpartisan training program that provides attorneys with the tools to run for local public offices, such as school board, city council and county commission. The session’s theme was “Your Campaign,” featuring presentations on building a campaign team, media training, finding your message, campaign do’s and don’ts and direct mail. This year’s program was chaired by Jamie Ballinger, Steve Elkins and Circuit Judge Joel Wallace. Class members are Raven Austin, Amanda Bradley, Duncan Bryant, Brian Bush, Jing Geng, Timothy Martin, David O’Neil, Jessica Schultz, Ryan Strain and Angela Washington. Read more on class members and speakers.

Chattanooga radio host David Tulis has filed a lawsuit against Tennessee Supreme Court Chief Justice Roger Page, alleging Page conspired to have him falsely imprisoned, the Tennessee Tribune reports. Tulis was arrested in November 2021 while “covering” the Tennessee Judicial Conference in Franklin and charged with criminal trespass. The charge was ultimately dismissed. In February, Administrative Office of the Courts Director Michelle Long established a new blanket closure policy that prohibits members of the press from attending conference sessions. The policy drew a lawsuit from news organization The Center Square for allegedly violating First Amendment rights of access. In addition to Page, the suit filed by Tulis names his arresting officer, the City of Franklin, the AOC education manager John Crawford and Atrium Hospitality. Tulis seeks $75,000 in compensation and an order to open the judicial conferences to the public.

U.S. Sens. Marsha Blackburn, R-TN, and Richard Blumenthal, D-CT, are asking the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) how it plans to combat the use of online bots following an incident involving Ticketmaster’s presale of Taylor Swift tickets. Ticketmaster says it canceled the general public ticket sale for Swift’s upcoming tour after online bots, in this instance used by scalpers, briefly crashed its site. Blackburn and Blumenthal co-sponsored the 2016 Better Online Ticket Sales Act, or BOTS Act, which bans the use of such bots to buy tickets in bulk from online sites for the purpose of reselling them at higher prices. “The recent difficulties consumers have faced while attempting to purchase tickets is a serious concern and reflective of anti-competitive conduct in the online ticket marketplace,” Blackburn said in a statement. “Fortunately, a solution is already in place that would go a long way in reducing ticket costs and protecting consumers and artists from scammers." The Tennessean has more on the story.

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti joined a coalition of eight attorneys general last week in sending a letter to five solar lending companies: Dividend Solar Finance, GoodLeap, Riverbank, Sunlight Financial and Solar Mosaic. The letter urges the companies to suspend loan payments and accrual of interest for customers who financed the purchase of a solar power system from Pink Energy and have not received a working solar power system. The letter also asks the lenders to assist customers who are experiencing functionality and installation issues. The move follows complaints filed against Pink Energy, which abruptly closed operations and filed for bankruptcy in October. Customers allege that the company misled them about the performance of its products and their potential eligibility for tax credits.

The Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments is now accepting applications for the Tennessee Supreme Court vacancy that will be created by the retirement of Justice Sharon G. Lee on Aug. 31, 2023. Interested applicants must be licensed attorneys who are at least 35 years of age, residents of the state for five years and a resident of the Eastern Tennessee Grand Division. Applicants must complete the designated application and submit it to the Administrative Office of the Courts by noon CST on Dec. 12. Applicants will be interviewed on Jan. 4 at the Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy in Knoxville. Complete application instructions are available on the Administrative Office of the Courts website.

More law schools have announced that they are pulling out of rankings by U.S. News & World Report because of concerns that they discourage programs to support public-interest careers. Yale Law School, which has been ranked No. 1 since the inception of the rankings, was first to make such an announcement. Since then, several law schools have followed, incluiding Harvard Law School, the University of California at Berkeley School of Law, Stanford Law School, the Georgetown University Law Center, Columbia Law School, the University of Michigan Law School, the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, the Duke University School of Law and the University of California at Irvine School of Law. Read more from the ABA Journal about why schools are taking this step and why some lower-ranked institutions are reluctant to withdraw.

The Tennessee Court of Workers' Compensation Claims Appeals Board will return to in-person oral arguments this Friday after a two-year hiatus during the COVID-19 pandemic. This week’s arguments will take place at the Supreme Court Building in Nashville beginning at 9 a.m. CST. Cases on docket include challenges to the sufficiency of notices regarding gradually occurring injuries, a challenge to an expedited hearing order granting benefits, and a challenge to the board’s authority to award fees after finding an appeal frivolous. Read more about the cases.

Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Jeffery S. Bivins recently was presented the Distinguished Alumnus in Public Service Award by his college alma mater, East Tennessee State University (ETSU). Bivins graduated from ETSU in 1982 with a bachelor degree in political science and a minor in criminal justice, the Elizabethton Star reports. Bivins graduated from Vanderbilt University School of Law in 1986. He practiced law with Boult, Cummings, Conners & Berry PLC in Nashville and was assistant commissioner and general counsel for the Tennessee Department of Personnel before joining the bench. He served as a circuit court judge for the 21st Judicial District and then as a judge on the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals. Bivins was appointed to the Tennessee Supreme Court in 2014. In 2016, his colleagues elected him chief justice, a position he held until 2021.

Memphis lawyer Clarence Wilbon has been elected chair of the executive committee at Adams and Reese, the Commercial Appeal reports. He will be the first Black person to hold that position when he takes over on Jan. 1. Wilbon, currently a litigation partner, has practiced with the firm since 2014, and was elected to the executive committee in 2021. Wilbon previously served as TBA associate general counsel and is a graduate of the TBA Leadership Law program. Adams and Reese has close to 300 attorneys and advisors in 21 offices across 10 states. 

Gov. Bill Lee has announced that Kentucky doctor and legislator Ralph Alvarado will take over as commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Health on Jan. 16. Alvarado is a sitting Kentucky state senator and chief executive officer of Alvarado Medical Services. A release from the governor’s office states that Alvarado has decades of experience as an attending physician and in hospital management. He will succeed Interim Health Commissioner Dr. Morgan McDonald.