Officials paused in-person family visitation at Nashville jails because of the COVID-19 pandemic but now it looks like this change might be here to stay. Even as state prisons have gone back to in-person visiting, the local sheriff says he thinks incarcerated people are more comfortable seeing their loved ones on screens. But lawyers and families say a lot is being lost. “COVID has taught us all that video conferencing is no substitute for in-person conversations” says Dawn Deaner, the city’s former public defender and now executive director of the Choosing Justice Initiative. She also notes that jail calls with family and friends are recorded and can be monitored, which can affect free and open conversation. WPLN looks at how the policy is affecting some families.

Swearing in ceremonies for new lawyers continued on Wednesday of this week in Jackson with a small group. Former TBA Young Lawyers Division President and Jackson attorney Terica Smith was on hand to welcome the students to the practice of law. See photos from the event.

Memphis Area Legal Services (MALS) has named Heather Staggs as its is new managing attorney of pro bono programs. Staggs previously worked with West Tennessee Legal Services in its Elder Abuse and Financial Exploitation Section. In her new role, she will oversee the organization’s pro bono projects and clinics, including the bi-weekly Shelby County Courthouse Pro Bono Clinic and the Second Saturday Benjamin Hooks Main Library Pro Bono Clinic. Staggs earned her law degree from Villanova University School of Law in 2015 and was licensed to practice law in Tennessee in 2017.

The U.S. judiciary’s administrative office is asking the full U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to hear a case involving political activity by its staff. A three judge-panel of the court previously found that rules preventing employees from engaging in political activity violated their constitutional right to free speech. The judiciary argues that such rules are necessary to protect the third branch’s “reputation for impartiality and nonpartisanship.” The rules, implemented in 2018, prohibit donations to political campaigns, attendance at partisan rallies and expressions of political views on social media. Bloomberg Law has more on the case.

U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman struck down President Biden’s student loan forgiveness program yesterday, declaring it unlawful. He said the executive action by the president was “an unconstitutional exercise of Congress’s legislative power,” The Hill reports. The Biden administration has argued it has authority to forgive student loans under the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act of 2003. Pittman rejected this argument finding no “clear congressional authorization” for the program. The ruling comes in a lawsuit filed by the Job Creators Network Foundation on the behalf of two borrowers who are ineligible for different benefits of the plan.

Hamilton County Mayor Weston Wamp has introduced a resolution that would prevent high-level employees from using county resources for unofficial business and prohibit outside work that interferes with their day-to-day responsibilities, the Times Free Press reports. The change comes after a report that County Attorney Rheubin Taylor used his county email address and phone number as he worked on 80 cases while being employed full time by the county. Wamp attempted to fire Taylor last month, citing Taylor’s private work on county time. Commissioners then passed a series of resolutions reaffirming Taylor’s four-year contract and unanimously overrode Wamp’s subsequent veto of those resolutions. Officials have noted Taylor's contract allows him to conduct private work.

Five former Methodist Hospital employees have been indicted by a grand jury for conspiring to unlawfully disclose patient information in violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA). According to the indictment, between November 2017 and December 2020, Kirby Dandridge, Sylvia Taylor, Kara Thompson, Melanie Russell and Adrianna Taber were paid by Roderick Harvey to provide him with names and numbers of patients who had been in vehicle accidents. Harvey then sold that information to third parties, including personal injury attorneys and chiropractors. Read the press release from the U.S. Attorney, Western District’s office.

The Memphis Bar Association last week held its annual Access to Justice CLE & Pro Bono Awards program. MBA’s Access to Justice Committee holds the event each year to recognize judges, attorneys, law firms, legal departments and law students who have displayed a commitment to pro bono service and the pursuit of ATJ. Recipients of the 2022 Champion of Justice Awards were: Judge Deborah Henderson, Judiciary Category; Robin Warren, Public Interest Category; Dominique Defreece, Law Student Category; Memphis Area Legal Services, Law Firm Category; International Paper, Legal Department Category. Attorney Danielle Woods was honored with the Melanie R. Yelder Champion of Justice Award. See pictures from the event on the MBA’s Facebook page.

Thirteenth District Criminal Court Judge Gary McKenzie, a former Judge Advocate General (JAG) officer, presides over the district’s Veterans Treatment Court. After being elected to the bench in 2014, McKenzie established the VTC program with the help of Judge Seth Norman. The program provides treatment, counseling and therapy for substance abuse as an alternative to incarceration. McKenzie credits the program’s success to a structure similar to that of the military. He also believes being a veteran himself is beneficial for the program. “I can communicate with them in a similar language, if you will,” McKenzie said. To date, the program has experienced success with only a 3% recidivism rate versus the average of 33% for other programs. Read the story from the Administrative Office of the Courts.

Following scrutiny over the slow turnaround of sexual assault kit testing, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has asked for a $45.3 million budget increase, the Daily Memphian reports. TBI Director David Rausch asked Gov. Bill Lee for the increase yesterday during the fist day of the state government’s fiscal year 2024 budget process. Much of the increase would be spent on enabling faster processing times for the kits as well as funding 71 positions. Rausch asked for $5.8 million to fund 25 forensic scientists and 14 support personnel and another $27.6 million for “salary modernization.” Lee pushed Rausch for more details on how much faster turnaround times would be, but Rausch was unable to answer.