Despite backlash from a previous weeklong closure of the Shelby County clerk office, Clerk Wanda Halbert says she will close the office for a second week later this month, likely the week of Sept. 19. "Because of the backlog of additional work outside of new and renewed license plates, as a result of downed mail services, the Offices of the Shelby County Clerk are closing ... to catch up on critically outstanding services,” Halbert's office wrote in a notice. The Commercial Appeal has more on the story.

The Biden administration recently released its finalized immigration policy on the so-called “public charge” criteria for green card applicants, part of a year-long legal battle to undo efforts of the prior administration to limit eligibility for permanent residency. Under the new 455-page rule, set to take effect Dec. 23, green card applicants will not be penalized for use of non-cash public assistance programs such as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Medicaid or housing benefits. Instead, immigration officers will look at “the receipt of public cash assistance for income maintenance or long-term institutionalization at government expense” to evaluate if any individual is likely to become a “public charge,” who would then be ineligible to become a permanent resident. Roll Call looks at the new policy.

The Shelby County Commission will soon fill three judicial commissioner positions that are vacant after attorneys holding them won August elections to become judges, the Daily Memphian reports. “We cannot afford to be light on judicial commissioners,” General Sessions Criminal Court Judge Bill Anderson told the commission yesterday. “And we cannot afford to bring in judicial commissioners who don’t know their job when they walk through the door.” Anderson, who oversees the judicial commissioners, has offered to screen the applicants for the three positions. He says the vacancies leave the court system “woefully inadequate.” Applications for the positions are due Friday and will be followed by interviews on Sept. 21 and a final commission vote on Sept. 26. The judicial commissioners as a whole are part of a new bail court that starts operation in February.

The Knoxville Bar Association last night hosted a Bench-Bar Celebration at the Knoxville Convention Center. The event was held to celebrate the unity and fellowship of the local legal community. The KBA honored the justices of the Tennessee Supreme Court and celebrated members of the judiciary at all levels for their dedication to the administration of justice. TBA President Tasha Blakney and Executive Director Joycelyn Stevenson attended the event along with other TBA members. See pictures from the event here.

Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals Presiding Judge John Everett Williams will lie in state from noon until 3 p.m. CDT on Monday in the Nashville Supreme Court Building, 401 7th Ave. N. Attorneys and the public are welcome to pay their respects in the courtroom. Williams died unexpectedly on Sept. 2. He was 68. Visitation will take place on Sept. 13 from 2 to 8 p.m. CDT at the Dilday-Carter Funeral Home, 650 High Street in Huntingdon. Services will be held on Sept. 14 at 1 p.m. CDT at the Huntingdon First United Methodist Church, 201 Asbury Circle, Huntingdon. The Administrative Office of the Courts has more on Williams’ legacy, including stories and remembrances from the judiciary.

Metro Nashville City Council has passed an ordinance that will prevent law enforcement from using license plate reader (LPR) technology to enforce any laws criminalizing abortion, the Tennessean reports. The measure passed unanimously on consent Tuesday and will block the use of LPRs in "assisting with enforcing laws outlawing abortion or outlawing interstate travel to obtain abortion." Nashville has yet to implement LPR technology, but a six-month pilot program was approved by council earlier this year. Last month, councilmembers also passed an ordinance to restrict LPR use for assistance with immigration enforcement.

The U.S. Senate today confirmed Memphis attorney Andre Mathis to the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Reuters reports. Mathis, a partner at Butler Snow, was confirmed on a 48-47 vote, despite prior objections from Tennessee Republican Senators Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty. He will be the first Black male and second Black person from Tennessee to sit on the Ohio-based 6th Circuit. Mathis is the second of President Joe Biden’s judicial picks to be confirmed this week.

Alumni members of the TBA Leadership Law (TBALL) program are being asked to submit nominations for the 2023 class. TBALL is a six-month leadership training program for Tennessee attorneys with five to 15 years of practice experience. Alumni members have until Sept. 14 to submit their nominations via an online form that was emailed to them. Questions about the program or nomination process can be directed to TBALL coordinator Kate Prince.  

The TBA hit the road today, taking its Court Square program to Greeneville for CLE programming and more. Activities kicked off with a networking lunch with TBA President Tasha Blakney and others, then continued with an ethics update from Eric Fuller with the Board of Professional Responsibility, as well as a judicial panel moderated by former TBA president and U.S. Magistrate Judge Cynthia Wyrick, and featuring Greene County General Sessions and Juvenile Judge Kenneth Bailey and Jefferson County General Sessions Judge Will Roach as panelists. Bristol Motor Speedway's vice president and legal counsel Julie Bennett also provided an introduction to sports betting in Tennessee following the 2020 passage of the Tennessee Sports Gaming Act. See photos from the day and watch for additional Court Square programs across the state.

The Tennessee Court of Workers' Compensation Claims looks back at the career of Judge Deana Seymour in a recent blog post. The piece reviews some of her most notable cases and her high praise for Memphis staff attorney Rhoberta Orsland. About the lawyers appearing before the court, Seymour says she had some very good lawyers appear before her who were working through difficult issues. It’s rewarding to see how lawyers on both sides take this work so seriously, she concluded. Looking ahead, Seymour plans to sharpen her photography skills and travel. But first, she will report for jury duty!