The nation’s bar exam software providers are facing challenges as states seek to move their 2020 exams online. According to Above the Law, ILG tried to get Indiana and Nevada ready for online exams in July and failed; ExamSoft managed Michigan’s exam but experienced crashes and compromises; and Extegrity has now declared it is not feasible to conduct an online fall exam given the current timeframe. Extegrity notified boards of law examiners on July 27 that “it will not participate in administration of remote proctored bar exams in October 2020.” Prospects have not improved since the summer for ILG, which is helping Florida prepare for its fall exam. The company had to cancel a trial exam due to “issues of concern” experienced by those who tried to download the trial software.

State House and Senate committees on Tuesday quickly passed COVID-19 liability protection legislation that protects businesses from “frivolous” lawsuits, the Daily Memphian reports.  In a 7-2 vote, the Senate Judiciary Committee sent SB8002 to the floor for consideration, with Sen. Sara Kyle, D-Memphis, and Katrina Robinson, D-Memphis, voting against the measure. Under the legislation, claims alleging loss, damage, injury or death from COVID-19 must prove the defendant’s “gross negligence or willful misconduct,” setting a “higher bar” than under current tort law. The act would apply only to those filed on or before Aug. 3, 2020. Sen. Mike Bell, R-Riceville, urged his colleagues to pass the bill, arguing businesses, schools, and nonprofits would be exposed to COVID-19 lawsuits without it. He also contended that law firms are already casting a “wide net” to file liability lawsuits and win business settlements. The House’s newly formed COVID Related Liability Committee recommended passage HB8001, but only if it is amended. A clarification on the bill is expected tomorrow. SB8007, sponsored by Senate Minority Leader Jeff Yarbro, D-Nashville, was voted down 7-2 in the Senate Judiciary committee. Yarbro’s bill aimed to make it easier to sue businesses and entities that “flaunt” local, state and federal guidelines for COVID-19 safety, arguing the state will be protecting businesses that prohibit masks as much as it does those taking extra safety steps.

The state yesterday filed a motion to dismiss the federal lawsuit that would allow all Tennesseans to vote by mail, claiming a plaintiff’s decision to vote in person undermines the entire suit, the Tennessean reports. Several advocacy groups and individuals filed the suit to expand absentee voting due to the COVID-19 pandemic, including Kendra Lee, who in the filing argued she should be allowed to vote by mail due to her underlying health conditions, which include asthma and bronchitis. But, Lee voted in person during the early voting period, an action the state says removes her legitimacy as a plaintiff. In an interview last week, Lee said she did so because she didn't have faith in the state or Shelby County Election Commission to properly handle an absentee ballot request after hearing from others who reported ballots that were delayed or never arrived. Earle Fisher, a plaintiff in the Davidson County case, also voted in person, but says he did not believe the actions of one person were the focus of the lawsuit, saying the lawsuit was filed on behalf a very broad group of citizens who needed as much access as possible." The state Supreme Court last week overturned an injunction by the lower court that allowed fear of COVID-19 to be a reason to apply for the primary. 

Eleven children and eight staff members at the Davidson County Juvenile Detention Center have recovered after testing positive for the COVID-19 virus in June, the Tennessee Lookout reports. Kathy Sinback, administrator for the juvenile court, said several of the youth displayed mild symptoms, while others were asymptomatic. All new admissions are currently being placed in quarantine for two weeks before joining the general population at the facility, which currently houses 39 boys and girls. Gary Sallee, chief legal officer for the private company that manages the facility, told the Lookout in an email that the “statistics indicate that the numbers of positive cases within the facility fall far below the equivalent statistics for the population at large.” 

Federal District Court Judge Sheryl H. Lipman has denied the release of "medically vulnerable" detainees awaiting trial inside the Shelby County jail, the Commercial Appeal reports. The ruling recognized "grave areas of concern” at the jail but found that problems could be “cured." Based on that finding, Lipman declined to rule whether detainees' rights had been violated by the county. The suit was brought by detainees over age 55 and those with chronic conditions. In June, a court-appointed inspector said procedures at the jail were "inadequate to protect the vulnerable inmates." The county says its response to the pandemic is "evolving." The ACLU represented the plaintiffs and had this response.

The Metro Nashville Police Department issued its first citation for a mask violation in the city’s entertainment district on Wednesday night. But it did not cite any of the young honky tonk-goers crowding the sidewalks, instead citing and arresting a 61-year-old homeless man, WPLN reports. Court records show Joseph Bryant was booked on a $500 bail but charges were dropped at a hearing the next day. The Nashville Community Bail Fund criticized the police decision to single out a homeless person while hundreds of mask-less revelers frequent Lower Broadway each night with impunity. The group paid Bryant’s bail.

Earlier this week, the American Bar Association's House of Delegates voted 256-146 in favor of a resolution urging states to find alternatives to in-person bar exams amid the pandemic. The alternative arrangements suggested included supervised practice program, remote bar exams and emergency diploma privilege. The resolution was among the most controversial during the two-day House of Delegates meeting, the ABA Journal reports. Supporters argued special arrangements are necessary in the midst of an unprecedented pandemic. Opponents, including the National Conference of Bar Examiners, said the resolution could open the door for graduates of non-ABA-accredited law schools to practice without taking the bar exam, including those who previously had failed the exam.

The Tennessee Supreme Court on Wednesday vacated a temporary injunction that gave all registered voters in the state the option of casting a ballot by mail, the Tennessean reports. Davidson County Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle had ruled to expand absentee voting in June, ordering the state to accept fear of catching or transmitting COVID-19 as a valid reason to vote by mail. During oral argument last week, lawyers for the state changed their stance on who qualified to vote by mail, telling the high court that those with a “special vulnerability” to the virus and their caretakers would be allowed to vote by absentee ballot. Based on the state’s new interpretation of the statute, the justices concluded that the injunction was not necessary since those especially vulnerable to the virus already qualified for absentee voting. They also ruled that fear of COVID-19 among individuals who aren’t especially vulnerable to the virus does not qualify them to vote by mail. Absentee ballots mailed for today’s primary election will still be counted, but state election officials have told counties to “sit tight” before making a game plan for the November election. Read more on the 4-1 ruling at the Tennessee State Courts website.

The American Bar Association recently announced the launch of a new website that will serve as a clearinghouse of information and resources to support and advance the practice of law and the judicial system amid expected long-term changes due to COVID-19. The “Practice Forward” website is designed to “get ahead of the changes that are occurring in the delivery of legal services,” according to the Coordinating Group on Practice Forward, which was created to coordinate pandemic-responsive resources to address law practice management, the practice of law and professional development.

Gov. Bill Lee today said his administration is working on a plan that would allow schools to share data on the number of COVID-19 cases in their facilities, the Tennessean reports. After the release of Lee’s school reopening plan last week, state Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Lisa Piercey said Tennessee had no plans to provide the public with such data, saying that decision should be left up to individual school districts. A spokesperson later cited patient privacy as a priority while defending that decision. But, during his weekly press conference today, Lee reversed course, saying he believes “that we have to protect privacy but we also have to be transparent.” Lee said within the next week, his administration will present a plan aimed at "being more transparent" on the school data. His administration has faced criticisms in recent months for refusing to release certain information, including county-level deaths and cases at nursing homes.