Virgin Fest Los Angeles has sued talent agency William Morris Endeavor, musicians Lizzo, Kali Uchis and Ellie Goulding, and the artists’ touring companies to recover prepaid deposits after California's stay-at-home order caused the festival to be canceled. The Virgin Mobile-sponsored festival had been scheduled to make its debut the first weekend of June. All of the other artist agencies returned, or agreed to return, the full amount of the deposits for the performances. However, Endeavor refused, saying the artists were entitled to keep the deposits because they were “ready, willing and able to perform.” The festival argues that a force majeure provision in the artists' contracts requires the return of deposits if the festival is canceled for an uncontrollable factor. Law.com has the story.

Tennessee’s many recovery courts have remained open during the COVID-19 pandemic but are delivering services in slightly modified ways, the Tennessee Supreme Court reports. The courts give repeat offenders a chance to break the cycle of addiction and become productive members of society through evidence-based treatment techniques and a “hands-on” approach from court staff and program partners. Judges Andrew Mark Freiberg, James Hunter, Suzanne M. Lockert-Mash, J. Weber McCraw and Jimmy C. Smith recently shared the challenges and successes of operating a recovery court during the pandemic, as well as the creative measures they are using to continue serving program participants.

The KBA recently surveyed its members to learn about law firm operations during the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey found that more than half of respondents are operating with social distancing protocols in their offices and an overwhelming majority expect procedures to remain the same in the coming days. The survey also asked how lawyers are handling meetings with clients. Results show that 10% are operating normally, 25% are meeting with clients over the phone or online, and 65% are holding in-person meetings with social distancing and masks required for attorneys and clients. View all survey results.

Gov. Bill Lee announced late this afternoon that he would delay the upcoming execution of death row inmate Harold Wayne Nichols due to “challenges and disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.” Nichols was set to be executed on Aug. 4 for the 1988 rape and murder of Karen Pulley in Hamilton County. Lee’s order postpones the execution until 2021 when the Tennessee Supreme Court will have to set a new execution date, the Tennessean reports. Nichols’ attorneys had recently sued to stop the execution in federal court, but the case had not yet been heard. Today’s move marks the first time Lee has intervened in a capital case. Two previous executions were delayed by the Tennessee Supreme Court due to the pandemic. Oscar Franklin Smith's June 4 execution date was delayed until next February while Byron Lewis Black's Oct. 8 execution date was reset for next April.

Tennessee leaders are weighing the prospects for a special session to consider a COVID-19 liability immunity bill, potentially in the second week of August. But the novel coronavirus itself could throw a wrench into the affair, the Daily Memphian reports. Lawmakers may be reluctant to travel while case counts are still high and Gov. Bill Lee has indicated he might only call lawmakers back if they can forge an agreement in advance. The Senate approved a bill in June that would have provided retroactive immunity but the House did not finalize any legislation.

Senate Republicans are preparing to offer a five-year shield from COVID-19 lawsuits as part of a new relief proposal, The Hill reports. The proposal reportedly would be retroactive from December 2019 through 2024. Other proposed provisions include: moving all lawsuits related to personal injuries and medical liability to the federal courts; protecting health care facilities and workers from all claims except those for "gross negligence and intentional misconduct"; and protecting businesses, colleges, schools and churches from all claims except in cases where they did not make "reasonable efforts" to follow public health guidelines and "committed an act of gross negligence or intentional misconduct." Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is expected to unveil the proposal next week.

While many Tennessee counties have worked to reduce jail populations during the COVID-19 pandemic, at least a quarter of the state's facilities were operating at 75% or more capacity at the end of April, with nine of those meeting or exceeding their full capacities, a new report from the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee says. The report highlights changes in jail populations and pretrial populations from December 2019 through April 2020, WZTV reports. The ACLU report also provides recommendations for further reducing jail populations to reduce the spread of COVID-19, including the release of medically vulnerable people, reduction in arrests for minor offenses and courts ordering pretrial release without conditions in all cases where release poses no risk to safety. Read the full report here.

The South Knoxville branch of the Knox County Clerk’s Office is closed for the week after an employee tested positive for COVID-19, Knoxnews reports. The closure, confirmed by Clerk Sherry Witt, began Monday after an employee’s test came back positive after close of business Friday. The other two members of the office were asked to get tested and are quarantining, waiting on their test results to come in, Witt said. Following the Knox County Health Board's decision, Witt said she has asked her employees to wear masks while working unless an underlying health condition prevents them from doing so.

The American Bar Association will hold its 2020 Annual Meeting virtually from July 29 to Aug. 4. Among the issues to be explored by attendees and governance bodies are legal problems created by the COVID-19 pandemic, police reform, foreign cyberthreats and voter suppression. Other highlights include remarks by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer on July 29 and presentation of the association’s highest honor, the ABA Medal, to World Justice Project founder William H. Neukom. The ABA House of Delegates will meet on Aug. 3 and 4.

The Maury County Court System will postpone its first jury orientation since the novel coronavirus took hold of the state in mid-March after two employees of the court tested positive for COVID-19. Circuit Court Judge J. Russ Parkes, who drafted a plan last May to return to in-person court proceedings, confirmed that a staff member at the local district attorney’s office and a court clerk have both been diagnosed with the virus, the Columbia Daily Herald reports. Other employees who have been tested have not yet received test results. Initial jury appearances were to have started this morning at Columbia Central High School.