A group of voter rights advocates has brought a federal lawsuit against Secretary of State Tre Hargett, Elections Coordinator Mark Goins and Shelby County District Attorney Amy Weirich over the state’s “restrictive excuse” requirements for absentee ballots, the Daily Memphian reports. The Equity Alliance, the A. Phillip Randolph Institute of Memphis and others are claiming the state’s “strict limits” on eligibility for absentee voting do not take the COVID-19 pandemic into consideration. The lawsuit also points toward criminal prohibitions on assisting voters in obtaining absentee ballot requests.  “… In light of the ongoing public health crisis, Tennessee’s failure to make the already-existing voting system available to all voters so that they do not have to choose between their right to vote and their health imposes an undue burden on Tennesseans’ exercise of their right to vote,” the lawsuit states. State officials have said they are putting together a plan to respond to the COVID-19 crisis in conjunction with county election officials.

The Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands has launched a weekly Facebook Live show to answer frequently asked legal questions relating to the COVID-19 pandemic. The show will air for the first time this Wednesday at noon CDT. This week’s episode will feature William Bush and Deven Wilson, who will talk about unemployment eligibility and appeals during COVID-19.

The Tennessee Supreme Court issued an order on April 24 allowing each judicial district to develop a plan to begin conducting additional in-person hearings. A number of districts have submitted plans and have been working with the court to make requested modifications. In addition to approving a plan for the 1st Judicial District, the court has approved plans for seven other districts: 3rd Judicial District, 14th Judicial District, 16th Judicial District, 17th Judicial District, 19th Judicial District, 27th Judicial District and 29th Judicial District. Until a plan is approved by the chief justice, all courts in the district are to operate under the Supreme Court's March 25 order.

The Nashville Bar Association has been holding a series of Judicial Town Halls as part of its COVID-19 resources. Sessions with Judges Joe Binkley Jr., Melissa Blackburn, Sheila Calloway, Angelita Blackshear Dalton, Lynda Jones and Gale Robinson, Amanda McClendon, and Philip Smith and Phillip Robinson, as well as Chancellors Anne Martin, Pat Moskal and Russell Perkins are now available. Upcoming sessions include Chief District Judge Waverly Crenshaw on May 4 and Public Defender Martesha Johnson on May 8.

Vanderbilt University Law School professor Caitlin “Cat” Moon is making national news for her efforts to recruit an “army of innovators” to keep the legal profession open during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since beginning to recruit legal tech professionals, she has amassed a group of more than 250 individuals who are willing to advise anyone looking to implement changes to keep courts, firms and offices open during the crisis. She also is “laser focused” on creating lasting change long after the pandemic is over, Above the Law reports. Moon, who is director of innovation design for the school’s Program on Law and Innovation (PoLI), says the biggest threat to lasting change is a quick return to normalcy without reviewing what worked in the pandemic and has value for the long term.

An article in last Thursday's issue of TBA Today had an incorrect link for Bob Ambrogi's article on the “7 Ways The Pandemic Will Forever Change Law Practice.” Read the article here on Above the Law.

Several district attorneys general in Tennessee have questioned the constitutionality of Gov. Bill Lee’s executive orders, WPLN reports. Stephen Crump, 10th District attorney general, questioned whether it was constitutional to allow certain businesses to open while others remain closed, and said he would not enforce criminal sanctions against anyone violating an order. Craig Northcott, 14th Judicial District attorney general, said he has had "grave concerns" about the constitutionality of the orders from the start, but now thinks modifications are making them “increasingly vague and arbitrary,” the Times Free Press reports. Finally, Bryant Dunaway, 13th Judicial District attorney general, and Brent Cooper, 22nd District attorney general, expressed concerns and said they will not prosecute violations of the orders. Gov. Lee has pushed back saying, “Our executive orders have been clear, they’ve been legal, they’ve been constitutional and they’ve been put in place to protect Tennessee citizens."

Gov. Bill Lee announced today that all Tennessee inmates and correction staff will be tested for the novel coronavirus, the Tennessean reports. The move comes after more than half of the inmates and staff at Trousdale Turner Correctional Center in Hartsville tested positive for the virus, making it the third largest prison outbreak reported in the nation, according to The New York Times. Also today, Lee issued guidance to places of worship on how to return to in-person services during the COVID-19 pandemic, while urging them to continue remote services, according to U.S. News & World Report. On Wednesday, the governor announced mass testing for every resident and employee at a long-term health facility in the state, WATE reports.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has approved a proposed plan submitted by judges in the First Judicial District, which will allow the courts to begin hearing in-person cases on May 4. The only modification the court made to the plan was to ensure that there are no more than 10 people — exclusive of judge, court personnel and court security — in a courtroom at any one time. The judges report that this will require staggering of cases and dockets. Other policies to be observed include no spectators or family in the courthouse and witnesses remaining outside the courtroom or courthouse, depending on the volume of each docket.

The Knoxville Bar Association has launched “Reflections,” a section of its COVID-19 web resources to gather stories of how the pandemic is affecting lawyers. The site allows members to share knowledge and commiserate over the rapidly changing legal environment. Knoxville area lawyers are encouraged to share “stories, thoughts, hacks, and insights from the past few weeks” as well as stories about making healthy choices. The KBA says it decided to launch the service to “have a bar keepsake of these unprecedented times. …” Email information to Marsha Watson.