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!

A group representing state chief justices is urging the U.S. Supreme Court not to shield actions taken by state legislatures affecting federal elections — such as reconfiguring electoral districts and imposing voting restrictions — from the scrutiny of state courts. Reuters reports that the bipartisan Conference of Chief Justices filed the brief yesterday in a case involving a map of congressional districts drawn by the North Carolina legislature. The state's top court struck the map down, concluding that the districts were intentionally biased against Democrats. Defenders of the map argue that the U.S. Constitution gives legislatures, not state courts, authority over election rules, including the drawing of electoral districts. Yahoo News has the story.

The TBA Animal Law Section will host its Annual Forum at the Nashville Zoo this Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. CDT. This fun CLE provides attendees the chance to earn six CLE hours (five general and one dual) with an extended lunch break to explore the zoo. This year’s forum will feature topics relevant to several practice areas, including courtroom programs involving animals, conservation efforts, pet liability, landowner privacy concerns and ethics. Breakfast, lunch and zoo admission are included with registration.

A recent story from the Associated Press looks at the uncertainty facing doctors, and patients with life threatening pregnancies, now that the state’s abortion ban has taken effect. The story follows Knoxville criminal defense attorney Chloe Akers, from her first reading of the state's new criminal statute in June, to quitting her law firm to founding the non-profit Stand Together Tennessee. Through the new group, Akers hopes to explain the intricacies of the law to doctors and the lawyers who might defend them. Akers has launched a Go Fund Me account to raise money for the new venture.

Members of the TBA’s Young Lawyers Division visited Belmont University College of Law to discuss the student's coming entry into the profession and share some of the benefits of TBA membership. As part of the free membership package, students get the opportunity to network and increase their professional knowledge. Thanks to YLD presenters Patrick Morrison and Angela Denise Williams and Belmont’s Public Interest Coordinator, Alix Rogers, for their contributions to the event. YLD members are making visits to each of Tennessee’s law schools this year. See photos from the event.

In one of her final rulings before retiring, Davidson County Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle ruled that the Tennessee Code Annotated is exempt from Tennessee public records law and that it cannot be copyrighted. She cited a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling in a similar case in Georgia as her rationale, the Nashville Post reports. Public.Resource.Org and Nashville law professor David Hudson had sued LexisNexis in Davidson County Chancery Court in July, asking the court to force the company to offer the complete and current electronic version of the TCA for free. Public.Resource President Carl Malamud said the organization would appeal the decision.

The state of Tennessee is no longer seeking a contractor to hold cryptocurrencies on its behalf, the Nashville Post reports. Earlier this year, the Department of Treasury was looking for a vendor to “be prepared in the event that unclaimed virtual currency is remitted to the state’s unclaimed property program.” After reevaluating its needs and the services requested, the department canceled that request and issued a new one that does not include custody of virtual currency among the services sought for the Unclaimed Property Division. The state directly holds unclaimed cash but uses a vendor to hold securities. The program seeks to reunite owners with funds.

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Board recently approved its FY 2023 budget outside of a public board meeting and without any public hearings “for fear there would not be a quorum to legally approve the budget,” the Times Free Press reports. With only five of the nine seats on the board filled, the federal utility needs every director to obtain a quorum for major actions. Two additional members will roll off the board at the end of the year, leaving the board even smaller unless their successors are named before then. The U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Clean Air, Climate and Nuclear Safety was to hold a hearing today to consider three new nominees: William J. Renick, a county judge executive in Kentucky; Adam "Wade" White, a former mayor in Mississippi; and Joe Ritch, a Huntsville, Alabama, attorney who was on the TVA board previously from 2012 to 2016. It previously held hearings on four Biden nominees.

The staffing shortage at the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services (DCS) has gotten so critical a judge has warned lawmakers some of what’s happening to kids in the department’s care is “illegal,” WKRN reports. Juvenile Court Judge Tim Irwin, a member of the Tennessee Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, recently spoke to lawmakers, encouraging them to increase funding for the agency. Irwin told lawmakers that in Knox County there are divisions of DCS operating with half their positions open while other counties are operating with even fewer employees.

An article in yesterday’s issue of TBA Today omitted the names of two attorneys who have been selected for the TBA Public Service Academy. Brian Bush of Chattanooga’s Spears, Moore, Rebman & Williams PC law firm and Jessica Schultz of Schultz Law in Nashville are among the 10 attorneys who will participate in the nonpartisan training that provides attorneys with the tools to run for local public offices, such as school board, city council and county commission. The program’s two sessions will cover topics like strategy, campaign finance, work-life balance and more. Read more about this year’s class.