The TBA is hitting the road for its biggest Court Square Series yet! Between August and May 2023, be on the lookout for programming in a city near you that will provide networking opportunities, developments and updates in multiple areas of the law and much more. The next six stops in the series will kick off in Hendersonville on Aug. 24, followed by Greeneville on Sept. 7, Covington on Sept. 21, Jamestown on Oct. 26, Clarksville on Nov. 2 and Savannah on Nov. 16. Get more information on these events from TBA CLE.

Attorney David Price has been selected as the University of Tennessee College of Law’s new assistant dean for finance, administration and operations. Price will oversee the College of Law business office with overall responsibility for budgeting, human resources and facilities. He replaces Teresa Peterson who retired earlier this year. Price earned his law degree from the Nashville School of Law and has more than 18 years of experience in administration and finance operations with more than 14 of those years in higher education. He was previously the assistant director of the financial information office with the University of Tennessee’s Haslam College of Business. He will assume his new role July 1. Read more from the College of Law.

Judges in Louisiana and Utah have temporarily blocked abortion bans triggered by the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade, while a Texas judge has also temporarily blocked an abortion ban that was passed before the Roe decision. In Louisiana, two abortion rights groups argued it was unclear which of the state’s trigger laws are in effect and what conduct is banned. A district court judge granted them a temporary restraining order until July 8. In Utah, Planned Parenthood argued the state’s trigger laws violate the state constitution. They were granted a two-week temporary restraining order. Abortion providers in Texas filed suit to block an abortion ban passed before the Roe v. Wade decision. A judge temporarily blocked the law, allowing abortions up to six weeks into pregnancy to continue in the state. The ABA Journal has a breakdown of lawsuits that have been filed.  

Results from a Knoxville Bar Association member survey show strong support for retaining all five of the state's Supreme Court justices and six Eastern Section judges on the Court of Appeals and Court of Criminal Appeals. Two judges on the Court of Criminal Appeals for the Eastern Section have announced their retirement and were not included in the poll: Judge Norma McGee Ogle and Judge D. Kelly Thomas Jr. The survey, which was voluntary and not representative of a scientific sampling of KBA members, is available to voters to assist them at the polls. Read all results from the KBA.

A retirement celebration for Davidson County Seventh Circuit Probate Court Judge Randy Kennedy will be held on Aug. 23, 2- 4 p.m. CDT, on the sixth floor of the Historic Davidson County Courthouse. A committee is actively planning the event and more information will follow. Please contact Adam Hill with questions or ideas.

Fifteenth Judicial District Public Defender Shelley T. Gardner has been elected president of the Tennessee District Public Defenders Conference —a statewide system made up of 400 public defenders from Tennessee’s 31 districts. Gardner will lead an executive committee tasked with assisting public defenders across the state discharge their duties. Gardner was appointed to the 15th District, serving Jackson, Macon, Smith, Trousdale and Wilson counties, in 2018 by then Gov. Bill Haslam and was re-elected in 2020. She has been with the office since 2002, first as an assistant public defender, and has been a member of the district’s Drug Court Team for 20 years. Read more from the Tennessee District Public Defenders Conference.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has granted a request from Juul Labs Inc. to temporarily block a government ban on its e-cigarette production, NPR reports. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last week said Juul must stop selling its vaping device and its tobacco and menthol flavored cartridges, an action the company called “extraordinary and unlawful.” Juul said that the FDA cannot argue that there was a "critical and urgent public interest" in immediately removing its products from the market when the agency allowed them to be sold during its review. A three-judge panel from the appeals court granted Juul's request for a hold while the court reviews the case.

Forrest Bedford Smith Jr. died on May 5. He was 87. Smith grew up in Shelbyville and was a longtime Nashville area resident before moving to Florida upon retirement. He began his career as an engineer with the Arnold Engineering Development Complex (AEDC), where he was employed when he graduated from the Nashville School of Law and passed the bar exam in 1975. While at AEDC he was responsible for developing the center’s strategic planning process that set a national standard for government organizations. Celebration of life services will be held July 9 at 10 a.m. CDT at First United Methodist Church, 122 Public Square N., Shelbyville. In lieu of flowers donations may be made to First United Methodist Church of Shelbyville or a charity of your choice.

The 6th Circuit Court of Appeals has vacated an injunction that blocked Tennessee’s “fetal heartbeat” law. That law bans abortions as early as six weeks into pregnancy, the Tennessean reports. The Attorney General’s office filed an emergency motion on Friday after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, arguing it had “a valid interest in protecting the lives of unborn Tennesseans" and asking for a rapid ruling. The SCOTUS ruling also triggered legislation passed by state lawmakers in 2019 that will enforce a near-total abortion ban in 30-days. According to Nashville’s NewsChannel 5, that law will focus on doctors who perform abortions and could potentially prosecute women who have abortions.

The Tennessee Supreme Court unanimously voted yesterday to reverse a Davidson County trial court’s calculation of attorney fees. The trial court had sought to limit the award of attorneys fees to a homeowner who had sued a contractor over work she found to be unsatisfactory. The contractor had countersued alleging breach of contract and then amended his suit to increase the amount of damages being sought. The trial court dismissed the contractor’s suit and the homeowner sought attorneys fees. The court limited the fee to legal work done after the amended countersuit was filed. The Supreme Court reversed saying the legislature allowed attorneys fees to discourage frivolous claims. Because the amended countersuit contained the same breach of contract claim as the original, the court said the homeowner should be able to collect the full amount of fees allowed under law. Read more from the court or access the opinion.