Chattanooga City Judge Sherry Paty was named the state’s Municipal Judge of the Year by the Tennessee Municipal Judges Conference on Friday, Chattanoogan.com reports. Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Sharon Lee, for whom the award is named, announced the award as part of the municipal judge’s fall meeting in Chattanooga. Paty was elected to the court in 2004 as the first female city judge. Since 1990, she has been in private practice with the law firm of Paty, Rymer and Ulin. She previously served as law clerk for the Hamilton County district attorney and for Chancellors Howell Peoples and R. Vann Owens. She earned her law degree from the University of Tennessee College of Law.

Three people were arrested and charged with federal offenses as part of an international, multi-agency effort to locate and charge individuals who sell illicit, lethal drugs using the dark web and cryptocurrency. Investigators say the defendants shipped methamphetamines that were misleadingly labeled as Adderall from Texas to a Shelby County post office box, the Commercial Appeal reports. A Memphis defense attorney tells the paper he thinks the pills were mailed unknowingly to an undercover DEA agent. The seizure is part of a larger initiative that has recovered 500 pounds of drugs since it was launched.

The U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals on Saturday ordered a temporary halt of President Biden’s coronavirus vaccine mandate for businesses with 100 employees or more, saying there are "grave statutory and constitutional” issues with the rule. The ruling came in a challenge to the mandate from the states of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Utah and South Carolina, The Hill reports. A similar challenge was filed Friday in the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals by Tennessee Attorney General Herbert H. Slatery III and six other attorneys general.

The Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands will hold four clinics this week. A phone clinic will be held tomorrow at 2 p.m. to provide general advice. The first 15 callers will be accepted. On Wednesday, LAS will hold a clinic specifically for veterans from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Operation Stand Down, 1125 12th Ave. S. Nashville 37203. On Thursday, a clinic will be held from 3 to 4:30 p.m. at Greenhouse Ministries, 309 S. Spring St., Murfreesboro 37130. And on Saturday, a clinic will be held from 8:30-10:30 a.m. at the McHugh Clinic, 2005 12th Ave. S., Nashville 37204. All times central. To volunteer contact Kendra Cheek, 615-780-7131. See all November clinics.

The TBA's popular ethics CLE with Brian Faughnan of Lewis Thomason, normally known as the Ethics Roadshow, is back as the "Homeshow" with two days of virtual content on Dec. 7 and 14. Each day will feature a one-hour program that utilizes a game format to delve into 30 unique topics of ethical discussion. Attendees may register for Day 1, Day 2 or both days.

Retired Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Alan E. Glenn died unexpectedly last week at the age of 79, the Administrative Office of the Courts recently announced. Glenn served on the Court of Criminal Appeals for more than 22 years, taking the bench in 1999 and serving until his retirement on July 1, 2021. Prior to joining the court, Glenn served as an assistant district attorney general in Shelby County from 1971 to 1982. He was in private practice in Memphis from 1982 to 1999 and taught trial advocacy at Harvard Law School from 1986 to 1999. Colleagues on the court say Glenn was known as a prolific, engaging and meticulous writer, often jumping at the chance to author the toughest cases. During his time on the court, Glenn wrote more opinions than any other judge. Glenn also served as chair of the Judicial Ethics Committee from 2005 to 2019, drafting over a dozen ethics opinions on issues posed by judges across the state.

Labor and employment law firm Littler Mendelson has named Bradley Strawn as the new regional office managing shareholder for its Nashville office. Strawn replaces Jennifer Robinson, who is stepping down to focus on her practice. In addition to leading the Nashville office, he will continue to lead the firm’s Atlanta office where he advises employers on a broad range of matters including, contingent workforce and independent contractor relationships, employment discrimination claims, harassment and retaliation complaints, restrictive covenants, trade secrets litigation, and class actions related to overtime and wages.

The TBA Executive Committee amended its recent COVID-19 Safety Protocols this week. Pursuant to the new policy, all in-person, indoor TBA events, meetings and programs will have the following restrictions effective immediately and until further notice:

• TBA will comply with the more restrictive protocols and requirements of the host venue at the time of an event, meeting or program.
• If there are no venue rules in place, TBA will, at a minimum, encourage masking for attendees.
• TBA staff will wear masks when indoors at the office or at indoor events or meetings when not eating or drinking.
• Social distancing may be required, and attendance may be limited to ensure compliance at all in-person events.
• Attendees at in-person events will remain subject to TBA’s COVID-19 Safety Acknowledgement.

A report recently released by the American Bar Association (ABA) shows that the FreeLegalAnswers website has surpassed the 10,000 volunteer mark. Sponsored by the ABA Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service, FreeLegalAnswers.org is an on-line virtual legal clinic through which income-eligible clients can post civil legal questions to be answered by volunteer attorneys. Currently, 40 jurisdictions are live and an additional five have committed to participate. The report also found that 186,849 legal questions have been posed on the site since its launch in 2016, with the bulk related to family and children issues. Read more about these developments and how the site has helped clients during the pandemic and Celebrate Pro Bono Month. In Tennessee, the public may post questions on TNFreeLegalAnswers.

The federal public defender in the Middle District of Tennessee is seeking two assistant federal public defenders in its Capital Habeas Unit. The individuals will be responsible for representing death-sentenced clients in federal habeas corpus proceedings. Candidates must be admitted to the practice of law and eligible for admission to the federal bar and the Tennessee bar. The ideal candidate will have experience dealing with capital litigation and mentally ill persons. Preference will be given to those who apply by Nov. 22. To apply, send a cover letter, resume, three references and a writing sample to TNM_HR@fd.org. Get full application instructions in this job announcement.