The Tennessee Supreme Court has two cases set for Wednesday’s docket via video conference. It will live stream the oral arguments on its YouTube page. The first case will begin at 9 a.m. while the second case will begin at 10:30 a.m. CDT. The cases are Tommie Phillips v. State and State v. Douglas E. Linville. Read more about the cases.

Twenty-four members, or about half, of the Nashville Metro Council are calling on Mayor John Cooper to review recent actions of the state legislature and prepare for possible legal action, Mainstreet Nashville reports. The members said legislation passed this weekend that limits the role of localities in responding to COVID-19 was “unprecedented and dangerous." If the bill is signed into law, several Metro policies could be reversed, including a mask requirement for public school children and in libraries and community centers.

U.S. Sen. Bill Hagerty has promoted Michael Sullivan to his state director, succeeding Jim Henry who is retiring, the Nashville Post reports. Sullivan was campaign manager for Hagerty’s 2020 election effort. Previously, he was executive director of the Tennessee Republican Party and has worked on GOP campaigns in several states. He had been deputy state director under Henry, who previously served as deputy governor under Gov. Bill Haslam, minority leader in the state House, chair of the Tennessee Republican Party, and commissioner of the state Department of Children’s Services.

The Tennessee Supreme Court last week denied a petition asking the court to create a new Rule 31B that would govern voluntary arbitration in domestic relations cases. The petition was drafted by the TBA Family Law Executive Council and filed on Sept 23. The court did not include any explanation in the order and simply stated, “After careful consideration, the Court respectfully denies the Petition.”

The Knoxville Bar Association Annual Membership Meeting will be held Dec. 10 at 8:30 a.m. EST at the Main Assembly Room of the City County Building. Masks will be required. A virtual option will be available for those who wish to participate via Zoom. At the end of the meeting, Jason H. Long will be sworn in as KBA president; Loretta G. Cravens will take office as president-elect; Catherine E. Shuck will be treasurer; and Carlos A. Yunsan will be named secretary. Learn who is running for four seats on the Board of Governors, get information on absentee voting, and see a proposed bylaws change on the event webpage. Call the KBA Office at 865-522-6522 with any questions.

A Davidson County Chancery Court has ruled that the remains of Judge John Haywood, known as the Father of Tennessee History, may be moved to the Nashville City Cemetery. Haywood, who died in 1826, is currently buried in “South Nashville somewhere in a patch of grass between a gas station dumpster and a Baptist church,” Mainstreet Nashville reports. Haywood, a former Tennessee Supreme Court justice, was buried next to his wife in 1826 at his home in South Nashville. In 1879, a resolution was adopted to place a monument at the family cemetery but it was never erected. A marker pointing to the gravesite was finally placed on adjacent property. The Tennessee State Museum plans to excavate the area to find the remains, verify their authenticity and move them to the city cemetery.

In the ongoing copyright lawsuit against ROSS Intelligence, Thomson Reuters has now subpoenaed documents from legal research and publishing company Fastcase and Morae Global Corporation, a company that provides legal and compliance solutions to legal departments and law firms. The subpoenas request documents relating to the companies' relationship with ROSS or LegalEase, the company that Thomson Reuters says helped Ross steal content from its legal research product Westlaw. Read more about the suit from Bob Ambrogi’s Law Sites Blog.

The National Jurist’s preLaw Magazine is out with its list of the top 25 “best value” law schools in the country. The only Tennessee school to make the list, the University of Tennessee College of Law, ranks sixth. The ranking takes into account a law school’s tuition, cost of living expenses, average indebtedness upon graduation, percentage of graduates who get a job after graduation, and bar passage rates. Above the Law has the full list.

The city of Memphis has tasked a private law firm to investigate the Office of Business Diversity and Compliance following the departure of its former director, Joann Massey, according to the Commercial Appeal. Burch, Porter & Johnson reportedly interviewed employees about the department's operations and work environment in September following reports of personnel upheaval and the resignation of several employees. Massey was placed on administrative leave in late summer due to the accusations. She left the position on Sept. 24 to pursue other opportunities with her consulting firm Lewis Massey & Associates.

Following five hours of late-night deliberations between the two legislative chambers, Tennessee lawmakers adjourned at 1:34 a.m. Saturday after passing a series of measures significantly limiting COVID-19 restrictions by businesses, schools, local health departments, and even the governor. Debate over the comprehensive package split along party lines — with advocates touting individual liberty and opponents voicing concerns of state government overreach, the Tennessean reports. Among its provisions, the legislation:

• Bars government entities and public schools from requiring masks unless COVID-19 cases hit a certain threshold. In those cases, schools must seek approval for a maximum 14-day mandate. Exceptions are provided for private schools and correctional facilities.
• Prohibits government entities, public schools and many private businesses from mandating vaccines or proof of vaccination. Entertainment venues may require a negative COVID-19 test or proof of antibodies.
• Provides other exceptions for vaccine and mask mandates for public universities, federal contractors, airport authorities, health care providers and long-term care facilities if they would lose federal funding without mandates in place.
• Gives the governor exclusive power to issue executive orders and direct health departments during a pandemic, and gives the state health commissioner exclusive power to issue quarantine guidelines.
• Allows for partisan school board elections.
• Allows the attorney general to ask the Tennessee Supreme Court to temporarily appoint a prosecutor to replace a district attorney general who peremptorily and categorically refuses to prosecute all instances of a criminal offense without regard to facts or circumstances.

The governor has not indicated whether he will sign all of the bills that passed, but in a Tweet he praised lawmakers "for working to address the Biden Administration's overreach into our state," WPLN reports.