Blake Barnes, founder of The Barnes Firm in Fairhope, Alabama, has opened an office in Middle Tennessee. Barnes, a graduate of Vanderbilt University Law School, has been practicing in Fairhope, focusing on catastrophic injury and wrongful death cases, fraud and other complex litigation matters. The firm's new office is located at 111 W. Bockman Way, Sparta, TN 38583. It can be reached at 251-219-4777 or via email at admin@thebarnesfirm.law.

U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Memphis, is filing a bill to remove the name of former Congressman Clifford Davis from the federal building in downtown Memphis, the Commercial Appeal reports. Cohen cites Davis' membership in the Ku Klux Klan and support for segregation laws as the reason for his effort. The Clifford Davis-Odell Horton Federal Building, located at 167 N. Main, was constructed in the 1960s and houses the federal courts, other federal agencies and Cohen’s local office. In 2007, legislation passed the Congress that added Horton's name to the building. Horton was a groundbreaking Black federal judge in Memphis who had died the previous year. Cohen said at the time he wanted to rename the building just for Horton but the political will was not there. The Davis family previously announced its support for removing the late congressman’s name from the building.

Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee & the Cumberlands will hold two phone clinics next week for members of the public with questions about housing and renters’ rights, bankruptcy, medical bills, debt collection, domestic violence, SNAP benefits and unemployment benefits. Clinics will take place on Monday from 4 to 5:30 p.m. and Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. CST. LAS is looking for attorneys to help answer questions. To volunteer, contact Andrae Crismon or Kendra Cheek or call 615-780-7131.

Three additional Tennesseans received last-minute relief from the Trump administration. David E. Miller of Nashville, who had been found guilty of one count of making a false statement to a bank in 2014, received a pardon. He was represented by Nashville lawyer Patrick McNally with Weatherly, McNally & Dixon. Today, Miller is development director for the charitable organization Men of Valor, where he helps previously incarcerated men rebuild relationships with their faith, family and society. Trump also pardoned Josh Smith, a self-made wealthy Knoxville business owner who sold his company to found the 4th Purpose Foundation, an inmate reentry organization. Smith also recently served on a state criminal justice advisory group. The Tennessean has more on Miller and Smith. Finally, Trump commuted the life sentence of Chris Young of Clarksville, who served more than a decade for his role in a drug conspiracy. Former federal Judge Kevin Sharp, who had sentenced Young, and Kim Kardashian both advocated for his case, WPLN reports.

Gov. Bill Lee was appointed co-chair of the National Governors Association’s Pandemic and Disaster Response Task Force yesterday, the group announced. He will lead the task force with Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont of Connecticut. The group will be reviewing a number of issues related to the pandemic, including the role of FEMA and the National Guard, cybersecurity, healthcare, COVID-19 testing and personal protective equipment. The task force is one of three created to address the pandemic. The others will focus on economic recovery and community renewal, the Tennessee Star reports.

TBA law student member and Vanderbilt Law School student Ramon Ryan has won the American Bar Association’s 2020 K. William Kolbe Writing Competition according to the school. His winning article, “The Fault in Our Stars: Challenging the FCC’s Treatment of Commercial Satellites as Categorically Excluded from Review under the National Environmental Policy Act,” was first published last fall in the Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law. Ryan serves as editor-in-chief of the publication. The article led two members of the U.S. Congress to ask the FCC to look into the issue. The Kolbe award includes a $2,500 cash prize, membership in the ABA’s Infrastructure and Regulated Industries Section (which sponsors the competition) and free registration and airfare to attend the section’s spring meeting. Ryan plans to join the Nashville office of Bass Berry & Sims when he graduates later this year.

TBA member advantage partner ABA Retirement Funds will offer its annual “New Year, New Markets?” webinar on Jan. 27 at 1 p.m. EST. The presentation will focus on how the markets could affect law firms and retirement plans in the coming year. Presenters will review 2020, discuss recent market volatility and look forward to what 2021 could have in store. Register for the free event here.

The American Bar Association online program ABA Free Legal Answers, which lets qualifying users get civil legal advice online from volunteer attorneys, has expanded to offer help on immigration and veterans’ questions. The association said the project, called Federal Free Legal Answers, fills a critical need for legal help during the pandemic. For immigrants and asylum-seekers, questions about deportation, green cards, DACA and naturalization will be accepted. For veterans, eligible dependents and survivors, questions about benefits and discharge upgrades will be accepted. The project is a collaboration between several ABA committees and the American Immigration Lawyers Association. Read more in a release from the ABA.

The Tennessee High School Mock Trial Competition is going virtual this year! Division competitions, which will determine which teams advance to the state competition, will take place online Feb. 19-21 in each of the state’s three grand divisions. Division competitions will run simultaneously with nearly 70 teams participating across the state. Rounds will begin Friday afternoon and wrap up with the Division Championship Rounds on Sunday. Exact times for each round for each division are still being finalized, but judges, attorneys and law students who would like to volunteer can sign up now here.

Tennessee state Sen. Ed Jackson, R-Jackson, confirmed he has tested positive for COVID-19 since the start of the special session and other lawmakers and staffers may have been exposed. The Tennessee Journal reports that he is quarantining at home with mild symptoms. One additional senator is believed to be in quarantine, while another is remaining on duty because he already had COVID-19. Legislative officials declined to confirm or deny any infections due to privacy concerns. The news outlet later reported that the other senator in quarantine is Sen. Becky Duncan Massey.