In a rare statewide address last night, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said he had issued Executive Order 70 to restrict some — but not all — indoor public gatherings to 10 people and to limit spectators at indoor youth sporting events. Exempt events include weddings, worship services and those where people can stay six feet apart. The governor also urged Tennesseans to follow COVID-19 guidelines, including wearing a mask to slow the spread of the virus, but stopped short of a mask mandate. The new order came on the heels of news that First Lady Maria Lee had tested positive for COVID-19. The new guidance will remain in place through Jan. 19, 2021. Nashville Public Radio has more on the development.

The TBA’s Year End CLE Blast now includes a new package of programs from the 2020 Health Law Primer. The package includes four of the primer’s most popular programs: Basics of Fraud & Abuse, Introduction to HIPPA & Other Privacy Issues, Reimbursement & Licensure Basics, and Life Cycle of a Physician Practice. Check it out here or check out all of the CLE packages based on topic or hours needed.

The U.S. Senate voted 54-41 last week to approve Charles E. "Chuck" Atchley Jr. as U.S. District Court Judge for the Eastern District of Tennessee, Chattanoogan.com reports. In announcing the news, Sen. Lamar Alexander said Atchley has worked for nearly 20 years on behalf of East Tennesseans in the federal court system. “He has tried more than 100 cases and has served as the first assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Tennessee. I have spoken to all of the judges in the Eastern District, and they all gave him high recommendations,” he said. The appointment quickly followed Senate approval of Katherine Crytzer to be a judge in the same district.

The TBA announced today that Nashville attorney Lauren Colaric has been selected as the Week 3 CLE Blast prize winner! The Year End Blast is underway and to make this season a little merrier, the TBA is offering weekly prizes and one overall prize at the end of the month thanks to presenting sponsor Clio. Those who purchase a CLE program in December will automatically be entered in the drawings. Others also may enter without purchase. Need CLE before the end of the year? Check out new packages and individual programs being offered each day.

As part of the Year End CLE Blast, the TBA is offering more than 20 packages from section forums that have taken place over the past year. From business and construction law to environmental and immigration law, 1-Click packages offer a convenient way to catch up on any practice-area specific forums you missed when they aired live. Check them out here. And remember, TBA members save money on all CLE courses.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled today that it is too early to resolve the legality of the Trump administration’s plan to exclude people who are in the country illegally from the state-by-state breakdown used to allocate seats in the House of Representatives. The decision puts at least a temporary end to the litigation challenging the president’s plan, SCOTUSBlog reports. But it leaves open the possibility that plan opponents could return to court if the administration attempts to implement it in the next several weeks.

A federal prisoner scheduled to be executed in January has tested positive for coronavirus, his lawyer said yesterday. According to the Associated Press, the Bureau of Prisons notified attorneys for Dustin John Higgs earlier in the day that their client had contracted the virus. The revelation comes amid concerns about an exploding number of cases in the federal prison system and specifically at the complex in Terre Haute, Indiana, where federal executions are carried out. Higgs is scheduled to be executed Jan. 15, 2021. He was convicted of ordering the murder of three women in 1996. His attorneys hope the execution will be delayed past Jan. 20, 2021, when President-Elect Joe Biden would be in office and could halt all federal executions.

The Tennessee Department of Health launched an online dashboard today that will provide real-time tracking of COVID-19 vaccinations in the state. The dashboard will be updated every week on Tuesday and Friday at 5 p.m. CST and will include data on the number of doses that have been administered broken down by county and population demographics. Future versions will also provide data on Tennesseans who have been fully vaccinated with both their first and second doses. The news comes as Tennessee is poised to receive its first shipment of Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine on Monday. The state will receive a total of 115,000 doses, which will be shipped to county health departments and smaller hospitals that did not receive Pfizer doses according to the Nashville Post.

Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility disciplinary counsel Jerry Morgan has resigned after the state’s Administrative Office of the Courts began investigating his social media posts, the Tennessean reports. Nashville lawyer Brian Manookian, who was the subject of a disciplinary proceeding being handled by Morgan, alleged that Morgan’s tweets showed him to be a “proud anti-Muslim bigot.” He argued that Morgan should be removed from his case since Manookian is married to a Muslim woman. Manookian’s motion said that Morgan's social media posts also show "extreme prejudice toward minorities," including "disturbing views on 'blacks,' 'illegals' and their children, and the 'slave' mentality of minorities." The Administrative Office of the Courts launched an investigation into the posts but Morgan resigned before the review was completed.

Adams and Reese LLP has signed a lease for more than 25,000 square feet on the 14th floor of the new Broadwest office tower in Midtown, the Nashville Business Journal reports. The $540 million development is located at 1600 West End Ave. and is set to open to tenants in early 2021. Adams and Reese plans to move during the fourth quarter of the year, leaving its current space at the Fifth Third Center, 424 Church St. The new development contains 510,000 square feet of space — making it Nashville's largest multi-tenant tower since Pinnacle at Symphony Place opened in 2009. With Adams and Reese’s decision, Broadwest's office tower is now about 26% leased. The largest tenant thus far is law firm Baker Donelson, which also is leaving a downtown office.