The Tennessee Supreme Court today asked for comments on a petition that calls for modifying state rules on lawyer advertising. Comments should be submitted to the court by March 21, 2021, either by email or by mail to Clerk James M. Hivner, Tennessee Appellate Courts, 100 Supreme Court Building, 401 7th Ave. N., Nashville, TN 37219. The petition from the TBA proposes amendments to Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 8 and Rules of Professional Conduct 7.1, 7.2 7.3, 7.4, 7.5 and 7.6 with the goal of (1) culling down restrictions on lawyer advertising to the core requirement that lawyers not make false or misleading statements about themselves or their services, and (2) removing restrictions on communications by lawyers when communications are not likely to cause consumer harm.

Chattanooga lawyer John Tate Rice died Nov. 9 at 72. A 1973 graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Law, he was admitted to the bar in Tennessee and South Carolina the next year. He also was licensed to practice before the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit and U.S. Supreme Court. Rice served on the board of the Chattanooga Bar Association from 1985 to 1987 and from 2007 to 2011, and served as president of the organization in 2010. He was named a fellow of the Chattanooga Bar Foundation in 2011. Memorial donations may be made to Operation Smile, Children's Hospital at Erlanger or First Centenary United Methodist Church. No services have been announced.

Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee & the Cumberlands will hold three 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 Tuesday from 3 to 4 p.m., Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Saturday from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. All times central. LAS is looking for attorneys to help answer questions. To volunteer contact Andrae Crismon or Kendra Cheek or call 615-780-7131. See all clinics for the month.

Intellectual Property Law Forum: IP 101 is intended for those who may have no experience with intellectual property law or who want to learn more about a certain type of IP law. Presenters will provide a survey of the three types of intellectual property for which protection can be sought: patents, trademarks and copyrights. The forum also will include a discussion about licensing agreements. Catch this virtual CLE on Dec. 8 from noon until 4 p.m. CST. Please register prior to 10 a.m. CST on the event day to receive the Zoom invitation in time. Remember: all 2020 CLE hours can be taken online and TBA members get discounted pricing on all CLE programs.

American Bar Association President Patricia Lee Refo sent a letter today to President Donald Trump expressing concern over three federal executions scheduled between now and Dec. 10. Refo asked Trump for reprieves, citing instances in which the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the inmates’ rights to due process, their lawyer’s ability to advocate for them and the health and safety of their lawyers. The ABA is asking the president to delay the scheduled executions until counsel can safely resume effective representation. Read the full letter on the ABA’s website.

Attorney General Herbert Slatery today announced his office has reached a settlement agreement with DOC Disinfectant for making false and deceptive claims that its cleaning products were FDA and EPA approved, could eliminate COVID-19 and protect surfaces from the virus for up to 90 days. DOC also used the names and logos of many well-known companies on its website, including Panda Express, McDonald’s, iHeartRadio and others who confirmed they had never worked with DOC or approved use of their logos. DOC continued its false claims, even after it received a letter from the AG’s office. Under the terms of the settlement, DOC must pay $5,000, stop making false claims of eliminating COVID-19, stop implying its products have been approved by the FDA and EPA and more. Read more on the AG’s website.

Davidson County lawyer Ivan Omar Lopez today received a public censure from the Tennessee Supreme Court. The Board of Professional Responsibility filed a petition for discipline after Lopez failed to ensure the timely entry of a final decree of divorce in 2015 and for his failure to take timely action in 2019 after being advised the final decree was not in the court file and had not been entered. Lopez executed a conditional guilty plea acknowledging he had violated Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct 1.3 and 8.4 (d). A public censure is a rebuke and warning to the attorney, but it does not affect the attorney’s ability to practice law.

Gov. Bill Lee has received the names of three attorneys to consider for the 16th Judicial District Circuit Court vacancy. The Trial Court Vacancy Commission met today and, after a public hearing and public interview of five candidates, chose to forward the following three names to the governor: Trevor H. Lynch, John G. Mitchell III and James A. Turner. The vacancy was created by the retirement of Judge David Bragg. The 16th Judicial District covers Rutherford and Cannon counties. Read more on the candidates from the Administrative Office of the Courts.

Gov. Bill Lee has appointed attorney Carter Lawrence to serve as commissioner of the Department of Commerce and Insurance, the Tennessee Journal reports. Lawrence was previously the department’s chief deputy and last year served as interim commissioner after Julie Mix McPeak left for the private sector. He succeeds Hodgen Mainda, who resigned following a sexual misconduct investigation. Mainda has denied any wrongdoing. “Carter is a proven public servant who has stewarded key priorities for the administration throughout his tenure,” Lee said in his statement on Lawrence’s promotion. I’m confident he’ll continue to support Tennessee businesses and consumers with integrity.”

The Tennessee Supreme Court has ruled that Knox County Criminal Court Judge Kyle Hixson cannot be forced off the bench in a half dozen cases for “overstatements” he made on his campaign website, the Knoxville News Sentinel reports. Hixson’s campaign website claimed he oversaw “all” prosecutions in his former job as Knox County Deputy District Attorney General, prompting a handful of defendants to claim Hixson could not be a fair judge over their cases. The Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals took up the case in March, ruling that Hixson was bound by his campaign rhetoric, even if it was hyperbole. But, the state Supreme Court disagreed with the lower appellate court, stating “a reasonable person would be hard-pressed to believe” that Hixson handled up to 60,000 cases a year. However, the high court also made it clear that the justices do not condone resume padding.