The Montgomery County Veterans Treatment Court graduated 16 members this week, marking the largest class in the program’s history. Each week, Montgomery County General Sessions Judge Kenneth R. Goble Jr. presides over the court, which was created in 2012 to help veterans overcome mental health or substance abuse issues. This year’s graduates completed a rigorous 12-month program and on Tuesday, the day before Veterans Day, were promoted to “Phase V VTC for life,” a phrase used to remind graduates that the issues they face require continued vigilance, but also that they are part of a community support system that will be there for them as long as they need it. Since its creation, VTC has graduated 346 veterans with a range of needs. Read more from the Administrative Office of the Courts.

Lewis Thomason shareholder Whitney Kimerling has been appointed to serve on the Metro Short Term Rental Appeals Board in Nashville. The board hears and decides appeals from decisions made by the zoning administrator regarding short-term rental permits where it is alleged that the zoning administrator is in error or acted arbitrarily. Kimerling’s practice focuses on the defense of manufacturers in product liability claims pending in Tennessee and throughout the U.S. Her work also includes medical malpractice, premises liability, and transportation litigation. She is a member of the TBA Leadership Law Class of 2019, a member of the TBA Young Lawyers Division and of its Tort and Insurance Law Section. 

The TBA Bankruptcy Law Section will present The Small Business Reorganization Act and the CARES Act: Basics of Subchapter V Reorganizations and Current Developments on Dec. 7 from 1 to 2:30 p.m. CST. Virtually join bankruptcy attorneys and an experienced bankruptcy judge as they review the basics of basics of SBRA, as enhanced by the CARES Act and recent decisions of the courts applying this important small business legislation during a recession. The panel will also review the decision attorneys must make when guiding small business clients through the unfamiliar territory of Chapter 11 or SBRA’s subchapter V. Remember: all 2020 CLE hours can be taken online and TBA members get discounted pricing on all CLE programs.

University of Tennessee College of Law alumnus David Overstreet won a spot on the Illinois Supreme Court last week, capturing 63% of the vote, the law school reports. Overstreet graduated from law school in 1991 and worked in the Knoxville office of Peter G. Angelos from 1992 to 1995. He then relocated to Illinois and worked in small, private firms before joining the bench as a circuit court judge in 2007. He was appointed to the Fifth District Appellate Court in 2017 and won election to the seat in 2018.

Mississippi’s bid to make Memphis pay more than $615 million for allegedly stolen water has taken a serious hit, the Daily Memphian reports. A special master appointed by the U.S. Supreme Court to assess the case recently recommended the court rule against Mississippi. However, Eugene E. Siler Jr. did encourage the court to give the Magnolia State an opportunity to pursue a water-sharing arrangement. The recommendation is the latest action in a 15-year-old cross-border dispute in which DeSoto County alleges that Memphis and Memphis Light, Gas & Water Division take 60 million gallons of water a day that rightfully belong to it. Siler has concluded that water in the Memphis Sand or Sparta Sand aquifer is an interstate resource that cannot be confined within one state’s borders.

The University of Memphis School of Law and Bass, Berry & Sims have launched a new program to provide opportunities and resources for high school and college students interested in a pursuing a career in the law. The Diversity Scholarship Program will help recruit undergraduate students to attend Memphis Law while program participants will receive access to exclusive scholarships, mentorship and career opportunities. Additionally, the program’s Summer Trial Institute will give high school students a hands-on introduction to the legal field and skills training for college and law school. Other initiatives under the program include Bass, Berry & Sims’ participation in Memphis Law’s Diversity Day program, Admitted Students Day, and ongoing activities that address diversity and inclusion. The law firm announced a similar program with the University of Tennessee College of Law in 2018.

TikTok’s parent company ByteDance has filed suit challenging a White House order forcing it to sell its U.S. operations unless it can address national security concerns by Thursday, the Nashville Business Journal reports. The suit alleges that after receiving preliminary approval for a plan to restructure its business, delays in communication have left it unable to meet the deadline. In August, the company was given 90 days to propose a plan. The suit, filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, argues the government’s order violates the company’s constitutional rights. In a separate action, the company petitioned for a 30-day extension to meet the administration’s deadline.

At a hearing yesterday on the fate of the Affordable Care Act, two key U.S. Supreme Court justices seemed to indicate they are inclined to uphold the bulk of the law, Bloomberg reports. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaugh both suggested during oral arguments that they would not strike down the entire law even if a provision requiring people to acquire insurance is invalidated. Acting U.S. Solicitor General Jeffrey Wall urged the court to declare the entire law invalid arguing that the participation mandate is “essential to the operation of other parts of the act.”

Tennessee Republican Party Chair Scott Golden has announced he will seek a third term as the state GOP’s leader, the Nashville Post reports. Golden was first elected to the job in 2016 after working as an aide to former Reps. Stephen Fincher and Marsha Blackburn (now a U.S. senator from the state). Golden said the party will spend much of 2021 preparing for redistricting and the 2022 election. His counterpart at the Tennessee Democratic Party, Mary Mancini, announced over the weekend that she would not seek re-election after an election cycle in which Republicans easily won statewide races for U.S. Senate and president and lost only one seat in the General Assembly.

In an election that saw record turn out, voters also made their voices heard on key ballot measures across the country to change the criminal justice system, Law 360 reports. Proposals adopted focused on different aspects of reform, including increased oversight of police departments, reassigning funds meant for police to other community resources, restoring voting rights for felons on parole, a crime victims’ bill of rights, decriminalization of personal possession of illegal drugs, and legalization of both recreational and medical marijuana. In a related article, Law 360 looks at a number of “progressive newcomers” elected to top prosecutor posts in cities around the country. The election of these reformers demonstrates a “huge cultural divide ... on issues relating to law enforcement and criminal justice,” according to University of Southern California government professor Dan Schnur.