The TBA Public Education Committee has launched a Conservatorship Portal, a new tool created to assist low income families in need of conservatorships for adult children in public school. The program’s mission is to establish conservatorships for those who cannot afford counsel through pro bono representation. The committee is seeking attorneys to volunteer to take on these cases. Attorneys are needed from every county in the state to serve on the Conservatorship Portal Panel of Lawyers. Training and resources will be provided to all those who volunteer and a pre-screening for each case will be done to ensure the case fits the proper parameters for the program. To volunteer for the program, contact Public Education Committee Chair Amy Bryant. Volunteers may be eligible for CLE credit. 

Gov. Bill Lee yesterday issued Executive Order 66 to extend authority for remote notarization and remote witnessing of documents, subject to compliance with certain procedures, through Dec. 29. The order also encourages users of these tools to make preparations to implement best practices for a safe return to in-person transactions after Dec. 29. Lee also issued Executive Order 65 to extend authority for remote meetings.

The Tennessee Faith and Justice Alliance will conclude its fourth annual Pro Bono & Faith Days with a virtual training for those in East Tennessee tomorrow at 2 p.m. EDT. The program will feature a panel discussion around the intersection of faith, pro bono and racial justice; legal resource trainings; and virtual legal clinic information. Panelists include Executive Director of the Knoxville Police Advisory & Review Committee Lakenya Middlebrook, East Tennessee State University’s Vice President for Equity and Inclusion Dr. Keith Johnson and more. Registration for the event is required.

TBA member and Nashville attorney Mary Griffin has been appointed to the Nashville Metropolitan Transit Authority board of directors, the Tennessee Tribune reports. Griffin has served as the State Social Security Administrator since 2011 and describes herself as a “regular WeGo commuter.” She is a Life Fellow of the American Bar Association, a recipient of the Tennessee Supreme Court Attorney for Justice Award and has previously chaired the TBA’s Law Office Technology and Management Section and the Attorney Well-Being Committee. She is an advocate for underserved communities and is passionate about helping those with mental and physical disabilities. WeGo Public Transit CEO Steve Bland called Griffin’s appointment to the board a “welcome addition,” adding that her “public service and strong passion for advocating for others makes her a natural fit for our board to help guide the agency through the challenges ahead.”

Test your knowledge of recent malpractice and ethics issues during the Build a Stronger Firm Through Better Risk Management program. This CLE will cover the law firm risk management processes, applying common business risk analysis tools and will review professional rules of misconduct in the context of issues of explicit or implicit bias, diversity, inclusion or cultural competency. Earn three dual CLE credits during the program on Nov. 16 from 9 a.m. until noon CST. Zoom information will be sent to registrants the morning of the program.  

The Trial Court Vacancy Commission met today to consider five candidates for the 6th Judicial District Circuit Court vacancy. Three names were forwarded to Gov. Bill Lee for his consideration. Those three are: Joshua J. Bond, Toby Ray Carpenter and E. Jerome Melson. The vacancy covers Knox County and was created by the appointment of the Hon. Kristi Davis to the Court of Appeals, Eastern Section.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created a host of unforeseen civil legal needs for many, including some of Tennessee’s most vulnerable residents. Legal Aid Society Executive Director DarKenya Waller highlights those hardships and the “tidal wave” of legal needs that is on the horizon in a new op-ed for the Tennessean. Waller points to the free legal clinics, legal consultations and court hearings being held virtually and over the phone as evidence of how LAS attorneys have successfully adapted to the current environment. “The snowball effect of economic hardships encountered during the COVID-19 pandemic will be long term, and Legal Aid Society is here to help restore our economy and the lives of so many,” Waller writes. “Increased support will ensure that civil legal groups can effectively assist low-income Tennesseans through this period of recession and the years of recovery to come.”

A Nashville judge has ruled that the state is not required to alter its post-felony voting rights access laws to match those of other states, the Tennessean reports.  Davidson County Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle dismissed the case brought by two Tennesseans with out-of-state felony convictions who wanted the state to modify its voting rights restoration policies. There are ways for those with felony convictions to restore their voting rights, but the plaintiffs, both convicted out-of-state, found they were unable to fully become re-eligible to vote. "Because Tennessee is constitutionally permitted to legislate different standards than other states for restoration of the right to vote and Plaintiffs do not allege that they meet these standards, their challenges necessarily fail,” Lyle wrote. The Tennessee Secretary of State’s Office reports that more than 3,400 individuals with felony convictions have had their voting rights restored since 2016.

Longtime assistant prosecutor Glenda Adams has been fired from the Shelby County District Attorney’s office amid allegations of  misconduct, the Daily Memphian reports. Shelby County District Attorney Amy Weirich confirmed she terminated Adams last week, but gave few details about the ongoing investigation by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. A TBI spokesperson released a statement saying, at Weirich’s request, special agents “are investigating allegations of misconduct involving the misuse of confidential information.” Weirich has recused herself from the case, and 13th District Attorney General Bryant Dunaway has been appointed as District Attorney General Pro Tem. Adams is a former public defender and has been with the District Attorney’s Office since 2009.

Tennessee Human Services Commissioner Danielle Barnes is stepping down from her post to rejoin the private sector, the Tennessean reports. Barnes joined the agency in 2004 as assistant general counsel under then-Gov. Phil Bredesen’s administration and later moved to the Department of Human Resources in 2007 as deputy commissioner and general counsel. Former Gov. Bill Haslam appointed Barnes as commissioner of DHS in 2017 and she was re-appointed by Gov. Bill Lee in 2019. Barnes’ last day is Nov. 20 and her replacement has not yet been named. Additionally, the state confirmed yesterday that Department of Commerce and Insurance Commissioner Hodgen Mainda will also be leaving his post for the private sector. WPLN reports that Mainda was accused of and investigated for sexual harassment in September but an investigator found insufficient evidence to substantiate the claim.