The Workers’ Comp Appeals Board recently held oral arguments by videoconference in three cases. Issues considered included an employee’s proper impairment rating, an employer’s right to a medical examination, and whether a court properly ruled that a party should be prohibited from introducing expert testimony at trial. A new blog post from the board summarizes the cases and the questions they raise. Decisions are expected in the next 20 to 45 days.

The U.S. Supreme Court today agreed to review two Trump administration immigration policies: the diversion of military funds to build a wall along the southern border and requiring asylum-seekers to remain in Mexico while their cases proceed through the courts. Lower courts rejected the wall funding saying the move violated the Appropriations Clause of the Constitution, while the asylum policy was determined to violate immigration law and contravene international human rights norms. The Hill has more on the story.

The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee has set a vote on Judge Amy Coney Barrett's Supreme Court nomination for Wednesday of this week, The Hill reports. The committee proceedings will begin at 1 p.m. EDT. Under committee rules, a majority of the panel, or 12 senators, has to be present in order to report a nomination to the floor. Once that occurs, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, says he will introduce Barrett's nomination on Thursday, which will set up a final vote on the Senate floor for the week of Oct. 26.

Jackson attorney Andy Cole has been promoted to pro bono coordinator at West Tennessee Legal Services (WTLS). He previously worked for the Tennessee Senior Law Alliance at WTLS advocating for seniors in West Tennessee. Cole joined WTLS a year ago after working in private practice. He is a graduate of Belmont University College of Law, where he served as web editor of the Health Law Journal.

Police use of force has long been a polarizing topic, but this year the issue has taken on new relevance. To help TBA members better understand all sides of the debate, the TBA Local Government Section will host a roundtable discussion on Oct. 26 from 2 to 3 p.m. CDT with Jeff Hughes, police chief for the city of Brentwood; Maggi Duncan, executive director of the Tennessee Association of Chiefs of Police; and John Buntin, Metro Nashville director of policy and community safety. The panel will examine use of force policies, tactics, training and community oversight. The event is free and open to all members but registration is required.

U.S. District Judge William Campbell has set an April 2022 trial date in the case of a death row inmate seeking to die by firing squad, the Associated Press reports. Terry Lynn King, along with three other death row inmates, filed the suit nearly two years ago, arguing that the state had several alternative execution methods that would “substantially reduce the constitutionally-unacceptable risk of inflicting unnecessary and serious pain” caused by electrocution. Three of those inmates — Nicholas Todd Sutton, Stephen Michael West and David Earl Miller — have since been executed by the electric chair. According to the lawsuit, attorneys argue that the state already has the trained personnel, firearms and space to allow for a firing squad. However, if the court disagreed, the suit argued inmates should have permission to use other alternatives such as orally administering lethal drugs over using a needle, or using different forms of drugs.   

A 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals three-judge panel on Thursday ruled it would not change Tennessee’s signature matching requirement for absentee voting before the November election, the Associated Press reports. The panel was split on affirming a lower court’s decision, with Judge Julia Smith Gibbons citing a lack of evidence that the signature verification process infringed on anyone’s Constitutional rights. The preliminary injunction had sought to let voters fix signature issues before mail ballot rejections. Judge Karen Nelson Moore’s dissent claimed “yet another chapter in the concentrated effort to restrict the vote.”

A hearing date has been scheduled in the federal lawsuit against the United States over the national eviction moratorium, the Associated Press reports. Seven Memphis landlords filed the suit, claiming the order infringes on their rights as property owners. They will make their case in front of a federal judge on Oct. 30 at 10 a.m. CDT. Several similar cases across the country have recently been dismissed, but Glankler Brown attorneys S. Joshua Kahane and Aubrey B. Greer say they are confident they’ll be successful in showing the moratorium violates not only property rights but also federal regulations.

State Sen. Todd Gardenhire, R-Chattanooga, is under fire for comments he made regarding “inner city” obesity and the local police department during an interview with Chattanooga’s News Channel 9, the Associated Press reports. “The obesity rate in the inner city is bigger than anywhere else. Because ... they go to a 7-Eleven or a convenience store, there’s fried chicken so they get them some fried chicken on the way home and have dinner on that. Well, that’s the worst thing you can eat,” Gardenhire, who is white, said during the interview. Gardenhire also briefly suggested that a police officer should not arrest a person caught driving drunk, but should instead drive that individual home if the officer knows the person. Senate Speaker Randy McNally defended Gardenhire, saying his “candid style often leads to misunderstanding and misinterpretation.” “I am confident he did not intend any offense or disrespect,” McNally said.

The TBA Young Lawyers Division today announced it will move forward with the 2021 Tennessee High School Mock Trial Competition by making the event virtual. The YLD’s Mock Trial Committee came to this decision after carefully considering feedback from Mock Trial participants, restrictions on student travel during the school year and the quarantine requirements and changing availability of courtrooms. The committee plans to release the 2021 problem, along with new format rules and procedures in mid-November. Read today’s announcement and check back for more information on the TBA’s Mock Trial webpage.