The Tennessee Supreme Court today issued three orders regarding the administration of the annual registration form and fee, the professional privilege tax and the interest on lawyers’ trust accounts (IOLTA) program. The first order amends Supreme Court Rule 9, Section 10 to make changes to the filing of the annual registration form, add a $5 fee for filing an annual registration by mail, clarify rules for active military, and require attorneys to complete all delinquent registration requirements before being reinstated. The second order amends Rule 9, Section 26 to make several changes to how the professional tax is administered. The third order amends Rule 43 to make changes to the process for seeking reinstatement from an administrative suspension for noncompliance with IOLTA requirements.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled today that juries in state criminal trials must be unanimous to convict a defendant, settling a quirk of constitutional law that had allowed divided votes to result in convictions in Louisiana and Oregon. The Associated Press reports the court found the practice to be inconsistent with the Constitution’s right to a jury trial and that it should be discarded as a vestige of Jim Crow laws in Louisiana and racial, ethnic and religious bigotry that led to its adoption in Oregon in the 1930s. The 6-3 ruling also overturned the conviction of Evangelisto Ramos, who is serving a life sentence in Louisiana.

The Tennessee Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision today, held that a doctor who was permitted to practice medicine in Tennessee without a license under a statutory exemption does not meet the requirements to testify as an expert witness in a lawsuit against another doctor. The decision came in a wrongful death case against a cardiologist and his medical group. The doctor chosen to be an expert witness by the plaintiff did not have a license but was participating in a fellowship program at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. Tennessee law allows doctors to practice without a license for the limited purpose of training in such a program. 

This new webcast, the latest from TBA’s on-demand CLE series “Navigating the Pandemic,” will look at the details of Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee’s executive order allowing remote notary and witnessing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Join Newman Bankston and Bradley Sagraves with Egerton, McAfee, Armistead & Davis in Knoxville to learn how to effectively produce documents under the executive order. And watch for Bankston’s article in the May issue of the Tennessee Bar Journal for more on this issue.

Gov. Bill Lee today said he will let an executive order closing non-essential businesses and requiring Tennesseans to remain at home expire on April 30 for all but a handful of counties in the state. The move will allow most businesses in 89 counties to reopen on May 1, with some opening as soon as April 27 if they follow specific guidance, the Nashville Business Journal reports. The governor said his administration will work with six counties — Davidson, Hamilton, Knox, Madison, Shelby and Sullivan — to develop their own reopening plans. Meanwhile, Nashville's mayor said today he intends to extend the city's safer at home order after weekend testing uncovered a steep rise in cases, Nashville Post reports. He previously said he hoped to begin loosening restrictions next month, but now says the order will remain in effect until the rate of the disease declines in the city. Chattanooga’s mayor said today he would not commit to an arbitrary date to lift restrictions, but would do so only when epidemiology and testing numbers indicate it is safe to do so, the Times Free Press reports.

The Tennessee Supreme Court today suspended Shelby County lawyer Barbara Morris Zoccola for two months, retroactive to a suspension imposed on Jan. 15. In November 2019, Zoccola pled guilty in federal court to the misdemeanor charge of theft for falsely reporting work time and failing to report leave time as an assistant U.S. attorney. She was sentenced to one year probation and ordered to pay restitution and a fine, and resign her position. In the disciplinary proceeding, she admitted her conduct violated Rule of Professional Conduct 8.4.

Sevier County lawyer Andrew Nicholas Wilson received a censure from the Tennessee Supreme Court today. The court found that he failed to deposit unearned fees into a client trust account and failed to keep his client adequately informed as to the amount of fees billed during the course of the representation. His actions violated Rule of Professional Conduct 1.4, 1.5(f) and 1.15.

The Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services and the Nashville Bar Association will host a telephone-based legal advice clinic for small business owners struggling with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on April 29. Volunteer attorneys are needed to help for one hour between 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. CDT. During the one-hour shift, attorneys will meet with two clients for 30 minutes each. The NBA will provide a training webinar in advance of the clinic. Those with experience in the following areas are especially needed: insolvency, rent abatement, unemployment benefits, SBA EIDL loans, Paycheck Protection Act and COVID-19 employment law issues. Register to help here.

Three additional firms with offices in Tennessee have taken steps to reduce costs, Above the Law reports. Loeb & Loeb, with offices in Nashville, reportedly is cutting pay for lawyers and staff. For capital partners, monthly draws are being reduced by 20% while pay is being cut by 15% for income partners, senior counsel, of counsel, associates and senior staff, and 10% for paralegals and other staff. At Fisher Phillips, with offices in Memphis and Nashville, salaries reportedly have been cut across the board, with associates, salaried staff, and hourly employees having their checks cut by 20%. Those unable to work remotely have been furloughed. Partners also have taken a pay cut, though the exact amount was not disclosed. Finally, Greenspoon Marder, with offices in Nashville, has implemented firmwide pay cuts and reportedly laid off 40 staff members and five attorneys.

Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee & the Cumberlands will hold three legal clinics via phone this week. General clinics will take place on Tuesday from 4 to 6 p.m., on Thursday from 3 to 4:30 p.m., and on Saturday from 8:30 to 11 a.m.  On Wednesday, an Operation Stand Down Phone Clinic will be held for veterans in the Nashville area only from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.  Those needing assistance may call 800-238-1443 to speak to an attorney during any of these times. Please contact Andrae Crismon or Kendra Cheek, 615-780-7131, for more information. See all phone clinic dates for April.