Nashville Public Defender Martesha Johnson is calling on criminal justice officials to take steps to "minimize the exposure of the vulnerable individuals housed in Nashville’s jails and prisons" to COVID-19. Her office is asking courts to immediately release individuals who are high risk or vulnerable according to the Centers for Disease Control on their own recognizance unless there is clear evidence they present an unreasonable risk to community safety. She is also calling for all non-essential cases to be postponed, the Nashville Scene reports. Meanwhile, all Tennessee prisons have suspended visitation and have begun screening staff for symptoms, the Tennessee Department of Corrections announced yesterday.

The American Bar Association today announced the creation of a nationwide task force of volunteer lawyers and judges to identify legal needs arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, make recommendations to address those needs, and help mobilize volunteer lawyers and legal professionals for people who need help. The Task Force on Legal Needs Arising Out of the 2020 Pandemic will include up to 20 representatives from top U.S. legal organizations and be chaired by James J. Sandman, former president of the Legal Services Corporation. “As the pandemic spreads, thousands of Americans will need help – not just with medical issues but also with legal issues including lost jobs, evictions, insurance claims, family emergencies and obtaining government benefits they need to survive,” ABA President Judy Perry Martinez said in announcing the move.

The Tennessee Supreme Court today disbarred Gregory Scott Norris from the practice of law and ordered him to pay restitution to six former clients totaling $6,000. The court took the action after finding that Norris failed to appear in court on numerous occasions, stopped corresponding with opposing attorneys, made incoherent arguments in court, took fees from clients for whom he did little-to-no work, failed to advise clients of his temporary suspension, failed to communicate with or return files to clients, and abandoned numerous client matters. His actions were determined to violate Rules of Professional Conduct 1.1, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.16(d), 3.2, 8.1, 8.4(a), (d) and (g).

Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who was convicted of trying to sell Barack Obama’s Senate seat, recently received a commutation from President Trump. That case, writes Nashville criminal defense attorney David Raybin, brings to mind the 1873 case of W.W. Hobbs. Captain Hobbs, a veteran of the Civil War, was serving as Humphreys County Court clerk when he decided to run for Tennessee comptroller of the Treasury. He won the seat but paid $3,000 to settle a dispute with his opponent, which many interpreted as “buying the seat.” He lasted five months in office before “selling” the seat for $10,000 to bond speculators. When this sordid tale came to light, the state legislature outlawed the buying and selling of political offices. Raybin’s March 2009 Tennessee Bar Journal article on the case recently was reprinted in the Tennessean.

Knoxville lawyer and small business owner Virginia Couch recently announced her intention to run for the District 18 seat in the state House of Representatives. Couch, an attorney with The Trust Company of Tennessee, is also the founder and co-owner of Barkside Lodge, a dog boarding, daycare, swimming and grooming center in Lenoir City. She earned her law degree from the University of Tennessee College of Law and has served as an adjunct faculty member for the school, teaching contract drafting. Read more from Knox Views.

The Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee & the Cumberlands will host a Veteran’s Legal Clinic next Tuesday in Clarksville. The event will run from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. at Operation Standown Clarksville, 400 Madison St., Clarksville 37040. For more information email Kendra Cheek or call at 615-780-7131. That afternoon, the group will hold a legal clinic in Oak Ridge. That event will run from 4:30 to 6 p.m. at its office at 575 Oak Ridge Turnpike, Oak Ridge 37830. Call 865-483-8454 with questions.

Lipscomb University’s Fred D. Gray Institute for Law, Justice & Society will host a free legal advice clinic tomorrow from 9 to 10 a.m. to offer free legal advice for those who have insurance and housing questions in the wake of last week's tornadoes. The clinic will take place at Schrader Lane Church of Christ, 1234 Schrader Lane, Nashville 37208. For more information or to volunteer contact Susan T. Jones.

Legal organizations across the state continue to evaluate whether to go forward with events scheduled to take place in the coming weeks. The TBA’s Pandemic Resource Center has updates today about the Tennessee Bar Foundation's Fellows Dinner and the Knoxville Bar Association’s Law Practice Expo, which have been canceled, and the Nashville Public Library’s event with U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Martha Craig Daughtrey, which has been postponed. The Tennessee Secretary of State’s Office also announced today that it will close the third floor walk-up counter at its Nashville office beginning Monday until further notice. For those who have documents to be filed, a drop box will be available. Updates about TBA events are available here.

The Tennessee Supreme Court declared a state of emergency for the Judicial Branch and suspended all in-person judicial proceedings through March 31 in an order issued today to guide courts operating during the COVID-19 outbreak. All Tennessee courts will remain open during this period. “Each day across the State of Tennessee, thousands of people attend court proceedings in-person when they come to the courthouse as jurors, witnesses, litigants, or in another capacity,” Chief Justice Jeff Bivins said in issuing the order. “Public spaces in courthouses tend to be small, tightly packed bench seats that provide the type of situations public health officials have encouraged people to avoid during the COVID-19 outbreak. However, judges, court clerks, and others provide essential constitutional functions that must be carried on.” TBA President Sarah Sheppeard called the order "a prudent and creative plan to protect the health of Tennessee’s citizens, litigants, court personnel, lawyers and judges, while keeping the judicial system operating. In today’s uncertain times, precautions such as these are necessary for the sake of all who are involved in the judicial system, as well as those with whom they come in contact." The TBA’s Pandemic Resource Center has more.

The 2020 State High School Mock Trial Tournament that was scheduled to take place on March 20-21 in Nashville has been canceled. After monitoring recent developments related to COVID-19 from local, state and federal agencies, Tennessee Bar Association officials concluded that the safety of students, coaches, judges, family and friends required the cancellation. The decision followed the declaration of a state of emergency by Gov. Bill Lee, and decisions by the National High School Mock Trial Championship Board of Directors and nine other state sponsors to cancel their competitions. “We know that this decision is disappointing to so many students and families,” TBA Executive Director Joycelyn Stevenson said, “and we congratulate each of them for making it to the state competition this year. We look forward to continuing this great competition next year.”