Gov. Bill Lee has reappointed Juvenile Court Clerk Gary Behler to serve a new term on the Tennessee Human Rights Commission, the Hamilton County Herald reports. Juvenile Court Judge Rob Philyaw last week gave Behler the oath of office for the commission, which bases appointments on the individual’s service within their community. Behler has spearheaded efforts to digitize the courts and just last week opened a legal services kiosk at the juvenile court to help self-represented litigants access legal information and resources.

The State Capitol Commission heard arguments yesterday on what should be done with the bust of Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest that currently resides in the state Capitol, the Tennessean reports. Rep. Sabi Kumar, R-Springfield, told the commission of a resolution he has filed to add memorials of civil rights advocates near any Civil War monument on Capitol grounds. A House committee is set to hear that resolution on Tuesday. Finance and Administration Commissioner Stuart McWhorter, who chairs the commission, said no vote would be taken on removing the bust until a vacancy on the commission is filled.

The state of Tennessee executed Nicholas Todd Sutton last night, the Tennessean reports. Sutton chose to die by electric chair, marking the fifth time the state has used this method since 2018. He is the seventh inmate to be executed since the state resumed capital punishment in August 2018 and the 139th person to be put to death in Tennessee since 1916. Sutton was jailed for the murder of his grandmother and two other men when he was 18, but did not receive a death sentence until he fatally stabbed another inmate six years later in 1985.

This week’s episode of the TBA Legislative Updates podcast features a status update on bills drafted by several TBA sections. TBA Director of Public Policy and Government Affairs Berkley Schwarz and Adams and Reese attorney and TBA lobbyist Brad Lampley provide insights from the legislature every Thursday on the TBA's Facebook page. This livestreamed program is now also part of the Tennessee Bar Association Podcast Network and can be found on the TBA's website or wherever you listen to podcasts.

West Tennessee Legal Services will hold a legal clinic at the Regional Inter-Faith Association (RIFA) Soup Kitchen on Feb. 25 from 8:45 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. RIFA is located at 133 Airways Blvd., Jackson 38301. Call 800-372-8346 for more information. 

The TBA’s 2020 Animal Law Forum will provide updates on trends and advancements in animal law, while attendees enjoy fun activities at the Nashville Zoo. The zoo’s president and chief executive officer will be on hand to discuss conservation efforts, laws affecting procurement and care for zoo animals and more. The program will take place on April 3 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Nashville Zoo, 3777 Nolensville Pike. Zoo admission, breakfast and lunch are included with the program.

Belmont Law students earned the school a top 10 ranking for bar passage performance on the most recent exam, according to figures released by the American Bar Association. The school’s 96.25% passage rate for first time takers left it number six on the list headed by Harvard University, with a 98.93% rate. (The University of Wisconsin Law School and Marquette University Law School appear at the top of the ABA’s first-time bar pass rate list, but graduates of those schools do not have to sit for the bar exam in Wisconsin due to the state’s unique diploma privilege system, Law.com reports.) Vanderbilt University scored a number 12 rating, while the University of Tennessee College of Law was rated number 64 and Memphis Law was rated 104.

The state House today passed a measure that would give Williamson County its own judicial district, the Nashville Post reports. The legislation, which would split Williamson from Hickman, Perry and Lewis counties in the state judicial system, failed in the House last year, but the $1.4 million needed for this move was included in Gov. Bill Lee's budget proposal. Williamson County would join Shelby, Davidson, Sullivan, Blount, Knox, Anderson, Hamilton, Coffee and Sumner counties as the only counties with their own judicial districts.

The Attorney General’s Office today announced it is joining Alabama, Louisiana, Nebraska and South Dakota in a motion to intervene in litigation over whether the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) can be placed into the Constitution. Illinois, Nevada and Virginia recently sued the Archivist of the United States — the federal officer who oversees the ratification process for constitutional amendments — seeking to require him to add the ERA to the Constitution. Tennessee and the other states intervening in this case argue that the deadline to ratify the ERA has long expired. Read the copy of the motion to intervene online.

State lawmakers on Wednesday introduced a proposal that would amend controversial voter-registration restrictions passed last year, the Tennessean reports. Last year’s GOP-backed restrictions would allow the state to fine registration groups for turning in too many incomplete signup forms, a move that opponents say would suppress efforts to register more minorities and other voters. Two lawsuits were immediately filed against the measure and its implementation was blocked by a federal judge as it awaits trial in February 2021. Yesterday’s proposals would again change the rules for signing up new voters, adding a requirement that the state offer voluntary training on registration laws and requiring applications to be submitted within 15 days of a registration drive. The latest measures were approved by the House Elections and Campaign Finance Subcommittee and must now pass the full House Local Committee before going to the House floor for consideration.