A new report from the Knoxville News Sentinel gives a detailed account of the role Tennessee’s pharmacies have played in the opioid epidemic. The report pulls from a lawsuit against AmerisourceBergen brought by Tennessee Attorney General Herbert H. Slatery III, which alleges the Pennsylvania opioid distributor took part in deliberate drug trafficking and racketeering by shipping unreasonable amounts of opioids to distributors. According to the report, the lawsuit identifies Walgreens and Food City pharmacies for helping flood the black market with opiates and fueling a deadly epidemic. The suit was filed in Knox County Circuit Court on Oct. 3 and made public last month after the Knoxville News Sentinel’s lawsuit to release the records.

The TBA Litigation Law Section will host its annual Spring Forum on April 16 in Nashville. Topics to be covered include rules of procedure, appellate law, pre-law techniques and a conversation on caps. The program offers three general and two dual CLE hours.

Legal Aid of East Tennessee continues with client intake clinics this week with events in Dunlap and Dayton tomorrow. The Dunlap clinic will take place from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Sequatchie County Courthouse. The Dayton clinic will take place from 2 to 5 p.m. at the Rhea County Courthouse. For more information about either of these events call 423-756-4013.

Shelby County lawyer Michael Leon Harris was censured today for violating Rules of Professional Conduct 3.1, 8.4(d), 3.3 and 8.1. The Tennessee Supreme Court found that while representing a homeowner in a detainer action by the mortgagor, Harris filed four petitions for bankruptcy, but made no subsequent filings to any of them, resulting in dismissal of the petitions. The court wrote that the petitions “were not meritorious and were, instead, filed to improperly stop execution on valid writs of execution.” The court also found that Harris typed his client’s name as a “signature” for each petition without getting the actual signature, and failed to respond to requests for information on the matter.

Nashville lawyer James D.R. Roberts was censured by the Tennessee Supreme Court today. The court took the action after determining that Roberts enlarged the scope of his legal services with a client and altered the terms of his fee agreement without adequately communicating with his client. Roberts later claimed an interest in certain funds paid for the benefit of his client, which led to a dispute and termination of his representation. After a hearing, the court denied the payment of any funds to Roberts. His actions were determined to violate Rules of Professional Conduct 1.5 and 1.8(a).

The Tennessee Supreme Court yesterday suspended 106 attorneys who did not pay the annual professional privilege tax. The attorneys include those living in Tennessee as well as 17 other states and the District of Columbia. Download the order here.

The Tennessee Supreme Court suspended Knox County lawyer James Lester Kennedy from the practice of law for two years today. The suspension is to be served consecutive to a three-year suspension imposed on June 5, 2019. The court took the action after finding that Kennedy knowingly (1) engaged in the unauthorized practice of law; (2) engaged in conduct involving misrepresentations and deceit; (3) failed to comply with a Supreme Court order dated July 20, 2017; and (4) failed to remove the indicia of attorney, lawyer and counselor at law in his correspondence. His actions violated Rules of Professional Conduct 3.4, 4.1, 5.5, 8.1(b) and 8.4(a), (c), (d) and (g).

The Tennessee Supreme Court today vacated a temporary suspension it had imposed on Jan. 17 on Williamson County attorney Bradley Michael Carter. The court reports that shortly after the order was entered, counsel for the attorney provided documentation that the information being sought had been submitted to the Board of Professional Responsibility. The court found that the information had indeed been submitted to the board but had not been provided to the court in the petition for temporary suspension. The court therefore vacated the suspension order.

Whether it has been a hard day at the office, a fight with a friend or a stressful transition, caring for yourself means being able to utilize healthy tools and techniques, writes Margarita Tartakovsky in a recent issue of PsychCentral. Among her go-to tools are 10 coping strategies identified by psychologists Matthew McKay and Jeffrey C. Wood. Here are the first three: (1) State how you feel. This might seem obvious, but many of us don’t name our feelings. Saying how you’re feeling in the moment (and out loud) validates your emotion and validates you. (2) Engage in a pleasurable activity. List the activities you enjoy doing (and used to enjoy doing). Do one each day for the next week. Actually put it on your calendar, and be specific about “what, where, when, and how.” (3) Soothe yourself with scents. List the scents that smell good to you and that relax you. These might include candles, herbs, flowers, perfumes, colognes, essential oils or food. And try to keep some scents with you when you’re not at home for an on-the-go boost. Look for more tips next week!

The Tennessee Supreme Court has released Episode 8 of its podcast "Tennessee Court Talk." The new episode focuses on women in judiciary and the need for more female judges in the state. The episode features conversations with Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Connie Clark, Court of Appeal Judge Carma Dennis McGee, Chancellor Jerri Bryant and Judge Angelita Blackshear Dalton. The group discusses the importance of diversity on the bench, why they decided to run, and how they balance campaigns and work with family and other obligations.