The TBA’s annual Court Square Series, designed to provide attorneys with the latest developments in multiple areas of the law, is underway and will be making a stop in Chattanooga on June 3. The three-hour event will begin at noon EDT with a networking lunch with TBA President Sherie Edwards, followed by a session on preventing attorney burnout with Dr. Kristen Black, an ethics update from Board of Professional Responsibility Disciplinary Counsel Jim Milam, and a discussion on the latest in labor and employment law with Kathleen Siciliano. The program will be held at the law firm of Chambliss, Bahner & Stophel. The Court Square Series also will be making stops in Cookeville on May 19, Kingsport on May 26 and Jackson on June 7. Read more about these programs on the TBA CLE website.

Hawkins County lawyer John Stephen Anderson was reinstated to the practice today. He had been suspended by the Tennessee Supreme Court in December 2015 for six years. Anderson petitioned for reinstatement in October 2021. The court found that he had complied with the terms and conditions of his suspension but directed him to engage a practice monitor for two years, enroll in the Tennessee Lawyers Assistance Program to undergo an evaluation and comply with any recommended monitoring agreement, and complete three additional hours of CLE on ethics and professionalism during 2022.

In addition to compelling CLE, social events and networking opportunities, the TBA's governing bodies will meet throughout the 2022 TBA Annual Convention. On June 15, the House of Delegates will meet from 2 to 5 p.m., while new Board of Governors members will attend an orientation session. On June 16, section and committee leaders will meet to recap their work over the past year and begin making plans for the 2022-2023 bar year. On June 17, the Young Lawyers Division will hold committee meetings and the division’s annual meeting, which is open to all YLD members. Finally, on June 18, the TBA Board of Governors and the Tennessee Legal Community Foundation Board of Trustees will meet, as will the YLD Executive Committee and full YLD Board. Check out the full convention schedule and make plans to be in Nashville June 15-18!

The Tennessee Supreme Court recently rejected a petition to dismiss a suspension from Connie Lynn Reguli. On April 22, the court suspended Reguli based on her conviction of certain criminal offenses. A few days later, Reguli petitioned the court to dissolve the suspension arguing that errors occurred during the criminal proceeding that call her conviction into question. She also argued that summary suspension of her license deprived her of due process. The Board of Professional Responsibility recommended that the court reject the petition saying the appeals court, not the disciplinary process, is the appropriate place to resolve the issues raised by Reguli. The court agreed and dismissed the petition on May 2.

A new a 12-part podcast series “Class Action” is coming soon to a platform near you. The documentary-style podcast tracks a diverse cast of college and law students who are battling it out in mock trial competitions across the country. Producers Lisa Gray and Kevin Huffman spent a year recording the grueling bootcamps, scrimmages and competitions with teams from Brooklyn Law, St. Mary’s University in San Antonio and the University of South Dakota. Listeners will hear the law students reach near-exhaustion arguing cases in high-stakes tournaments. The series also includes an undergraduate team from Dillard University in New Orleans, which recovered from COVID-19 and Hurricane Ida to make a “Cinderella” run at the national championship. Watch for the series; the first two episodes are set to drop June 7 on iHeart, Apple and other major platforms.

A Davidson County jury has awarded more than $200 million to the mother of one of the victims of a mass shooting at an Antioch Waffle House in 2018, the Tennessean reports. It is the largest personal injury judgement ever awarded in Davidson County, according to Nashville attorney Daniel Horwitz. He represented Shaundelle Brooks, the mother of one of those killed in the deadly shooting. Brooks had brought the wrongful death lawsuit against Travis Reinking, who was convicted of the shooting.

The Tennessee Supreme Court censured Hawkins County lawyer Gerald Todd Eidson today after finding that he violated Rules of Professional Conduct 1.1 and 1.3. After being appointed to represent a client in juvenile court on a dependency and neglect matter, Eidson failed to speak to the client until the day before the adjudicatory hearing. This was despite the client leaving multiple messages to speak to Eidson. The court also found that Eidson failed to seek a continuance until he was in court and then had to withdraw the request when other parties objected. The court determined that the client suffered potential harm.

As abortion-rights protests continue, the Republican governors of Virginia and Maryland are calling on the U.S. Justice Department to tighten security at the homes of U.S. Supreme Court justices living in their states. In a letter to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, Gov. Larry Hogan of Maryland and Gov. Glenn Youngkin of Virginia also pointed to federal law, which prohibits picketing the residence of a judge with the "intent of influencing" the judge. National Public Radio has more on that story. Yesterday, the court’s nine justices met in private for the first time since the leak of a draft opinion that indicated the court is prepared to overrule Roe v. Wade. The court offered no word on what was discussed but said at least one decision will be announced Monday, according to the Associated Press.

Fast-growing smaller cities have helped fuel new hiring at Baker Donelson, Bloomberg Law reports. The news source looked at the Tennessee-based firm and the rate at which it has added associates and shareholders since the pandemic. Mark A.B. Carlson, the firm’s chief growth officer who focuses on lateral attorney recruiting, acquisition and integration, said the talent market is “incredibly competitive” but that the cities in the firm’s footprint are among the fastest growing and they take advantage of that to hire whenever they can. The firm — with Tennessee offices in Chattanooga, Knoxville, Memphis, Nashville and the Tri-Cities — added 100 lawyers last year in its two dozen offices.

East Tennessee Congressman Tim Burchett has asked Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery III and U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland to monitor retail prices of powdered baby formula and investigate reports of profiteers stockpiling formula to gouge prices. Burchett said yesterday that the state has been hit “the hardest” by the shortages and that "leaders need to make sure anyone who takes advantage of this crisis for profit is held accountable,” WBIR reports. The nationwide formula shortage has led other states to respond. On Wednesday, New York Attorney General Letitia James issued a public consumer alert warning people about price gouging, saying her office was aware of reports that baby formula was being sold online for prices "far exceeding its retail value."