A Roane County grand jury yesterday decided it would not bring state criminal charges against the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and a contractor for the 2008 toxic waste spill and subsequent cleanup, the Knoxville News Sentinel reports. The grand jury made its decision after being presented with the findings of a criminal investigation into the incident conducted by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. After a nine-hour hearing, the grand jury voted 10-2 not to bring state criminal charges against the TVA and Jacobs Engineering, but added it found evidence about the cleanup and worker safety to be “very concerning.” The grand jury also commented that “the evidence (is) better suited for federal authorities to investigate and prosecute."

Mark your calendars for the 2022 Estate Planning & Probate Forum set for Feb. 18 from 8:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. CST. The event will offer an in-person and virtual option, providing the insights needed to stay on top of key developments in the practice area. The program offers one dual credit and six general credits of CLE. The program will cover legislative updates, ethics and recent developments to rules on estate and gift taxes. A Clerk and Masters’ panel will also be included in the programming. Get more information and register here.

A portrait of retired Davidson County Chancellor Claudia Bonnyman has been completed and is on permanent display at Nashville’s Chancery Court. A gift to the Nashville Bar Association, the portrait was created by Nashville illustrator and storyboard artist, J. William Myers. Bonnyman retired in January 2019 after serving on the Davidson County Chancery Court for 15 years. She was appointed by former Gov. Phil Bredesen in 2003 and won election three times, most recently in 2014. Bonnyman hopes to hold an official portrait unveiling ceremony in the future. Read more from the Administrative Offices of the Courts.

The Tennessee Supreme Court suspended 26 attorneys on Friday for failure to pay the annual registration fee. Ten of those also failed to file proof that client funds were held in an IOLTA-compliant account. View the fee suspension order or the IOLTA suspension order. See the list of all lawyers suspended for fee and IOLTA violations in 2021 or access all administrative suspensions dating back to 2005.

Chancellor George R. Ellis died today, just one day after his 73rd birthday, the Administrative Office of the Courts reports. Ellis served the 28th Judicial District, which includes Crockett, Gibson and Haywood counties, since 1993. During his tenure, he chaired the Tennessee Judicial Conference Security Committee. Prior to joining the court, Ellis served as a judge on the Gibson County General Sessions Court and Dyer County Municipal Court, worked as an attorney for Harrell & Harrell, and was campaign coordinator for the late U.S. Rep. Ed Jones. Ellis earned his law degree from the University of Memphis School of Law. He later served on the law school alumni association’s board of governors.

Services will be held this Friday and Saturday for Memphis lawyer and Tennessee Supreme Court Access to Justice Commissioner Sean Hunt, who died last week at the age of 56. Visitation will take place on Friday from 5-7 p.m. at Serenity Funeral Home, 1638 Sycamore View Rd., Memphis 38134 and on Saturday from 10-11 a.m. at Christ the King Lutheran Church, 5296 Park Ave., Memphis 38119. The funeral will take place Saturday at 11 a.m. at the church. All times central. Read more about Hunt's career.

The Tennessee Supreme Court today named three new members to the Alternative Dispute Resolution Commission. They are: Marc Harwell with the Harwell Law Group in Chattanooga, Linda Warren Seely with Butler Snow in Memphis, and John R. Tarpley with Lewis Thomason in Nashville. Each will serve a three-year term beginning Jan. 10, 2022. Commission members Frank S. Cantrell and Leslie M. Gattas, and chair Richard Ladd Jr. will step down in January. The court also named commission member Stephen L. Shields as the new chair. He will take over on Jan. 10, 2022, and serve for two years.

Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris’ office will host a “Southern Justice Summit Awards Ceremony” this Friday to honor leaders in criminal justice reform. This year’s virtual summit, which is free to attend, will feature a keynote address by trial lawyer Ben Crump. Honorees include Innocence Project Director of Special Litigation Vanessa Potkin, state Sen. Raumesh Akbari, D-Memphis, attorney Michael Scholl, and Shelby County Criminal Court Clerk Heidi Kuhn.

Gov. Bill Lee late Friday signed several bills passed during the recent state legislative session. The first allows the state to temporarily replace local district attorneys when they "peremptorily and categorically" refuse to prosecute certain cases. The second bill allows candidates for local school boards to run in partisan races. The Tennessean notes that the effort follows a national push to bring partisan politics to local school boards. Finally, Lee declined to sign a bill that takes local control away from county health departments. It will still become law next week. Lee returned the county health bill to the General Assembly without his signature but called on the legislature to make "necessary updates" in the upcoming January session. The Tennessean reports on each of these measures.

Jeff Harmon has announced that he is seeking reelection as the 12th Judicial District public defender, the Herald News reports. Harmon began his legal career as an assistant public defender in 1992, and was appointed public defender in 2011. He has since been elected twice to the position, which serves Bledsoe, Franklin, Grundy, Marion, Rhea and Sequatchie counties, and has served as president of the 12th Judicial District Bar Association and the Tennessee District Public Defenders Conference. Harmon says he is seeking one final term before retirement.