Knox County lawyer James William Friauf received a public censure today from the Tennessee Supreme Court. Friauf was retained to prosecute an employment action and a written fee agreement was executed by his client. The agreement allowed Friauf to charge an undisclosed hourly rate if he chose to withdraw from representation. During an unsuccessful mediation, Friauf used the fee agreement to pressure his client to settle his action; demanded payment of $63,261.46 in attorney fees at an hourly rate not previously agreed to; and misrepresented to his client that the Board of Professional Responsibility had ratified his demand for fees and expenses. Friauf agreed to a conditional guilty plea acknowledging his conduct violated Rules of Professional Conduct 1.2, 1.5, 1.8, 7.1 and 8.4(a)

Hamilton County Commissioner Tim Boyd wants District Attorney Neal Pinkston to come before the commission to find out if county funds were used to pay Pinkston's relatives. Boyd, who was once prosecuted by Pinkston on an extortion charge, has previously questioned Pinkston’s hiring practices. Boyd said he recently received an email indicating that Pinkston had married former TV personality Melydia Clewell and then hired her brother. Commission Chair Chip Baker said he thought it would be "agreeable" to have Pinkston appear before the body. The Chattanoogan.com has more.

Day one of this year's virtual bar exam was plagued by a number of technology problems, Above the Law reports. For some test-takers, the ExamSoft software went down mid-way through the test, while others experienced black, blue or white screens that caused delays in completing the test. In New York, exam-takers who were forced out of the test have been told they will not be able to make up that portion. A California test-taker reported spending 90 minutes on the phone with ExamSoft trying to resolve an issue with an essay question, leaving only 20 minutes to actually complete the essay. The National Conference of Bar Examiners said it is aware of the issues and will be communicating with ExamSoft to “seek solutions for those affected.” The Tennessee Board of Law Examiners weighed in with its advice as well, telling test-takers they should reboot their computers before starting each new session of the exam to avoid problems.

Three applicants have applied for a circuit court judge vacancy in the Third Judicial District, which covers Greene, Hamblen, Hancock and Hawkins counties. They are: Crystal Jessee of Greeneville, James Bradley Mercer of Greeneville and William E. Phillips II of Rogersville. The Tennessee Trial Court Vacancy Commission will hold a hearing on the candidates on Aug. 31 at 9 a.m. EDT in a location to be announced. Interested individuals may attend the hearing and express opinions regarding any of the applicants. Those who need an accommodation should contact Ceesha Lofton or Rachel Harmon at the Administrative Office of the Courts at 615-741-2687. The vacancy on the court will be created by the retirement of Thomas J. Wright on Sept. 2. Read more about the candidates on the AOC website.

Democratic candidate DeAngelo Jelks and Republican candidate Greg Vital won their respective primary races yesterday in the District 29 state House seat race to fill the seat of Mike Carter, who died in May after a six-month battle with pancreatic cancer. Both were unopposed in their bids. They will face off in the general election on Sept. 14. Carter's wife, Joan, is filling the seat on interim basis until a new representative is elected, WRCB reports. The district includes part of Chattanooga, Collegedale, Ooltewah and Sale Creek.

Jacob Baggett, most recently senior legislative adviser to state Sen. Ken Yager, R-Kingston, has joined the Nashville office of Bass, Berry & Sims, the Nashville Post reports. He will serve as a senior public policy counsel at the firm, representing clients before the legislature and executive branch on legislative and regulatory matters. Prior to joining Yager’s staff, Baggett was campaign manager for former House Speaker Beth Harwell’s 2018 gubernatorial campaign and a legal and legislative staffer at the state Department of the Treasury. He earned his law degree from the Duncan School of Law.

The Brentwood office of Georgia-based law firm Moore Ingram Johnson & Steele is being accused of wrongfully terminating one of its legal assistants with a COVID-related disability, the Nashville Post reports. Julia Russo, who worked at the firm from 2018 to 2020, is suing under the Family and Medical Leave Act and the Families First Coronavirus Response Act. Russo took a prolonged leave of absence during the pandemic due to her alleged susceptibility to the Guillain-Barre syndrome, making her more likely to die if she contracted the coronavirus. Her doctor substantiated the claim and qualified the condition as a disability. When Russo requested to work remotely, the firm said that arrangement would be an undue hardship on other workers and terminated her employment. Russo is seeking to prove she was fired because of her disability.

A plethora of mental health apps are flooding the market, but there is little evidence to support many of their claims of effectiveness, Harvard Medical School assistant professor John Torous writes in the Harvard Business Journal. As employers look for ways to support employees’ mental health, he and his co-author Elena Rodriguez-Villa, a global researcher at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, outline three points to keep in mind. (1) Apps will not cure anyone and are not an alternative to robust health care coverage at a reasonable price. (2) With hundreds of apps on the market, thorough research is needed. To help evaluate options, the free M-Health Index and Navigation Database offers information on 400 apps across 105 dimensions. (3) If an app is offered, be sure to track impact by checking in with employees on how they're doing — and if they are actually using the tool.

The TBA Real Estate Section in conjunction with the Tennessee Land Title Association will host Hot Topics in Real Estate 2021 virtually on Nov. 5 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. CDT. The hot topics forum will include programming on legislative updates, cyber security, housing discrimination, consumer protection, elder abuse and more. Be sure to register for this event prior to 7:30 a.m. CDT the morning of the program to receive the link to join the webinar.

The TBA Real Estate Section in conjunction with the Tennessee Land Title Association will host Hot Topics in Real Estate 2021 virtually on Nov. 5 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. CDT. Sign up now or watch for updates coming soon on presenters and topics. Be sure to register for this event prior to 7:30 a.m. CDT the morning of the program to receive the link to join the webinar.