Memphis attorney and TBA member Corey B. Trotz has been on television and billboards for so long, he’s now sort of a Memphis institution, the Daily Memphian says in a feature article about the personal injury lawyer. “He’s a bespectacled, bald man in his late 50s who’s a pretty good tennis player, and lately has developed an affinity for pickleball. But he is on television. And billboards. A lot.” And with a catchy jingle, he is an unlikely celebrity, the paper says. Trotz is an attorney at Nahon, Saharovich & Trotz where the firm’s ads are “a bit of in-your-face fun.” One shows Trotz superimposed on a mountain with an audible wind in the background, scaling any height for a client. In others, he drives a race car or appears with a talking dog. During the Super Bowl he was superimposed into the stadium crowd. Friends thought he really was at the game. Trotz credits the ads for the firm’s success but is serious when he says “All I care about is taking care of my clients.” When talking about his work, Trotz says insurance companies have an army of lawyers and unlimited resources but likes to think his firm and others “level the playing field.” 

Arrangements for Clarksville lawyer and former TBA President F. Evans Harvill have changed slightly since announced in yesterday’s issue of TBA Today. On Sunday, visitation will take place from 1 to 5 p.m. CDT at the Neal Tarpley Parchman Funeral Home, 1510 Madison St., Clarksville 37040. On Monday, visitation will be held from noon to 1 p.m. at Madison Street United Methodist Church, 319 Madison St. The funeral will follow at 1 p.m. A graveside service will follow the funeral at Greenwood Cemetery, 976 Greenwood Ave.

Knoxville lawyer Melinda Leigh Doss died May 3. A 1990 graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Law, Doss started practicing law at Pitts & Lake, an intellectual property firm, and stayed with the firm for the duration of her career. She became an expert in trademark law and often consulted with other attorneys about complex issues and trademark litigation over 30 years of service. A graveside service was held last week at Lake Hill Memorial Gardens in Bethel Springs. Memorial donations may be made to the Selmer First Baptist Church Building Fund.

The deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery last year prompted court leaders around the country to adopt a resolution to “intensify existing efforts” to improve racial equity in the justice system. At the same time, researchers with the National Center for State Courts were working to update a previous report examining implicit or unconscious bias. Now that report is out. The Evolving Science on Implicit Bias: An Updated Resource for the State Court Community explains how implicit bias fits into broader conversations about equity and fairness, defines commonly used terms, and summarizes research in the psychological and brain sciences, including strategies found to be effective and ineffective in addressing biases. The report found that one of the most effective strategies for reducing prejudice and discrimination is positive, meaningful intergroup contact.

Gov. Bill Lee is one of four governors nationwide who have endorsed a proposed amendment to the U.S. Constitution to limit the number of U.S. Supreme Court justices to the current count of nine, Tennessee Star reports. Other governors who have endorsed the “Keep Nine Amendment” include Doug Ducey of Arizona, Mike DeWine of Ohio and Pete Ricketts of Nebraska. The proposed amendment has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives as H.J. Resolution 11 and in the Senate as S.J. Resolution 9. Another Tennessean has connections to the effort as well. Former Tennessee Attorney General Paul Summers is one of the organizers of the “Keep Nine Amendment” campaign.

The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation is now hiring for a senior environmental counsel position. The position requires a minimum of five years of experience in the full-time practice of law. Experience applying the Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, SMCRA, CERCLA and/or RCRA is preferred. The position is located in Nashville, but TDEC attorneys are currently working remotely and it is expected there will be some flexibility going forward. Read the full job description and instructions on how to apply.

The state of Tennessee will scrap a $123 million contract to provide mental health care in prisons after evidence surfaced that a top state official privately shared internal documents with the winning bidder, the Tennessean reports. Former Tennessee Department of Correction chief financial officer Wes Landers shared confidential information about the procurement process with health care giant Centurion. Landers now works at the company. The department announced it will start anew with a request for proposals. Until a new contract is awarded, Centurion will continue providing mental health services to state prisoners.

Lawyers for death row inmate Pervis Payne are asking the Shelby County Criminal Court to declare that he cannot be executed because he is intellectually disabled, Tennessee Tribune reports. The petition takes advantage of a new state law that provides an opportunity for death row inmates to claim their execution would violate the Tennessee and U.S. Constitutions because of an intellectual disability.

Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk is calling on the courts to vacate and dismiss the 2003 conviction of Paul Garrett, the Tennessean reports. "The office knows of clear and convincing evidence establishing Mr. Garrett was convicted of a crime he did not commit," Funk wrote in a court filing Tuesday. The document details numerous deficiencies with the case, including "fabricated" testimony from the lead detective and DNA testing that identified another man with a violent past. Officials within the police department and the district attorney's office have been raising concerns about the case for 10 years. Garrett pleaded guilty to a charge of voluntary manslaughter. Funk now says the plea was likely the result of manipulation. Garrett previously was released from prison. The Nashville Scene first reported the news.

The Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals has denied a request from the estate of Sedley Alley to test DNA from his case in an attempt to exonerate him posthumously, the Daily Memphian reports. Alley was executed in 2006 for the murder of 19-year-old Lance Cpl. Suzanne Collins outside the Millington Naval base in 1985. Alley’s daughter petitioned the court through the nonprofit Innocence Project to test DNA from the case. In November 2019, Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Paula Skahan ruled that the estate did not have standing in the case. Attorneys appealed arguing that the DNA Act authorizes the estate of a deceased defendant to petition for DNA testing. A three judge panel of the appellate court agreed with Skahan, finding that an estate is not a person within the definitions of the act. The Innocence Project said it plans to appeal to the Tennessee Supreme Court.