The Tennessee Supreme Court reinstated Shelby County lawyer Scott Bradley Ostrow to the practice of law on March 10. The court took the action after Ostrow demonstrated that he had paid the required reinstatement fee and all delinquent annual registration fees. The reinstatement was made retroactive to Feb. 23.

Entries for the TBA Administrative Law Section's 2nd Annual Writing Competition for law students currently enrolled in a Tennessee law school are due Monday. The section hosts the competition to promote an interest in and understanding of administrative law in the state and strengthen the relationship among administrative law professors, students and practitioners in Tennessee. The winning submission will be published in the Administrative Law Section newsletter and the winner will be awarded $800. More information and the rules for entering are available here. Learn more about how writing competitions can enhance writing skills in a recent Tennessee Bar Journal article.

The TBA Appellate Practice Section will host a free roundtable discussion on April 12 from 11 a.m. to noon CDT to look at the state of diversity in appellate practice. The program will feature Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Camille McMullen, Tennessee Solicitor General Andree Blumstein, and Juvaria Khan, founder and executive director of The Appellate Project. Will Perry with Butler Snow will moderate the discussion. One hour of CLE credit is available on request for a fee of $45. An optional Q&A will follow the webinar.

Local government practice is an ever-changing arena with a unique blend of constitutional, statutory and case law. This year’s Local Government Forum program, which will take place over two days, will include topics such as ethics for municipal employees, law enforcement use of force, municipal court jurisdiction, blasting policies and more. Register here for the April 29 and 30 sessions.

The Memphis Bar Association and Center for Excellence in Decision Making will present Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America on April 6 from 3 to 6 p.m. CDT. The virtual program will be presented by the director of the Who We Are Project, Jeffrey Robinson, and will explore how legalized discrimination and state-sanctioned brutality, murder, dispossession and disenfranchisement put African Americans at a great disadvantage when trying to accumulate wealth and gain access to jobs, housing, education and healthcare. The webinar is free to all registrants.

Frustrated by the lack of comfortable professional clothing, Harvard Law School student Logan Brown has launched a new clothing company that offers the “Ultimate Work-From-Home Blazer,” Above the Law reports. Brown, who attended college at Vanderbilt University, created Spencer Jane after cross-enrolling in a Harvard Business School class and working with the Harvard Innovation Labs. Brown created a survey with questions about pantsuit shopping essentials for her business course, but decided she could fix the problems that others had identified about professional clothing. The Ultimate Work-From-Home Blazer was designed to “seamlessly transition from a Zoom meeting to an in-person boardroom and whatever else you’re up to.” Brown tells the TBA she plans on returning to Nashville upon law school graduation.

The Tennessee Supreme Court today vacated a suspension it imposed on Davidson County lawyer Charles Edward Walker on March 25. The court had suspended Walker for three years, with two years to be served on active suspension and one year on probation, and had directed him to engage a practice monitor. The court took the action believing that Walker had not appealed the Board of Professional Responsibility’s recommendation for discipline. The court says it has since learned that Walker did file an appeal but filed it in the wrong court. The order today also directs the Court of Appeals to transfer Walker’s appeal to it for consideration.

A new report from the Knoxville News Sentinel, in partnership with Compass Knox, is raising questions about the legality of Knox County’s partnership with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The controversial 287(g) program gives Knox County deputies federal authority to conduct immigration screenings and to detain immigrants who entered the country without proper documents. According to the report, a 2007 amendment to state employment law requires local law enforcement to obtain “approval by the governing legislative body” before entering into federal immigration enforcement agreements. Former Knox County Sheriff J.J. Jones entered into the ICE agreement in 2017, but failed to seek approval from the Knox County Commission. Read more on the county’s 287(g) program.

On this week’s episode of the TBA’s Legislative Updates podcast, Director of Public Policy and Government Affairs Berkley Schwarz is joined by TBA staff member Kate Prince to discuss the latest developments at the state legislature. Schwarz details the TBA’s concerns over House Bill 1386, which, in cases of salary disputes among public employees, would require attorneys to take their case to trial within 90 days and would cap attorney’s fees at $15,000. A new episode of Legislative Updates drops every Thursday and can be found on the TBA’s Facebook page or anywhere you listen to podcasts. 

TBA member Kristen Johns has accepted the position of chief legal officer with the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC), which manages digital streaming services licenses. According to the Nashville Post, Johns will oversee the company’s legal affairs, including its blanket licensing process and compliance work. Prior to MLC, Johns was a partner at Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis where she led the blockchain practice as a member of the firm’s intellectual property group.