Murfreesboro attorney John “Jock” Richardson Rucker died Oct. 8 at age 72. After earning his law degree from the then Memphis State University, Rucker returned to his hometown to join his family’s law practice, first established in 1860. For 43 years, Rucker practiced law alongside several family members, including his father and son. He served as president of the local bar association and was honored as a fellow of the Tennessee Bar Foundation. Visitation with the family will be Oct. 19 from 2 to 6 p.m. CDT at One Church Calvary, 431 Dejarnette Lane, Murfreesboro 37130. The funeral service will be Oct. 20 at 10 a.m. at the church, with burial to follow at Evergreen Cemetery. Donations in Rucker’s honor may be made to Alive Hospice, 1629 Williams Drive, Murfreesboro, TN 37129 or One Church Calvary, 431 Dejarnette Lane, Murfreesboro, TN 37130.

Tuesday through Friday of this week, the TBA communications team that produces TBA Today will be at the National Association of Bar Professionals (NABE) Communications Workshop, being hosted by the NABE Communications Section in Boise, Idaho. Stacey Shrader Joslin, Julia Canada Wilburn and Azya Thornton will be learning from and networking with other communications professionals from bar associations across the country. Joslin and Wilburn will be serving on a panel focused on “Serving the Whole of Your Membership” while Wilburn will be moderating a panel on “Creating a Communications Plan.” Wilburn also is chairing the section’s award committee, which will be presenting a number of awards at the conference. Additionally, the team will be producing the newsletter from the Mountain Time zone so sending times may be a little different. Thanks to our TBA colleagues who will be pitching in to help this week!

National Guard personnel were seen patrolling around the Bass Pro Shops at the Pyramid and Riverside Drive in downtown Memphis on Friday morning as part of the Memphis Safe Task Force, the Daily Memphian reports. The deployment marks the Tennessee National Guard’s first visible presence in the city under President Donald Trump’s multiagency crime reduction initiative. Guard members, some armed, were stationed inside and outside the Pyramid but did not appear to engage with shoppers. In early announcements about the Memphis Safe Task Force, Memphis Mayor Paul Young said the Guard would act as “eyes and ears.” Gov. Bill Lee called the Guard a “force multiplier” for local police, and said that personnel would not be making arrests.Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth could authorize the use of up to 1,000 Tennessee National Guard troops for one year.

A civil rights watchdog agency opened an investigation into how the federal government has responded to allegations of antisemitism on college campuses, Reuters reports. Led by Democratic Chair Rochelle Garza, the bipartisan agency is seeking documents and communications between federal officials and about a dozen universities — including Columbia University and the University of Minnesota — regarding antisemitic incidents and enforcement under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. The probe will examine government actions dating back to the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel and is expected to examine the Trump administration’s handling of campus antisemitism complaints and threats to withhold federal funding. The commission plans to hold public hearings in November and issue a report within a year.

Tennessee's senior Republican U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn was honored for her legislative work protecting intellectual property (IP) by the News/Media Alliance during a ceremony in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday. Blackburn was recognized for her work championing "protection of intellectual property, particularly in pushing back against Big Tech monopolies," alongside Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Washington, the Tennessean reports. Blackburn has introduced several bills aimed at regulating artificial intelligence (AI) and establishing legal recourse for victims of AI abuse. “Supporting content creators is at the top of my list of priorities, and we need to pass the COPIED Act, NO FAKES Act and TRAIN Act to protect against the abuse of AI,” Blackburn shared in a social media post.

New data shows that out-of-state travel for abortion declined in the first half of 2025, marking the first drop in clinic visits since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. According to Tennessee Lookout, the Guttmacher Institute report found an 8% decrease in patients traveling to states where abortion remains legal, while the use of telehealth to obtain abortion medication continues to rise. In Tennessee, where nearly all abortions are banned, 10,020 residents sought out-of-state abortions in 2024, while an additional 5,840 ended pregnancies using medication prescribed through telehealth. Telemedicine providers, protected by “shield laws” that allow them to prescribe and mail FDA-approved abortion pills anywhere in the country and protect the organization and its medical staff from out-of-state prosecution in 22 states and Washington, D.C., continue to serve patients in states with bans.

Legal Aid of East Tennessee (LAET) is marking Pro Bono Month and its 60th anniversary with free legal clinics and community events throughout October. The organization, which serves 26 counties across East Tennessee, is partnering with local agencies to offer free legal advice and assistance in areas such as expungement, family law and name changes. Upcoming events include a virtual name change clinic on Oct. 16, a family law advice clinic on Oct. 28 at the Carol B. Bertz Family Justice Center in Hamilton County and ongoing expungement assistance through Oct. 31. Additional clinics will take place in Johnson City, Kingsport and Knoxville, including a debt relief clinic on Nov. 15. Pre-registration is required for select events by calling 423-402-4766. In addition to these clinics, LAET is celebrating its 60th Anniversary with two Pro Bono Night events: the first in Chattanooga on Oct. 23 at the Chattanooga Whiskey Event Hall and then in Knoxville on Nov. 13 at The Standard Knoxville. Both evenings will honor volunteer attorneys, celebrate six decades of service and raise support to ensure justice for vulnerable East Tennesseans. Sponsorships and tickets are still available. Don’t miss this chance to be part of LAET history. Get more information on these upcoming events on the LAET website or in a press release from the organization.

A list of those who passed the July 2025 Tennessee bar exam is now available. Check the TBA’s website for the complete list of successful applicants. Download the list in pdf format. Those who meet all licensing requirements will be sworn in at ceremonies across the state next month. Events are scheduled for Nov. 3 in Knoxville at the Knoxville City/County Building Main Assembly Room at 10 a.m. EDT; Nov. 4 in Nashville at the Millenium Maxwell House Grand Ballroom at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. CDT; Nov. 5 in Jackson at the Supreme Court Building at 1 p.m. CDT.; and Nov. 6 in Memphis at City Hall at 10 a.m. CDT.

The Nashville Bar Association (NBA) has released the results of a member poll of applicants being considered to fill a vacancy on the 20th Judicial District Circuit Court. The candidates rated included Audrey L. Anderson, Bethany Peery Glandorf, Harold E. Rushton, Morgan E. Smith and John Ray Wilks. The vacancy on the third circuit is due to the retirement of Judge Phillip R. Robinson. The association reports that 251 responses were received by the deadline. See the poll results in a release from the NBA. The Trial Court Vacancy Commission is set to consider the candidates at a public hearing on Oct. 17.

A federal court should set aside a new $100,000 fee imposed on H-1B workers by the Trump administration, according to a lawsuit filed by a coalition of labor unions, health care providers, academic groups, religious organizations and individual visa holders. The plaintiffs are being represented by the Justice Action Center. According to Bloomberg Law, the suit claims that the fee violates the Immigration and Nationality Act and the Administrative Procedure Act. The Trump administration says the changes are needed to discourage business from “spamming the system and driving down American wages.” President Donald Trump signed a proclamation on Sept. 19 raising the fee. It later clarified the fee increase would apply only to new applicants. The Department of Homeland Security also recently announced it would look at overhauling the H-1B annual lottery process.