The Shelby County Commission has approved a resolution that rules out the New Chicago area of North Memphis from being the site of any new jail. Commissioner Henri Brooks proposed the resolution, which passed on an 8-3-1 vote, the Daily Memphian reports. A real estate coalition that owns the land had proposed it as the best site for a new jail and criminal justice center. Commissioner Shante Avant announced she is appointing an ad hoc committee to research and make recommendations on how the process should work to request proposals for other sites. Commissioner Mickell Lowery will chair the group, which will include citizens and experts.

Lawyers presented their cases at the first hearing in a federal lawsuit challenging a recent Tennessee law making it illegal to “harbor” undocumented immigrants, the Nashville Post reports. The lawsuit argues that the law is unconstitutional and that its broad language could criminalize landlords, churches and nonprofits that house undocumented immigrants. It also contends that enforcement of immigration law should be the purview of the federal government, not the states. Attorneys with the state argued that churches and other groups would not be liable under the law, noting its intention is to crack down on “professional smugglers” who transport or harbor undocumented immigrants for a profit. The plaintiffs are seeking a preliminary injunction to block enforcement of the law while the case works its way through the court system.

The Tennessee Supreme Court temporarily suspended Shelby County lawyer William Shea Forgety from the practice of law on Sept. 9 after finding that he failed to respond to the Board of Professional Responsibility concerning one complaint of misconduct.

The Tennessee Supreme Court temporarily suspended Shelby County lawyer Andrewnetta Melissa Boyd from the practice of law on Sept. 9 after finding that she failed to respond to the Board of Professional Responsibility concerning one complaint of misconduct. The court notes that this suspension is in addition to an administrative suspension, entered Aug. 20, 2024, for failure to complete continuing legal education obligations.

A news item in yesterday's issue of TBA Today had the incorrect date for the Sevier County Bar Association's 11th Annual Sevier County Juvenile Seminar. The event will take place on Oct. 14. Register for the program and view the agenda. All proceeds will benefit the Women’s Recovery Home.

The Sevier County Bar Association is sponsoring the 11th Annual Sevier County Juvenile Seminar on Oct. 14, with all proceeds benefiting the Women’s Recovery Home. The virtual program will cover juvenile law topics applicable statewide. Register for the program and view the agenda. For those who register, the training will remain available through Nov. 30.

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear a case challenging President Donald Trump’s tariffs policy in November under an accelerated timetable. The tariffs will stay in place in the meantime, the Associated Press reports. The court agreed to take up an appeal from the Trump administration after lower courts found most of his tariffs illegal. Small businesses and states that challenged the tariffs say they have nearly driven their businesses to bankruptcy. “Congress, not the President alone, has the power to impose tariffs,” attorney Jeffrey Schwab with the Liberty Justice Center said. The Trump administration argues the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act grants the president broad authority to regulate imports, warning that striking down the tariffs could harm the economy and weaken U.S. leverage in trade negotiations.

Attorneys for Byron Black, the man executed by the state of Tennessee last month, say an autopsy confirmed that he suffered from pulmonary edema before his death. But they also say other questions about what he experienced during his execution remain unanswered. “The autopsy report itself fails to document the condition of the veins, which leaves unanswered questions. It also fails to document the EKG results. TDOC [Tennessee Department of Corrections] has indicated that it will not even begin to answer our public records request until Dec. 3 ... As we move through discovery in chancery court, we will obtain further information as to what went wrong," Black's lawyers said according to the Nashville Banner newsletter. Media witnesses, including the Banner, reported that Black lifted his head, groaned and said “oh, it’s hurting so bad” during his Aug. 5 lethal injection.

The TBA’s 2025 Creditors Practice Annual Forum will take place Oct. 1 at the Tennessee Bankers Association’s Bradley L. Barrett Training Center in Nashville. The program offers three general and one dual CLE credit with sessions covering case law and rule updates, e-filing, artificial intelligence and the sovereign citizen movement. Registration begins at 9 a.m. with programming scheduled from 10 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. CDT, followed by a networking reception. For more information and to register, visit the TBA website.

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti announced his office has filed a lawsuit against the former owners of Dynamic Therapy Center, a now-defunct Mt. Juliet clinic, accusing them of defrauding TennCare, the state’s Medicaid program. The lawsuit, filed in Wilson County Circuit Court, alleges the defendants knowingly submitted false claims between 2020 and 2023 by billing TennCare for individual physical, occupational and speech therapy sessions while providing group therapy to children in “camps.” Because TennCare reimburses individual therapy sessions at higher rates than group sessions, the scheme allegedly resulted in more than $300,000 in overpayments, according to a press release. The state is seeking recovery of the funds, treble damages, civil penalties of $14,308 to $28,619 per violation, and other remedies allowed under the Tennessee Medicaid False Claims Act.