Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, in coordination with federal, state and local law enforcement partners, have arrested 84 undocumented immigrants in the Nashville area since Saturday, an ICE spokesperson said in a statement emailed to The Tennessean, the news outlet reports. ICE said some of those arrested have “significant criminal histories” and outstanding final orders of removal. The agency has not released the names of those taken into custody and noted that all individuals arrested were either pending immigration proceedings or removal. “Protecting the safety and security of our communities remains a top priority for ICE,” Lindsay Williams, ICE media operations unit chief, said in the statement.

The American Alliance for Equal Rights on April 12 filed a federal lawsuit against the American Bar Association (ABA) alleging that the ABA’s Legal Opportunity Scholarship Fund is racially discriminatory and unlawfully excludes white students. The complaint challenges the program under a federal statute that guarantees all individuals the right to make and enforce contracts regardless of race, Bloomberg News reports. The suit also references past challenges to the ABA's judicial clerkship program and a temporarily suspended diversity requirement for law school accreditation. In 2024, the ABA loosened its requirements for the clerkship program. In March, the Trump administration directed the group to permanently eliminate the diversity standard or risk losing its accrediting authority.

Gov. Bill Lee has signed a new law eliminating a $350 fee property owners must pay to reclaim items seized by the government in civil asset forfeiture cases, WBIR reports. The Tennessee General Assembly had unanimously approved the measure — HB1229/SB481 — in April. Sponsored by Rep. Justin Lafferty, R-Knoxville, the law waives the fee as long as property owners go through a civil hearing to recover their property. “Tennesseans shouldn’t have to pay a fee just to reclaim their own property, especially when they were innocent bystanders, which is often the case in civil forfeiture,” Lafferty said of the law, which will take effect on July 1. The law will not affect processes associated with criminal asset forfeiture.

A Metro Nashville police whistleblower has been indicted on charges of stealing documents related to the Covenant School shooting, according to WPLN news. Tennessee Bureau of Investigation agents arrested retired Lt. Garet Davidson following a yearlong investigation. Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk authorized the probe in June 2024 after the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) alleged Davidson may have leaked pages from the Covenant School assailant’s journal to the Tennessee Star news outlet. Davidson, who served in the department’s Office of Professional Accountability, also accused MNPD leadership of mishandling an internal investigation into an earlier leak and claimed he faced harassment and discrimination within the department. He was booked into the Davidson County jail on a $150,000 bond.

Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani (GRSM) announced the opening of its newest office in Knoxville, bringing the firm’s national footprint to 83 offices across the United States. Heather Gwin, managing partner of both the Nashville and Knoxville offices, says, “Knoxville is a natural next step for our continued growth in Tennessee. We’ve built a strong foundation in the state, and this expansion allows us to deliver even more localized support to clients while leveraging the full depth of GRSM’s national platform.” The new office, located at 4315 Kingston Pike, Ste. 210, Knoxville 37919, will include five attorneys local to Knoxville and be supported by attorneys in the firm's Nashville office. Read more in a press release.

The U.S. Supreme Court, in a brief unsigned order, has allowed the Trump administration to enforce a ban on transgender individuals serving in the U.S. military, pausing a lower court order that had blocked the policy nationwide. The Department of Defense issued the ban in February, disqualifying "people with gender dysphoria" or those who had undergone related medical treatment, citing concerns over military readiness. Several transgender service members and advocates challenged the policy, and a district judge ruled it unconstitutional. Today's order granted the government's emergency request to suspend the ruling. The court's three Democratic-appointed justices dissented. SCOTUSblog has more.

The May/June issue of the Tennessee Bar Journal is now available online! This is the annual Access to Justice-focused issue, with essays highlighting how advancements in AI and technology are helping legal services organizations better serve their clients. Also included is TBA President Ed Lanquist Jr.'s final column, which offers an extensive overview of the various applications of AI in legal services, the benefits it offers, the challenges it faces and the future prospects of AI in enhancing access to justice. Eddy Smith invokes HBO's "Succession" in explaining irrevocable trusts, John Day breaks down data on civil and criminal filings and outcomes in the state court system, Marlene Eskind Moses and Ansley Ownes Tillett explain the implications of the Tennessee Supreme Court's decision in Trezvant v. Trezvant, and members of TBA's Access to Justice Committee share their memorable pro bono opportunities.

Gov. Bill Lee has issued the first veto of his six-year administration, on SB455/HB527, which would have given the state parole board more discretion to deny parole to state prisoners. The Tennessean reports that in a letter notifying the Senate and House speakers of his veto decision, Lee stated that the bill would be "a step backwards from safer Tennessee communities" after implementation of the 2021 Reentry Success Act, which had received bipartisan support in the legislature: "Two years later, Tennessee achieved the lowest recidivism rate in state history, meaning fewer crimes and fewer victims. And I am confident that the Board of Parole and other safeguards ensure parole is awarded appropriately." Lawmakers could call themselves back into session to override the veto or move to do so at the beginning of the 2026 legislative session. The Tennessee District Attorneys General Conference released a statement expressing disappointment in the veto, saying, "To ignore the gravity and specific facts of an offender’s crime when determining early release eligibility is not only irresponsible, it is dangerous. It disregards the suffering of victims, erodes trust in the criminal justice system, and places our communities at greater risk."

Knox County District Attorney (DA) Charme Allen last week fired Berkley Mason, an assistant prosecutor, after Knox News asked questions about a now-deleted social media account that allegedly contained racist and sexist messages. In a statement about the firing Allen said: "It is imperative that prosecutors in my office be moral, ethical, fair-minded persons who are able to apply the laws of our state justly to each set of facts presented on a case-by-case basis ... [The account's content] undermines my confidence in [Mason's] ability to uphold his oath as a prosecutor to 'administer justice without respect of person and impartially discharge all of the duties incumbent upon (a prosecutor).'" She also announced a review of the cases handled by Mason and "appropriate corrective action if necessary." According to the paper, as of May 2, 28% of the 111 pending cases Mason had been assigned included a minority defendant. It says it based its calculation on a review of booking photos in JIMS, the court’s online database.

TBA members should have received printed membership renewal statements by now, but for those who would prefer to renew online, the web-based portal remains open. Be sure to log into your TBA account and go to the MyTBA dashboard to get started. TBA members enjoy free legal research from vLex Fastcase, savings on a range of products and services, three free hours of CLE credit and access to hundreds of practice management tools through the Law Firm in a Box. Section members enjoy additional savings on CLEs, newsletters relevant to their practice areas and opportunities for leadership and networking. Renew today!