Renew your TBA membership online today to avoid receiving a print membership dues statement. Attorneys not participating in the TBA's firm billing program can log in and renew through their MyTBA dashboard. Questions about member benefits? Reach out to membership@tnbar.org.

The TBA will host its 29th Annual Labor and Employment Law Forum on May 2 at the Bradley L. Barrett Training Center in Nashville from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. CDT. The forum will provide insights into current labor and employment law topics. More information about topics and speakers now is available on the TBA website.

The Nashville Bar Association (NBA) will hold its annual Law Day Luncheon on May 1 from noon to 1 p.m. CDT at the Four Seasons Hotel, 1000 Demonbruen St., Nashville 37201. The event will feature a keynote address by U.S. District Court Senior Judge Curtis L. Collier. Learn more and register online or view a flyer for the event. This year’s Law Day theme — Out of Many, One — celebrates the constitution’s ability to bridge differences and unite Americans.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee (ACLU-TN), this week filed a lawsuit on behalf of three Rutherford County families and PEN America against the Rutherford County Board of Education. The suit challenges the school board’s ban of more than 145 books from school libraries in the county. The three families, who are anonymous, include two rising freshmen and a rising senior who will attend Rutherford County schools next year. PEN America, a national free expression organization, joined the lawsuit on behalf of its author members, 32 of whom have had a total of 53 books banned or restricted by the Rutherford County school board. Read more in a release from the group.

Five international students at the University of Memphis are in limbo after ICE terminated their student visas this week, the Daily Memphian reports. The university confirmed the students’ Student Exchange Visa Information System records were terminated. “Our division of International Affairs is actively working with the impacted students in addition to advising all U of M international students on how to navigate and maintain their status,” said university spokesman Trent Shadid. The move comes after students at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville also were notified their student visas had been revoked.

Adams & Reese recently announced a “comprehensive rebrand and website refresh.” According to the firm, the redesign caps off a quarter century of growth and commitment to building collaborative partnerships with clients. Managing Partner Gif Thornton explains: “This is a refreshed identity, reflecting an even deeper understanding of our clients’ evolving needs, as we continue to collaborate as their business and legal partners across our footprint and beyond.” Founded in 1951, Adams & Reese has more than 320 attorneys and advisors in 18 offices across 10 states and the District of Columbia. Offices in Tennessee are located in Chattanooga, Memphis and Nashville. The rebrand was handled by New York-based communications firm Starfish. The website redesign was handled by New York-based technology firm Reflexions. Read more about the rebrand and the significance of the new color palette and styling of the firm name.

Sullivan County lawyer Steven Carl Frazier received a public censure from the Tennessee Supreme Court on April 17. The court found that Frazier violated Rules of Professional Conduct 1.4(a), 1.5(a) & (b) and 1.15(a) & (b). It conditioned the censure on refunding his client $2,500 within 30 days. Frazier was retained by the client for representation in a property boundary dispute. The court found that Frazier did not deposit the retainer fee into his trust account and wrongfully commingled the client funds with his own. The court also found that he did not track his time, issue an invoice for legal services, or communicate the rate of his fee or expenses the client would pay. He also did not obtain a signed explanation of the parties’ intent and amount of non-refundable funds. He later stopped responding to the client’s requests for updates and took no further action on the case. Finally, the court found that while Frazier offered to refund one-half of the client’s fees three years after the client filed a disciplinary complaint, the fees were never refunded.

Wilson County lawyer Mitchell Jeffery Ferguson received a public censure from the Tennessee Supreme Court on April 17. Ferguson was appointed to represent a client who was charged with several felonies, including first degree murder. During the representation, Ferguson failed to appear for multiple court hearings and failed to communicate with the court and his client about hearing dates and absences. The Supreme Court also found that he failed to provide communication or copies of legal documents to the client and failed to meet with the client for trial preparation. His inaction resulted in multiple continuances, removal from the case and postponement of the client’s murder trial, thereby prejudicing the administration of justice. His actions violated Rules of Professional Conduct 1.3, 1.4, 3.2 and 8.4(d).

Shelby County lawyer Robert Andrew Pope received a public censure from the Tennessee Supreme Court on April 16. The court found that Pope violated Rule of Professional Conduct 8.1(b) when he failed to disclose a material fact regarding his termination from the Tennessee Department of Corrections while his bar admission application was pending.

The law license of Hardeman County lawyer William Boyette Denton was transferred to disability inactive status on April 11. Denton cannot practice law while on inactive status but may return to the practice of law after showing that his disability has been removed and being reinstated.