The TBA Leadership Law (TBALL) was in Knoxville last week for an "Issues in Community Leadership" session. The class heard from several Tennessee leaders including Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon, Knox County Mayor Glen Jacobs, Supreme Court Justice Dwight E. Tarwater and former Attorney General Herbert Slatery. Other contributors at the event included Chloe Akers, Professor Akram Faizer, Josh Hedrick, Angelia Nystrom, Robbie Pryor, Professor Joy Radice and Cullen Wojcik. TBALL’s next session will take place April 10-11 in Memphis. Learn more about TBALL or see photos from the event.

In this month's episode of BarBuzz, TBA Executive Director Sheree Wright speaks with Liz Todaro, TBA director of access to justice and special projects, and John Farringer, a commercial litigator with Sherrard Roe Voigt & Harbison and TBA’s incoming president for the 2027-2028 bar year. The discussion focuses on the Administrative Office of the Courts’ plan for funding indigent representation, a key issue shaping legal access in Tennessee. The group also talks about the importance of TBA's Day on the Hill and Big Shrimp Legislative Reception, two events that connect legal professionals with lawmakers to advocate for issues such as indigent defense funding. TBA’s 2025 Day on the Hill and Big Shrimp Reception will take place next week in Nashville. Register for the day's events on the TBA website or get more information about indigent defense in Tennessee. Find past episodes of the podcast in the BarBuzz archive.

An Alabama couple has filed suit against the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services (DCS) and Sevierville law enforcement alleging their two children were illegally taken for nine months after they were wrongly arrested during a traffic stop, Tennessee Lookout reports. The couple was charged with DUI, public intoxication, child abuse and neglect, and aggravated child abuse and neglect. The parents denied the charges, which were later dismissed by a local prosecutor and subsequently expunged. They also claim that law enforcement did not have probable cause to pull them over. The couple are seeking $15 million in damages for violation of their constitutional rights and $10 million in damages for state law violations. This lawsuit is similar to one filed last year after a Georgia family was stopped in Coffee County and five children were taken from the parents.

The Voyeurism Victims Act unanimously passed the House 93-0 on Monday and now will go to Gov. Bill Lee's desk for his signature. Matthew Vollmer was arrested in November and charged with illegally recording sexual encounters with four women without their consent. The women banded together to push for legislation to change the statute of limitations for bringing a lawsuit to one year past the date of discovery, rather than the date of the original crime, giving victims more time to pursue justice. The bill also will allow victims of unlawful photography to petition for an order of protection. The Tennessean reports that the legislation will not apply retroactively, but the women in the case say they want to change the law to help future victims of similar crimes. The Senate passed the bill March 3 in a 32-0 vote.

The Tennessee House of Representatives on Monday passed a bill that would eliminate race-based policies like affirmative action, racial preferences and racial quotas from being used when making appointments to state boards, including specifically removing rules requiring the governor to strive to ensure at least one person on certain state boards is a member of a racial minority, reports the Nashville Post. Lead sponsor Rep. Jason Zachary, R-Knoxville, says the purpose of HB1237/SB1235 is to align the state with a 2023 Supreme Court ruling that found such race-based programs violate the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment. Opponents of the bill expressed concern over the potential for disparities in certain appointed boards or committees, and pointed out that affirmative action policies are not meant to give members of minority groups an unfair advantage. Senate sponsor, Sen. Paul Rose, R-Covington, asked the Senate Judiciary Committee to move the bill to next week’s calendar.

The Tennessee Bar Association is now accepting nominations for its 2025 Claudia Jack Award and Justice Frank F. Drowota III Outstanding Judicial Service Award. The Claudia Jack Award honors an outstanding public defender or court-appointed private practitioner who has served the legal community and clients in an exemplary fashion. It is named after the late Claudia Jack, a public defender and long-time champion of the poor and underprivileged. The Drowota Award is given to a judge or judicial branch official of a federal, state or local court in Tennessee who has demonstrated extraordinary devotion and dedication to the improvement of the law, the legal system and the administration of justice, as exemplified by the career of former Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Frank F. Drowota III. The deadline to submit nominees for both awards, which will be presented at the TBA Annual Convention in June, is April 4.

Knoxville attorney Edward Bruce Foster Jr. died March 7 at age 88. Foster earned his undergraduate degree in business from the University of Tennessee (UT) and his law degree from the UT College of Law. Following law school, Foster received a commission as a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps, serving on active duty in France from 1959-1963. In 1991, he joined Bass, Berry and Sims, opening its first Knoxville office. Foster served as president of the Knoxville Bar Association, was a member of the Tennessee State Constitutional Convention of 1977, and served as a special justice on the Tennessee Supreme Court during Gov. Lamar Alexander’s administration. A memorial service will be held at 4 p.m. EDT on April 12 at Second Presbyterian Church, 2829 Kingston Pike, Knoxville 37919, with a reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial donations be made to Second Presbyterian Church, the E. Bruce and Mary Evelyn Foster Scholarship at UT Law, Knoxville Knox County-CAC Mobile Meals, or do what Foster did best — do something kind for someone else.

Knoxville-based U.S. District Judge Thomas A. Varlan on Monday ruled that Edward Kelley's pardon regarding his participation in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol does not cover his conviction for conspiring to kill law enforcement agents investigating him. The Tennessean reports that the Maryville man was separately charged, convicted and then pardoned for his actions related to the riot. Judge Varlan wrote that Trump's pardon does not apply to the conspiracy charge "because this case involved separate offense conduct that was physically, temporally and otherwise unrelated to defendant’s conduct in the D.C. case and/or events at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021." Varlan also separately denied Kelley's motion for a new trial due to insufficient evidence.

The Trial Court Vacancy Commission met in Chattanooga to select nominees for a circuit court judge in the 11th Judicial District in Hamilton County. After holding a public hearing and interviews, the commission forwarded the following individuals to Gov. Bill Lee for his consideration: Christina R. Mincy, Jennifer K. Peck and William Matthew Wayne. The vacancy was created with the appointment of Judge Michael J. Dumitru to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee. Visit the Administrative Office of the Courts' website for more on the candidates.

The indigent representation proposal from the Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) on behalf of the Tennessee Supreme Court is designed not only to ensure that the state meets its obligations under the law, but also provides for a phased implementation to strategically address the special needs of some communities and case types. During last year's effort to increase the compensation rate for appointed attorneys, the AOC was encouraged to consider alternatives, including ones that would better address the needs of smaller and rural communities. This proposal seeks to respond to those concerns by providing flexibility and stability to focus on building capacity in those areas, as well as for contracts that require tailored solutions such as those for complex cases. The proposed plan requires a recurring appropriation of $17 million, and over time, the dollars used to pay today’s claims would be used to expand contracting options. Learn more about the plan and indigent representation in Tennessee.