The Tennessee Association of Recovery Court Professionals has awarded the 2024 Ellen L. Abbott Vanguard Award to the 23rd District Recovery Court for its leadership in criminal justice reform. The award recognizes a demonstrated leader in the implementation of a criminal justice initiative or advocacy project. In a press release, the association praised the court’s efforts to reform the criminal justice system, highlighting the work of Circuit Judge Suzanne Lockert-Mash. "For too long, society has used incarceration as the primary tool for dealing with those with addictions. It hasn't worked. Addiction is worse than ever. Prisons are full. The 23rd Judicial District Recovery Court, under Judge Lockert-Mash's direction, is a model of success," the release states. The 23rd District Recovery Court serves Cheatham, Dickson, Houston, Humphreys and Stewart counties.

The Shelby County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Tuesday that inmate Wesley Joyner died at the Shelby County Jail after being found unresponsive in his cell, according to the Daily Memphian. The sheriff’s office is awaiting results from the Shelby County Medical Examiner’s Office, but preliminary findings suggest Joyner died from an overdose. Joyner’s death marks the second inmate fatality at the jail in less than a month and the second overdose-related death at the facility this year.

The Napier-Looby Bar Association held its annual holiday celebration at Holland & Knight, with proceeds benefiting the Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands (LAS). DarKenya W. Waller, executive director of LAS, spoke at the event. Chicoya Gallman, immediate past president, began the holiday party as an LAS fundraiser during her presidency. See a photo from the event.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has ordered an increase of $100 in the annual registration fee paid by attorneys to the Board of Professional Responsibility (BPR) and adjustment to the allocation of those funds. The order amends Supreme Court Rules 9 and 33 and will be effective March 1, 2025, according to a press release from the Administrative Office of the Courts. In October, the court published for public comment the proposed amendments to increase the annual registration fee from $170 to $270 and to adjust the allocation of funds to $225 to the Board of Professional Responsibility (BPR), $30 to the Tennessee Lawyer Assistance Program (TLAP) and $15 to the Tennessee Lawyers Fund for Client Protection (TLFCP). According to the release, the court adopted the proposed amendments because the annual registration fee is one of the lowest in the country and has remained unchanged since 2009. Lawyers will begin paying the increased annual registration fee as of March 1, 2025.

New York based global management consulting firm McKinsey & Company Inc., has agreed to pay $650 million to resolve both criminal and civil investigations into its consulting work with opioid manufacturer Purdue Pharma. The Department of Justice in a press release said the resolution relates to McKinsey’s advice to Purdue on the sales and marketing of the opioid drug OxyContin, including a 2013 engagement where McKinsey recommended strategies to "turbocharge" sales. McKinsey faces one felony count for destroying records to obstruct a government investigation and one misdemeanor count for conspiring with Purdue to misbrand prescription drugs. As part of the settlement, McKinsey will pay over $231 million in penalties, more than $93 million in forfeitures and $2 million to the Virginia Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. Additionally, the firm will pay over $323 million in a civil settlement. A former McKinsey senior partner who worked on Purdue matters has also been charged with obstruction of justice in federal court. According to the DOJ statement, the resolution marks the first time a management consulting firm has been held criminally responsible for advice resulting in the commission of a crime by a client. 

The TBA will be closed Tuesday and Wednesday in observance of the Christmas holiday. Offices will reopen Thursday at 8 a.m. CST. Online CLE programming will remain available throughout the holidays.

The Tennessee Supreme Court today issued conditional reinstatement for Virginia lawyer Daniel Lynn Withers on compliance with outstanding obligations with the Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education. Withers filed a petition for reinstatement of his law license on Nov. 20. The court gave him until Feb. 1, 2025, to complete the required CLE hours or warned that it would dismiss the petition.

The Nashville Bar Association (NBA) recently held its annual meeting where new leaders were elected and a number of lawyers were honored with awards. Joseph Hubbard, a shareholder with Polsinelli, was named 2025 president of the association. Other officers named include First Vice President Marie Scott, Second Vice President Christen Blackburn, President-Elect Sherie Edwards, First Vice President-Elect Ben Raybin, 2nd Vice President-Elect Judge Ana Escobar, Secretary Deadrick Thaxton and Treasurer Jae Lim. The John C. Tune Public Service Award was presented to Donald Capparella with Dodson Parker Behm & Capparella. DarKenya Waller and Eric Osborne won the Nashville Bar Journal (NBJ) Best Article of the Year Award. The NBJ Contributor of the Year Award went to Victoria Gentry. Josh Burgener was presented with the CLE Excellence Award. President’s Awards also were presented to six. Read more about the event in a release and see photos here.

The TBA's continuing efforts to provide education and resources related to representation for indigent individuals includes our Indigent Representation Primer series, which shares background and updates about indigent representation in Tennessee, and shares information and innovations from across the country. A recent item in TBA's Indigent Representation Primer may be helpful in better understanding both how Tennessee's system works, as well as models from other jurisdictions. Each model has strengths and weaknesses; some jurisdictions, including Tennessee, combine elements of multiple systems to better provide quality representation, balanced with flexibility and cost. Tennessee's system would be considered a hybrid, with two primary components: public defender offices in each judicial district and the indigent representation program administered by the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC). The types of cases covered include dependency and neglect and termination of parental rights cases (representation for parents and children), as well as criminal defendants in jeopardy of incarceration. Providing representation to indigent individuals, in both criminal and civil cases, is a significant issue for the legal community, with impacts that go far beyond the individual cases and counsel appointed to the matters. Read more about these differing structures and see other past primer posts here. Read the next primer update in Friday's issue of TBA Today.

Community members gathered at the National Civil Rights Museum yesterday to discuss the results of a 17-month federal investigation into the Memphis Police Department, the Daily Memphian reports. Earlier this month, the Department of Justice released a report finding that that the Memphis Police Department and the city engage in a pattern or practice of conduct that violates the U.S. Constitution and federal law. Now community members want to see more officer accountability for policy violations, ability to give input on police policies and for officers to show citizens more empathy and respect. One attendee also spoke out against the city’s decision not to enter into a consent decree with the department. The city has said it wants to do in-depth review of the findings before making a decision about such an agreement.