As section chair, I would like to thank you for being part of the Administrative Law Section and supporting all that we do.

In December, we had a successful Administrative Law Forum and now are looking forward to our next forum on Dec. 13. For those of you who may have missed the 2023 forum, you can find the courses in the TBA course catalog.

Something about our section that you may not know is that we sponsor a writing competition for law students currently enrolled in Tennessee law schools, with a $1,000 prize awarded to the winner. If you know any law students, please encourage them to submit a paper on any administrative law topic. The deadline for submissions is March 27.

Thank you again for being part of the Administrative Law Section. If you have a friend or colleague who might be interested in joining the section, I hope that you will encourage them to do so. Also, if you have any suggestions of topics that you would like to see at the next Administrative Law Forum or would be interested in writing about for an article in a future TBA Administrative Law Connect newsletter, please feel free to reach out to me (Jonathan.Fly@tn.gov) or to our TBA section liaison Brooke Leeton (bleeton@tnbar.org).

Jonathan L. Fly

Eric Bittner has been confirmed by the Clarksville City Council to become the next city attorney for Clarksville. He will succeed longtime City Attorney Lance Baker on May 1 after Baker's retirement. Bittner earned a degree in finance as well as his law degree from the University of Memphis (then Memphis State) and began practicing law in Clarksville in 1995. He served as deputy city attorney from July 2021 until February 2023. Since that time, Bittner has served as city risk manager in the Human Resources Department.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has presented its Technology Strategic Plan for Tennessee’s judicial system. The plan, developed by the Court System Information Technology Oversight Committee, outlines the design and implementation of a unified technology strategy for Tennessee’s judicial system. The committee, headed by Justice Sarah Campbell, included a variety of stakeholders and participants in Tennessee’s judicial system who provided meaningful input on both the challenges and opportunities technology presents. Moving forward, the committee will work collaboratively with the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) to collect detailed information from stakeholders as concrete action steps are developed for each goal.

Memphis attorney William Michael "Mike" Richards, age 77, died on March 12 after a long illness. Following his graduation with distinction from Rhodes College (then Southwestern), he obtained his law degree from Vanderbilt University Law School. He practiced law for 50 years at the Memphis law firm Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz PC. Richards served as vice president of the Tennessee Bar Association and president of the Memphis Bar Association Young Lawyers Division. Services will be held on March 19 at the Lord’s Chapel, located on the grounds of Elmwood Cemetery, 824 S Dudley St, Memphis 38104. Visitation is scheduled from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. CDT, with burial following the 1 p.m. service. Memorials can be made to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

A special edition of the TBA YLD War Stories podcast is out, featuring a dynamic discussion with TBA YLD President Quinton Thompson and Judges Gina C. Higgins and Rhynette Hurd. In celebration of Diversity Law Week, the episode delves into the diverse challenges facing the legal profession, highlights key diversity pipeline programs and offers insights on promoting diversity within the legal profession. Don't miss this enlightening conversation, which underscores the critical importance of diversity in shaping the future of the legal profession. Tune in to gain valuable perspectives and inspiration.

TBA's Day on the Hill and Big Shrimp Legislative Reception will be held in Nashville next week on March 20. The events give Tennessee lawyers an opportunity to meet with their legislators and talk to them about issues important to the profession, including funding for indigent representation. The TBA Day on the Hill will include a luncheon and meetings with legislators in the afternoon, followed by the annual Big Shrimp reception that night. Sign up by Monday to take part!

A special committee of House and Senate members has unanimously recommended removing Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Melissa Boyd from the bench, the Commercial Appeal reports. The move comes after the state Board of Judicial Conduct issued a public reprimand to Boyd for refusing to undergo counseling after admitting to using marijuana and cocaine. The board referred the case to the General Assembly, which has the sole authority to remove judges from office. Representatives of the board were at the hearing to answer questions. In related news, Boyd has separately pleaded not guilty to charges of witness coercion and harassment.

The state Senate Education Committee approved a bill yesterday that would vacate the board of trustees of the historically Black Tennessee State University (TSU) by June 30 and authorize Gov. Bill Lee to appoint eight of the board’s 10 members. The other two positions would be filled by a student and faculty representative. The move comes after the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury recommended a change in leadership, the president stepped down and other reviews found the school was underfunded by more than $2.1 billion over the past 30 years. The board, to no avail, had asked state lawmakers for more time to address outstanding issues and find a new president. The Nashville Scene reports on developments.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has suspended Florida lawyer Joy T. Reid from the practice of law in Tennessee for 60 days. The court reports that Reid applied for comity admission to the Tennessee bar, but that during review of her application for admission, the Tennessee Board of Law Examiners discovered that she appeared to be holding herself out as a currently licensed Tennessee attorney. The Tennessee Board of Law Examiners conducted a show cause hearing during which Reid made misstatements of material fact. She agreed to a conditional guilty plea acknowledging her conduct violated Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct 5.5, 7.1 and 8.4(c).

U.S. Supreme Court Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Amy Coney Barrett addressed the Civic Learning Week National Forum at The George Washington University earlier this week to discuss the state of relations among the justices in the wake of several high-profile and controversial rulings — including one that rejected state efforts to remove former President Donald Trump from the 2024 ballot. The justices united to promote civility even in the midst of disagreements. They said the need for civil debate has never been greater than it is in these polarized times, and that the court, where voices do not get raised in anger, can be a model for the rest of the country. “We do not interrupt one another, and we never raise voices,” Barrett said. The Washington Post has a recap of the event while PBS Newshour has video of the presentation.