The Plaintiff brought a premises liability claim after falling off his own ladder while at the Defendant’s residence. The Defendant moved for summary judgment, arguing he had no duty to warn and could avoid liability under principles of comparative fault. The Plaintiff countered that the Defendant was actually his employer and that the Defendant’s decision not to provide workers’ compensation insurance prevented the Defendant from being able to raise a comparative fault defense. Furthermore, the Plaintiff argued that the Defendant did have a duty to warn. The trial court granted the Defendant summary judgment finding no duty to warn and that even if a duty existed that Plaintiff’s claim failed as a matter of law based upon comparative fault principles. The Plaintiff appealed to this Court. We affirm.

This is an appeal of the termination of a father’s and mother’s parental rights. The Tennessee Department of Children’s Services (“DCS”) filed a petition in the Juvenile Court for Sevier County (“the Juvenile Court”) seeking the termination of the parental rights of Justin S. (“Father”) and Alyse C. (“Mother”) to their minor son Edward C. (“the Child”). The Juvenile Court found that DCS had established by clear and convincing evidence the following statutory grounds for each parent: (1) abandonment by failure to provide a suitable home, (2) persistence of conditions, and (3) failure to manifest an ability and willingness to assume legal and physical custody of or financial responsibility for the Child. The Juvenile Court further found that termination of Father’s and Mother’s parental rights was in the Child’s best interest. Although we vacate the statutory ground of abandonment by failure to provide a suitable home due to insufficient findings of fact as it relates to Mother, we affirm the Juvenile Court’s judgment in all other respects, including termination of Mother’s and Father’s parental rights.

Mother appeals the termination of her parental rights on four grounds. The Tennessee Department of Children’s Services does not defend two of the four grounds, so we reverse as to those grounds. We affirm the ground that Mother is unable to parent the children due to her present mental condition. Because the trial court’s order does not contain sufficient findings of fact, we vacate the trial court’s findings that the mother failed to manifest a willingness and ability to parent and that termination is in the children’s best interests.

Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Lee Coffee removed himself Friday from the murder trial for the suspects accused of killing Memphis rapper Young Dolph, reports WREG-Memphis. The case will now be sent to the criminal court clerk to be reassigned. An appeals court reversed Coffee’s September decision to reject a motion for recusal. Young Dolph, whose real name was Adolph Thornton Jr., was shot to death at Makeda’s Cookies in Memphis on Nov. 17, 2021. The request for Coffee to recuse himself came after Coffee restricted phone privileges for Justin Johnson, one of the men charged with first-degree murder for the death of Young Dolph.

The Legal Aid Society will host a free legal clinic for Davidson County residents on Wednesday at the downtown Nashville Public Library, 615 Church St., Nashville 37219 4-6 p.m. CDT. Volunteer attorneys are needed to help provide legal advice. This legal clinic will help people with civil legal issues such as family law, consumer law, debt collections, power of attorney, employment law, health law, public benefits, housing, probate/estate, wills and bankruptcy. If you’re interested in volunteering, please email Kendra Cheek.

The American Bar Association Standing Committee on the Law Library of Congress is launching a new traveling exhibit, “100 Years After the Indian Citizenship Act: The Continuing Struggle to Guarantee Voting Rights to Native Americans,” in celebration of Native American Heritage Month in November. The exhibit explores Native American Voting Rights before the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924 and will build off the success of its predecessors that reached more than 225 venues nationwide: Magna Carta (2015-18), 19th Amendment (2019-22) and Mayflower Compact (2022-23). The new exhibit will be on display nationwide at law schools, state capitol buildings, state and local bar associations, courthouses, law firms and national and local conferences. Visit the ABA website for the full press release and current exhibit locations.

President Biden issued a new executive order Monday on AI requiring new safety assessments, equity and civil rights guidance and research on AI’s impact on the labor market, reports The Hill. The order directs federal agencies to take steps to prevent AI algorithms from being used to exacerbate discrimination in housing, federal benefits programs and the criminal justice system. In addition, the order directs the Commerce Department to create guidance for watermarking AI-generated content to mitigate the spread of AI-generated misinformation. Read the full executive order.

Authorities in Dickson County have settled a First Amendment lawsuit for $125,000 filed by a man who said he was arrested over a disparaging social media post about a law enforcement officer killed in the line of duty, News Channel 9 reports. Joshua Andrew Garton was arrested in 2021 after posting a meme depicting two people urinating on a gravestone with a photo of a Dickson County sheriff’s officer who was fatally shot in 2018. The officer's face was pasted into the image. Garton was charged with harassment and jailed for almost two weeks until a Dickson County judge dismissed the charges. Garton's attorneys, who filed a federal lawsuit in Nashville, said Monday the settlement compensated Garton for malicious prosecution, false arrest, and violations of his First Amendment rights.

A judge in Kansas blocked a state law Monday requiring healthcare providers to tell patients that medication abortion can be reversed and that abortion is linked to breast cancer, reports Reuters. Judge K. Christopher Jayaram of the District Court of Johnson County said the law, which passed in April, violated doctors' right to free speech and patients' right to abortion, which the state's highest court recognized in 2019. Jayaram's order is a preliminary injunction and will remain in place while he considers a lawsuit by abortion providers and Planned Parenthood.

TBA's Immigration Law Section will present Immigration Law Basics, an introductory-level CLE program, virtually on Nov. 16. This event is designed to provide law school students, new attorneys, and attorneys seeking a new practice area with the necessary knowledge and insight to become familiar with the fundamentals of immigration law. Learn more or register here. Participants will become acquainted with the basics, including: • Key terminology and concepts • Sources of immigration law and agencies involved • Different types of immigrant and non-immigrant visas—both employment-based and family-based • Deportation and removal proceedings • Potential avenues for humanitarian relief Schedule: 1-2pm CT: Immigration Law 101 - Elaine Witty 2-3pm: Five Easy Pieces...To Successfully Launch Your Immigration Practice - Linda Rose