The TBA and student loan provider SoFi have teamed up for a free webinar for members on July 11 at 3 p.m. CDT. During the session, SoFi’s team will cover topics such as how to use the tools, resources and products available at SoFi.com/TBA; options for managing debt; how to receive an exclusive discount when refinancing student loans; and updates on the current student loan landscape. Register here.

Make plans now to join colleagues at the TBA’s 2023 Disability Law Forum. This year’s program will take place virtually on Oct. 20 from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Check back for more details coming soon to the TBA’s online course catalog.

Members of the Diversity Leadership Institute (DLI) Class of 2023 met for programming during the Tennessee Bar Association's Annual Convention last month. The class also celebrated its graduation from the program. The group, consisting of members from all six of Tennessee's law schools, wrapped up their experience with a service project at The Richard Bean Detention Center in Knoxville. Interested in participating in the DLI program? Watch for information about the 2024 class coming this fall.

“If we work marble, it will perish; if we work upon brass, time will efface it; if we rear temples, they will crumble into dust; but if we work upon immortal minds and instill into them just principles, we are then engraving upon tablets which no time will efface but will brighten and brighten to all eternity.”
 
– Daniel Webster

A grasp of legal history is essential in the pursuit of contemporary justice. This is especially true in appellate work, which by nature values precedent. Join TBA Appellate Practice Section East Tennessee Delegate Nate Kinard for a Zoom webinar on practical tips on using historical sources in crafting legal arguments. Learn more and register here.

Produced by the TBA Attorney Well Being Committee, this webinar will provide insight into how to find a therapist who fits your individual needs. Therapy can teach us how to have better inner dialogue, better understanding of our own quirks and foster better relationships as a result. For more information or to register click here. The webinar is free and will run July 26 from 2:30-3:30 p.m. CT.

Members of the Young Lawyers Division will be visiting all six Tennessee law schools this fall to discuss the TBA's mentoring program, the benefits of free law student  membership in the TBA, and how to apply for the 2024 Diversity Leadership Institute. Look for us at Belmont University College of Law on Sept. 7, University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law on Sept. 21, University of Tennessee College of Law on Oct. 3, Lincoln Memorial University Duncan School of Law on Oct. 4 and Vanderbilt University Law School on Oct. 23. The date for Nashville School of Law will be announced soon. Lunch and giveaways will be provided. All are welcome to attend!

The Tennessee Bureau of Workers' Compensation announced Katherine "Kitty" Boyte as the fifth recipient of its Sue Ann Head Award for Excellence in Workers' Compensation. The award was presented to Boyte at a luncheon ceremony during the group's educational conference on June 15 in Murfreesboro. The award honors a professional who has or is currently making a lasting, positive impact on Tennessee’s workers’ compensation system.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin announced that the committee will mark up ethics legislation for the U.S. Supreme Court in July. The ABA Journal reports that Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, tweeted Wednesday that the Supreme Court “is in an ethical crisis of its own making.” Currently, federal trial-level and appellate judges — but not Supreme Court justices — are bound by the Code of Conduct for United States Judges. In February, the ABA House of Delegates called on the Supreme Court to adopt a binding code of ethics for its justices that is similar to the code for other federal judges.

Tennessee’s Community Corrections program for felony offenders is set to be renewed when a new law takes effect July 1. According to the Tennessee Lookout, the Department of Correction is believed to be assessing the program to determine its next step. The measure, sponsored by Rep. Andrew Farmer, R-Sevierville, and Sen. Ed Jackson, R-Jackson, placed “community-based supervision” back into state law and will allow Community Corrections to provide intensive probation, treatment and supervision for convicted felons who, otherwise, could be headed to prison.

Preliminary results in the House District 3 special election show that Timothy Hill of Blountville won the Republican primary election with 81% of the votes, according to unofficial results from the Tennessee Secretary of State’s Office. Hill is filling the seat recently vacated by Scotty Campbell, R-Mountain City, who resigned after an internal investigation by a state subcommittee in late March found that he violated a discrimination and harassment policy. Hill will face Democrat Lori Love of Kingsport in the general election on Aug. 3.