Across the U.S., courts have begun to address landlord/tenant or eviction cases in a more systemic way. Linda Warren Seely, pro bono counsel at Butler Snow and vice chair of the TBA Access to Justice Committee, writes that while some reforms were underway pre-pandemic, the recent housing crisis is pushing innovations, including new partnerships and stakeholder engagement.

The need for free, civil legal services continues to grow at exponential rates. Laura Brown, executive director of Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services (TALS), shares about the work that Equal Justice Works Fellows Tomi Robb and Nick Gau are moving forward in housing and disaster resilience.

To appreciate the advent and inclusion of the courts' modern Access to Justice feature, Russell Fowler writes that one must look at the whole concept of Rule of Law, and the keystone of that concept is it is a safeguard against the exercise of arbitrary power in its various forms.

TBA's annual Public Service Awards were presented April 15 at the Public Service Awards brunch, honoring three Tennesseans who are champions of legal aid and pro bono work.

Read about the lawyers who have recently been reinstated, disbarred, suspended, censured or transferred their licenses to disability inactive status.

Tennessee Bar Association members who have died recently are memorialized.

In this issue's Day on Torts column, John A. Day explores the principal tool used by the Tennessee General Assembly to enforce the prohibition of gender-affirming care — the tort system.

The custody of pets is not necessarily a new issue in family-related matters in Tennessee, and it is often a hot topic of discussion during settlement negotiations. Marlene Eskind Moses and Ansley Owens Tillett explore the possibilities of a bill that seeks to dictate the custody and ownership of our furry and not so furry friends when married pet parents go their separate ways.

Is it time to sever severance agreements from the employer’s toolbox? Not entirely. But Edward G. Phillips and Brandon L. Morrow point to a recent decision from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and a follow-up memorandum from the NLRB General Counsel that have made clear that severance agreements — as we once knew them — no longer pass muster as far as the Board is concerned.

In this edition’s inspiration for your busy day, we remember two access to justice giants in Tennessee: Andy Branham, a founder of the Corporate Counsel Pro Bono Initiative, and Harris Gilbert, a champion of legal aid and former TBA president.