State Rep. Aftyn Behn, D-Nashville, says she will bypass a repeat bid for Congress in favor of running for reelection to the state legislature, Axios Nashville reports. Behn ran for Congress last month in a special U.S. House election. She bested a competitive Democratic primary field but lost to Matt Van Epps by nine percentage points. In a recent Instagram post, Behn said the campaign took a physical and emotional toll after she received "a daily deluge" of violent threats. Her family also was harassed and stalked online. "This decision is about keeping myself and my family safe while continuing to care loudly for my constituents," she said in a press release. Behn also announced she will use the remainder of her campaign funds to "build organizing capacity in Tennessee while honoring our campaign commitment to fund a Davidson County organizer for the '26 cycle."

House Republican Caucus Chair Jeremy Faison, R-Cosby, will not run for reelection this year, he announced in a social media post on Jan. 15. "My time has come to say goodbye. My time has come to say, 'this is it for me.' At the end of 16 years, this November, I'll say goodbye to this legislature for the last time," he said. "I have nothing but respect, admiration and love for each one of you, and the greatest amount of respect and love for this institution." Faison represents Cocke County and parts of Jefferson and Greene counties. He was first elected to the state legislature in 2010. He has been chair of the House Republican Caucus since 2019. The Tennessean reports on the news.

A mother appeals the juvenile court’s termination of her parental rights to two of her children. The trial court terminated the mother’s parental rights on the findings that the petitioner, Tennessee Department of Children’s Services, had proven the ground of severe abuse and that it was in the best interests of the children that the mother’s parental rights be terminated. The mother appeals, contending that the finding that termination was in the best interests of the children was not supported by clear and convincing evidence. We affirm.

The Defendant, Marlikka Jordan, was convicted by a Rutherford County jury of aggravated child abuse, a Class A felony, and aggravated child neglect, a Class A felony, for which she is serving an effective fifteen-year sentence in confinement. See T.C.A. § 39-15-402 (2025) (subsequently amended) (aggravated child abuse and neglect). On appeal, the Defendant contends that the trial court erred in excluding evidence of the victim’s injuries observed on or about August 1, 2020, and that the evidence is insufficient to support her convictions. We affirm the judgments of the trial court.

Join the TBA's Tort & Insurance Law Section on Feb. 19 for its annual forum, presented virtually this year. This program will include a session on navigating court approval of minor settlements, a medical malpractice update and a course dedicated to ethical issues in the public adjuster industry. Earn up to two general hours and one dual hour of CLE credit. Reserve your spot today!

A number of events celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. Day are being planned in Memphis. The Memphis Bar Association and Ben F. Jones Chapter of the National Bar Association will host a brunch on Monday from 11:30-1 p.m. CST. The National Civil Rights Museum will offer a "Community Resource Pavilion" to connect visitors with social service agencies and health and wellness organizations. An arts-and-crafts station, a storytelling station and live music also will be available. Admission to the museum will be free on Monday. In addition, a commemorative march will take place starting at 8 a.m. CST at the corner of Main and A.W. Willis. Finally, service projects are being planned by Volunteer Odyssey, Volunteer Memphis and United Way of the Mid-South, the Wolf River Conservancy and Lead Free South Memphis. Read more about these and other opportunities in the Commercial Appeal.

The latest congressional effort to place disclosure requirements on outside investors' financial stakes in U.S. litigation appears to have faltered after Democratic and Republican lawmakers expressed opposition to the bill, Reuters reports. On Tuesday, the U.S. House Judiciary Committee ended debate on the legislation without a vote. The new bill from Darrell Issa, R-California, would require all parties in a lawsuit to disclose to the judge everyone with a "legal right to receive any payment or thing of value" in a settlement or jury verdict, and disclose the details of financial agreements to all parties in the litigation. An earlier bill from Issa was pulled from consideration last fall amid opposition from Democratic lawmakers on the committee and conservative groups.

A U.S. judiciary committee recently held a hearing on what would be the first-ever rule regulating AI evidence at trial. According to Reuters, the U.S. Judicial Conference's Advisory Committee on Evidence Rules heard public comment on the proposed rule, which received a "lukewarm reception" from those who testified. Corporate lawyers and class-action attorneys called it a well-intended but premature attempt to address an evolving technology. Under the proposal, AI and other machine-generated evidence offered at trial without an accompanying expert witness would be subjected to the same reliability standards as expert witnesses, who are governed by Rule 702 of the Federal Rules of Evidence.

A 24-year old Springfield man is expected to plead guilty Friday to charges related to hacking the U.S. Supreme Court’s electronic filing system, WSMV reports. In a motion filed Tuesday, Nicholas Moore stated he wishes to change his plea. Moore was charged in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia with one count of fraud under allegations that he repeatedly accessed the court’s protected computer systems without authorization during 2023.

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