Save the date for TBA's 28th Annual Labor & Employment Forum, set for May 3 in Nashville. The annual program brings together professionals, labor and employment attorneys and in-house counsel, and features top labor and employment professionals who will provide practical insight on emerging trends and critical issues. This year’s program features topics such as non-competition agreements, emerging labor trends, new pregnancy accommodation laws, case law updates and the use of artificial intelligence in discovery and beyond.

The Tennessee Supreme Court on March 4 suspended 60 attorneys who did not pay the annual professional privilege tax as required. The attorneys include those living in Tennessee as well as 16 other states. View the order or see the list with reinstatements noted.

The following attorneys were suspended by the Tennessee Supreme Court on March 4, 2024, for failing to pay the state professional privilege tax pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated 67-4-1702. Pursuant to Supreme Court Rule 9, Section 26, attorneys who are deemed noncompliant for 90 days or more are summarily suspended. Those who since have complied with the rule are noted as reinstated.

The Board of Judicial Conduct suspended Sullivan County Circuit Court Judge William K. Rogers for 30 days last Wednesday. The suspension will run from March 13-31 and April 20-30. The board took the action after Rogers was arrested for and plead guilty to driving under the influence. The board reports that Williams underwent an evaluation for substance abuse but the Tennessee Lawyers Assistance Program did not find that he required treatment for a substance abuse problem. After conducting a full investigation, the board determined that these actions violated Rules of Judicial Conduct 1.1, 1.2, 3.1(A) and 3.1(C).

The Tennessee Journal recaps the outcome of this week’s judicial races in its print publication out today. Races previously not included in TBA Today reporting include a four-way contest for the Republican nomination to fill an unexpired chancellorship in Anderson County. In that race, Daniel Forrester defeated Gov. Bill Lee’s appointee Jamie Brooks, 46% to 31%. Lee named Brooks to the position after Chancellor Nicki Cantrell stepped down. In addition, longtime Knox County Law Director David Buuck turned back a Republican primary challenge from former county party chair Daniel Herrera by a margin of 23 percentage points. The piece also takes an in-depth look at Andrée Blumstein’s tenure are the state solicitor general. Blumstein’s departure was announced on March 4 by the state attorney general.

A jury convicted two defendants, Tony Thomas and Laronda Turner, of three counts of first-degree premeditated murder. Those convictions stem from a triple homicide that occurred in Memphis, Tennessee, in 2015. Another co-defendant, Demarco Hawkins, was also implicated in the killings. However, his trial was severed from the other defendants, and he testified against Mr. Thomas and Ms. Turner. After Mr. Thomas and Ms. Turner were convicted, they appealed to the Court of Criminal Appeals, raising five issues for review. The intermediate appellate court ruled unanimously on three of the issues, but one judge dissented on the other two. Mr. Thomas and Ms. Turner sought permission to appeal, and we accepted the appeal only as to the two issues on which the intermediate appellate court was divided. First, we agreed to consider whether the prosecution breached the requirements of Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963), by failing to produce statements made by Mr. Hawkins at proffer conferences, which were allegedly inconsistent with Mr. Hawkins’ formal statement to law enforcement, before trial. Second, we agreed to address whether the evidence was sufficient to support Ms. Turner’s murder convictions. Based on our review, we conclude that the State did not breach its obligations under Brady with regard to Mr. Thomas. Additionally, we determine that the evidence is insufficient to sustain Ms. Turner’s convictions because Mr. Hawkins’ testimony was not adequately corroborated.1 As a result, we affirm the decision of the Court of Criminal Appeals in part and reverse in part. Additionally, in this opinion, we abrogate Tennessee’s common law accomplice-corroboration rule. However, we apply that change on a prospective basis only, and, thus, it has no bearing on the outcome of this case.

The Tennessee Supreme Court recently rejected the Board of Professional Responsibility’s recommendation for discipline in the case of Shelby County lawyer Larry E. Fitzgerald. The court said it had concerns that the proposed punishment, particularly the period of active suspension, was too lenient. It rejected Fitzgerald’s conditional guilty plea and referred the matter to the board for further proceedings. Fitzgerald had entered a conditional guilty plea on Oct. 18, 2023, in response to a petition for discipline filed on Dec. 12, 2022.

Fayette County lawyer Lundy Lee Carpenter was reinstated to the practice of law on March 1, effective as of Jan. 31. Carpenter had been placed on inactive status on March 9, 2017. The Board of Professional Responsibility reported that the petition for reinstatement was satisfactory.

Petitioner, Katelyn Taylor, pleaded guilty to two counts of first degree murder in exchange for concurrent sentences of life imprisonment. Petitioner then filed a pro se petition for post-conviction relief claiming ineffective assistance of counsel, and that her guilty pleas were not knowingly and voluntarily. After appointing counsel and holding an evidentiary hearing, the post-conviction court denied the petition, which Petitioner appealed. After review, we conclude that Petitioner failed to prepare a sufficient brief in compliance with Tennessee Rule of Appellate Procedure 27(a)(7) and Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals Rule 10(b), therefore, her issues are waived. Additionally, after our review of the record, we conclude Petitioner’s claims are without merit. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.