Today is recognized as the International Day of the Endangered Lawyer, an observance that recognizes the courage of legal professionals who work tirelessly to uphold the rule of law and champion human rights at risk to their own safety. According to a statement from ABA President Mary Smith, this year’s recognition focuses on the situation in Iran, where since 2022, some 66 lawyers have been arrested and detained for defending those held by Iranian security forces for participating in human rights protests. But Smith notes that lawyers, judges and their staff around the world face harassment, including in the United States, where she says there is a “troubling increase” in “intimidation and threats of violence.”

Warning that crime in Shelby County is at a “crisis point,” state Sen. Brent Taylor, R-Memphis, has asked Tennessee Attorney General Jonathon Skrmetti for a legal opinion on possible ways to speed cases through the justice system. The Tennessee Journal reports that, according to Taylor, there are 300 pending murder trials in the county, with more being added each day. In his letter to Skrmetti, Taylor writes that Shelby County Criminal Court judges have tried only 40 criminal jury trials in 2023 compared to some 200 per year prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Taylor also notes that former Memphis mayor Jim Strickland and District Attorney Steve Mulroy have called for action.

Shelby County District Attorney General Steve Mulroy’s office has released its annual report, which states that the office handled 87,206 cases with an average caseload of 498 per prosecutor during Mulroy's first year in office, from Sept. 1, 2022 to Sept. 30, 2023. “To say that that first year was a challenging one would be an understatement,” Mulroy said. “In my first week alone, we had the heartbreaking case of Eliza Fletcher’s kidnapping and murder followed in the same week by the Facebook Live shooting spree that led to the prosecution of Ezekiel Kelly.” The report covers Mulroy's violent crime initiative, the creation of the Justice Review Unit, the office's efforts in data collection and the expansion of its restorative justice program. The Daily Memphian has the story.

Clarksville lawyer Kevin C. Kennedy of The Kennedy Law Firm recently received a Golden Gavel Award at the National Trial Lawyers Summit, which was held in Miami, Florida. Kennedy received the award for his legal internship program. For decades, The Kennedy Law Firm has provided a legal internship program that has allowed high school, college and law school students to experience the real-life practice of law. Participants in the program also hear each year from area judges, who share their experiences and how they achieved their positions on the bench.

The state got the green light this month for a $3.1 million project to install special bullet and riot resistant laminate film on the windows of eight state government buildings in Nashville, The Tennessee Journal reports. Approval from the General Assembly’s Fiscal Review Committee came after the Department of General Services addressed concerns raised by lawmakers over a proposed no-bid contract. State officials said the vendor selected was the only one that could provide the product with the highest degree of security.

Lisa Ramsay Cole, president and managing shareholder of Lewis Thomason, and managing partner of the firm’s Nashville office, has been appointed vice chair of ALFA International’s managing partner forum. According to a press release from the law firm, the forum provides an opportunity for managing partners in ALFA’s various law firms around the world to share best practices, ask questions regarding common issues, and use each other for benchmarking. Three firms with offices in Tennessee are members of ALFA International: Burch, Porter & Johnson PLLC, Leitner, Williams, Dooley & Napolitan PLLC and Lewis Thomason.

The TBA's Tax Law Section will present its annual forum on Feb. 1, live in Knoxville with viewing sites in Nashville and Chattanooga. Make plans now to gather with colleagues at the Nashville offices of Lewis Thomason to join the livestream. This year's program will focus on the tax implications of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) new policy on name, image and likeness (NIL) activities. E. Michael Brezina, a Knoxville attorney and law professor who also co-founded Next Level Athletics and Varsity Sports Group, will lead this fascinating discussion. Can't make it to Nashville? Check out opportunities for joining from the Olsen Law Firm in Chattanooga.

THAPAR, Circuit Judge. Kingsley Owusu seeks asylum and withholding of removal. Because he fails to show state-sanctioned persecution, we deny his petition.

The genesis of this case lies in the investigation into a city’s police department and subsequent termination of the appellant, a former police department employee. After the appellant was terminated, his counsel sent a public records request to the city, one of the appellees herein, pursuant to the Tennessee Public Records Act. Through this public records request, the city was asked for copies of, among other things, “investigative material” related to the appellant. Although some records were initially produced in response to the public records request, other records were not provided until after litigation was initiated by the appellant in chancery court. Certain “investigatory” records that had formerly been in the possession of an attorney hired by the city to investigate the police department were not ever produced. Although the parties dispute whether such “investigatory” records would be subject to disclosure under the Tennessee Public Records Act, such records had, according to the findings of the chancery court, been destroyed by the time the city received the public records request at issue herein. Upon the conclusion of the trial litigation, the chancery court also found that “all requested documents that exist had been provided” and determined that the city “did not willfully refuse to disclose documents and records.” In light of its determination that the city did not act willfully, the chancery court held that attorney’s fees would not be awarded in this case. For the reasons stated herein, the chancery court’s judgment is affirmed in part and vacated in part, and the case is remanded for further proceedings consistent with this Opinion.

An owner and a contractor executed a standard form construction agreement. The contract identified the “Contractor” as a corporation and two individuals. Only one of the individuals signed the contract, but he did so as president of the corporation. After a dispute arose with a supplier, the owner filed a third-party complaint against the individual who signed on behalf of the corporation. The individual moved to dismiss and/or for judgment on the pleadings, arguing that he was not a party to the contract. The court agreed and dismissed the claims against him with prejudice. We reverse.