The TBA is hiring for two positions: Data & Systems Specialist and Executive Assistant. Those interested in either job should send a cover letter explaining interest in the position and a resume by email to Human Resources & Administrative Coordinator Tanja Trezise. The Data & Systems Specialist will support the TBA’s daily operations by managing and optimizing the organization’s core platforms, including the association management system, learning management system, bulk email platform and website. This role ensures data accuracy, maintains functional system workflows, builds and updates website pages, and provides consistent support to staff who rely on these systems. The Executive Assistant serves as a trusted administrative and strategic partner to the Executive Director, supporting TBA’s leadership, governance processes and organizational operations. The position manages executive workflows, coordinates high-level communications, prepares critical documentation, and ensures the Executive Director’s work is well-organized, informed, and aligned with the association’s mission and strategic goals. Learn more about both of these positions on the TBA’s career webpage.

Employers often face the tension between giving honest feedback about former employees and the risk of defamation or tort liability if a former employee claims a reference was malicious, false or misleading. In The Law at Work, Edward Phillips and Brandon Morrow explain how understanding the scope, strengths and limitations of Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-1-105 is essential for any lawyer counseling Tennessee employers on reference disclosures and risk management.

The Tennessee Court of Appeals recently reaffirmed in Boatman v. Odziana that a trial court may order equal (50/50) parenting time, that trial courts must include provisions for holiday parenting time in residential parenting schedules, and that bans on a parent’s ability to obtain passports and travel internationally with minor children cannot be ordered absent a finding of “a credible risk of abduction” pursuant to Tenn. Code Ann. § 36-6-604 (a). Marlene Eskind Moses and Ansley Owens Tillett explain in the Family Matters column.

This issue's Closing Statements features answers to the question "What ways have you found to mentor other lawyers and why is it important for you to do so?

In this installment of President's Perspective, TBA President Heidi Barcus reminds readers of the importance of self care, even when it feels less than appealing.

The first installment of The Legal Life in 2026 features several updates from the TBA, including an announcement of the 23rd Leadership Law class, the YLD's 2026 Diversity Leadership Institute cohort, award winning TBA programs and more!

Tennessee Bar Association members who have died recently are memorialized.

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

The Tennessee Bar Association (TBA) has launched a new, statewide portal for volunteer opportunities in partnership with Paladin, a leading pro bono management platform. Learn how the portal works and how attorneys across the state can make a difference.

In January 2024, Nashville attorney David Cooper decided to hike the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine. Well, more accurately, his son Sam offhandedly announced that he would be hiking the AT (as it’s commonly known) in 2025 and David asked if he could come along. Enjoy this conversation between David and Tennessee Bar Journal Editor Julia Canada Wilburn about the trip of a lifetime and what it really means to make space for your own well-being and mental health.