Memphis attorney Matthew Kristian Eggleston died Nov. 28 at age 53. Eggleston practiced as a public defender in Memphis and later worked in Nashville for the Tennessee Drug Interdiction Program until his death. He earned his law degree in 1997 from the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law. A memorial service will be held at a later date at Legacy Golf Course in Springfield. Donations in Eggleston’s honor may be made to the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

In the Tennessee Supreme Court’s Sept. 16 order soliciting comments from the legal community, the court asks whether it "should modify, reduce, or eliminate regulations prohibiting nonlawyer ownership of law firms or fee sharing with nonlawyers." Arizona, Utah and Puerto Rico formally changed their rules earlier this year to allow nonlawyer ownership. California and Florida rejected proposals to allow nonlawyer ownership. Washington launched a pilot program to allow entities with innovative business models (including those operated by individuals not licensed to practice law) to apply to offer legal services under timebound, limited exemptions of the rules governing the practice of law. At the end of the pilot, the state’s Supreme Court will consider the accumulated data to determine whether to move forward with more permanent regulatory reforms. Feedback on Tennessee's potential modification of nonlawyer ownership of law firms or fee sharing with nonlawyers may be sent to TBA's newly formed Legal Access & Regulatory Reform Task Force at townhall@tnbar.org as well as directly to the court. Watch TBA Today to learn more about the seven points in the Supreme Court’s order and specific ways to engage with the task force. Visit TBA's Legal Access & Regulatory Reform resource page for more information.

Videos from this year’s Animal Law Forum are now available on the TBA website. These webinars provide updates regarding trends and advancements on state and federal issues affecting animals. Topics include conservation efforts, a general practice overview, law enforcement's use of animals, development in sensitive habitats, equine concerns, and a case law update, including ethics. View all sessions using this link.

A retirement reception for Tennessee Court of Appeals Judge D. Michael Swiney will be held Jan. 8, 2026, at 3 p.m. EST at the Tennessee Supreme Court Building in Knoxville. The building is located at 505 Main St., STE 200, Knoxville 37902. The event will take place on the second floor. RSVP to Tammy Capps at tammy.capps@tncourt.gov by Jan. 5 to attend. Swiney plans to retire on Jan. 12.

The Tennessee Supreme Court reinstated Florida lawyer Heather Chastain Parker on Dec. 19. Parker was placed on inactive status more than five years ago, on May 16, 2012. The Board of Professional Responsibility reviewed Parker’s petition for reinstatement and found that reinstatement would be appropriate.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) earlier this month called the American Bar Association’s (ABA) law school accreditation system a “monopoly” that increases the cost of legal education and limits the supply of new lawyers, endorsing a proposal by the Texas Supreme Court to end the state’s reliance on ABA accreditation for bar admission, Reuters reports. In a letter to that court, the FTC criticized current accreditation standards — including a now-suspended diversity rule — and noted that other states such as Florida and Ohio are reviewing their requirements, while the ABA has launched a review of the standards. The chair of the council of the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar recently addressed these state reviews in a Bloomberg Law opinion piece.

THAPAR, Circuit Judge. Brigitte Hendershot alleges that Michigan currently holds between $200 and $600 that belongs to her. When she asks for her money back, she claims Michigan will return it without interest—a failure she says effectuates an unconstitutional taking. Hendershot has standing to make this claim. But we can’t decide more on this record, so we reverse and remand.

Defendant, Anthony M. Patton, appeals from the trial court’s denial of his motion, filed pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 36, to correct a clerical mistake in the judgments entered against him. He asserts that the trial court erred in refusing to apply pretrial jail credit to the second of two consecutively imposed sentences, arguing that he is entitled to receive such credit on both sentences. He also argues that his plea agreement is void as a result. The State responds that the trial court correctly applied jail credits to Defendant’s first sentence. After review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Petitioner, Tony Mar-Kee Mosley, appeals the Obion County Circuit Court’s summary dismissal of his petition for post-conviction relief. Following our review of the entire record, the briefs of the parties, and the applicable law, we conclude that Petitioner filed an untimely notice of appeal and the interest of justice does not warrant a waiver of the notice requirement. Therefore, we dismiss this appeal as untimely.

The Defendant, Felix Mandiel Leach, pleaded guilty to possession with the intent to sell or to deliver a Schedule II controlled substance as a Range II, multiple offender and received a twelve-year sentence to be served on probation. The Defendant filed a motion to correct an illegal sentence pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 36.1, which the trial court summarily denied. On appeal, the Defendant contends that the court erred in denying relief. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.