The 2025 Tennessee State High School Mock Trial Competition Champion, Montgomery Bell Academy (MBA), traveled to Phoenix this month and captured its first national championship. The team bested 47 other state champions who competed for the top prize. Team member Kavneer Majhail also was named an outstanding attorney of the competition. The final round was held in the historic Maricopa County Old Courthouse, which is most well known for hosting the first trial of Ernesto Miranda, which ultimately led to Miranda v. Arizona and the present-day Miranda rights. The courtroom also was used by the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. The team is coached by Wade Cowan, Tracy Hancock and Marisa Combs Smith. See photos from the event.

The Tennessee Bar Association’s Disability Law Section will host an online roundtable discussion on May 15 at 2:30 p.m. CDT. This roundtable will be an open discussion hosted by members of the section executive council. Join this interactive discussion to share your experiences, listen to other section members and ask questions. Please complete the RSVP before 12:30 p.m. CDT on Thursday to receive the Zoom meeting invitation via email.

Make plans now to join the TBA for a CLE like no other! The Murder Mystery CLE, set for this Friday, is a unique opportunity that will allow participants to step into the roaring 1920s and unravel the mystery of J.W. Hanks’ untimely demise. Was Hanks’ killer his employee, his doctor, his wife, his mistress, his best friend or someone else he trusted? Using Tennessee’s latest criminal laws to uncover crucial clues, teams will spend the afternoon immersed in this unforgettable blend of education and entertainment with guidance from Lincoln Memorial University Duncan School of Law professors Sydney Beckman and Melanie Reid. The event, which includes lunch, will take place from noon to 4 p.m. CDT at the Nashville Public Library. Members of the Criminal Justice Section save on registration. Not a section member yet? Join here.

A state audit revealed that Tennessee State University (TSU) made repeated financial errors in fiscal year 2023, including overstating cash by $5.7 million and undercharging graduate students by $1.5 million. The report detailed 15 findings related to poor oversight, billing issues and mishandling of federal COVID-19 relief funds, which could require TSU to repay at least $85,000. The Nashville Post reports that TSU management acknowledged the seriousness of the audit and pledged to improve financial governance and staff training. The findings come amid long-standing underfunding of the university and a legislative overhaul of its board of trustees, with TSU proposing a financial stability plan that may include budget cuts and reduced scholarships.

THAPAR, Circuit Judge. Karu Gene White has moved pursuant to Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 41 to stay this court’s mandate pending his petition for certiorari to the Supreme Court of the United States. Because White’s own motion demonstrates that he faces no risk of irreparable harm if we do not stay our mandate, we deny his motion.

Defendant, Kevin R. Newman, appeals his Knox County Criminal Court jury convictions of aggravated burglary and vandalism of property valued at more than $1,000 but less than $2,500, arguing that the trial court erred by admitting certain testimony, by refusing to declare a mistrial, and by providing a jury instruction on flight. He also challenges the sufficiency of the convicting evidence. Upon review, we find no error and, accordingly, affirm the judgments of the trial court.

The Tennessee Supreme Court on April 30 directed Anderson County lawyer Robert Mike Sain to satisfy outstanding obligations with the Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education by June 16 or face dismissal of his petition for reinstatement. Sain petitioned the court for reinstatement on April 7.

Petitioner seeks accelerated review of the denial of his motion to recuse the trial judge in two separate cases. After a de novo review, we affirm.

Leslie K. Jones (“Mr. Jones”), an at-will support staff employee of Tennessee State University (“TSU”), appeals the termination of his employment. His at-will employment agreement provided for fourteen days-notice prior to termination of his employment. When he received a termination notice on March 1, 2012, Mr. Jones filed a grievance. TSU responded advising Mr. Jones that he could not grieve his termination because he was terminated under the terms of his at-will employment agreement “without cause.” Following extensive delays and a declaratory judgment action in a related proceeding, TSU was ordered to afford Mr. Jones a grievance hearing pursuant to Tenn. Code Ann. § 49-8- 117(a)(1). Following an evidentiary hearing, the Hearing Officer found that “[TSU] was not obligated to provide a reason for termination under the terms of the employment contract;” nevertheless, he found that good cause for his termination had been established. Therefore, the Hearing Officer ruled that his termination should be upheld. After TSU’s President upheld the Hearing Officer’s decision, Mr. Jones filed a petition seeking judicial review pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated § 4-5-322. The chancellor affirmed and dismissed the petition with prejudice. Mr. Jones appeals. On appeal, TSU insists that its compliance with the notice provision of the employment agreement is the substantial and material evidence needed to uphold the Hearing Officer’s ruling. We disagree. As this court explained in Lawrence v. Rawlins, No. M1997-00223-COA-R3-CV, 2001 WL 76266, at *3 (Tenn. Ct. App. Jan. 30, 2001), “[w]hen the General Assembly enacted Tenn. Code Ann. § 49-8-117 in 1993, it modified the employment-will-relationship between the educational institutions in the . . . State University and Community College System [which includes TSU] and their ‘support staff.’” The statute requires these educational institutions to establish a grievance procedure for their support staff, which “must cover employee complaints relating to adverse employment actions[.]” Tenn. Code Ann. § 49-8- 117(b)(2)(A). Finding that Mr. Jones’s employment could only be terminated “for cause” or as part of “a bona fide reduction in force,” neither of which was the basis of Mr. Jones’s termination, we reverse the judgment of the chancery court and the Hearing Officer and remand with instructions for the Hearing Officer to, inter alia, ascertain the relief and benefits Mr. Jones is entitled to receive.

The Tennessee Supreme Court transferred the law license of Sullivan County lawyer John Sidney McLellan III to disability inactive status on May 13. McLellan may not practice law while on inactive status but may seek reinstatement by showing that the disability has been removed.