The Tennessee Department of Revenue will host a free webinar on April 29 to discuss taxes on certain alcohol distributors. Tennessee has a three-tiered system for distributing alcoholic beverages. However, there are some exceptions to this structure affecting wineries, distilleries and breweries. The webinar will explore this topic. Register for the webinar or see all upcoming educational events.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee formally requested a major disaster declaration from the federal government to make federal assistance available to the West and Middle Tennessee counties impacted by severe weather and flooding on April 2-6. The request follows an emergency declaration approved on April 3 and the completion of damage assessments across impacted counties. The new request asks for approval of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) individual assistance and public assistance programs. If approved, the declaration would make individual assistance available to Cheatham, Davidson, Dickson, Dyer, Grundy, Hardeman, Hickman, Humphreys, Lewis, McNairy, Montgomery, Obion, Perry, Sumner and Wilson counties and public assistance to Carroll, Cheatham, Crockett, Davidson, Decatur, Dyer, Fayette, Gibson, Grundy, Hardeman, Hardin, Haywood, Henderson, Henry, Lake, Lauderdale, Madison, McNairy, Obion, Perry, Shelby, Tipton and Wilson counties. Read more in a statement from the governor.

A new complaint has been filed with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) against U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles, News Channel 5 reports. The complaint from the Campaign Legal Center in Washington, D.C., accuses Ogles of engaging in an "overarching effort" to hide how he raised and spent money for his two campaigns for Congress. Specifically, the group alleges that Ogles “deliberately filed false reports disclosing a fabricated $320,000 loan” in order to make his campaign’s fundraising look better in a competitive primary. The 26-page filing also alleges that Ogles deliberately misreported a series of disbursements, according to the Nashville Banner.

Former Shelby County District Attorney Bill Gibbons, who now serves as executive director of Memphis Shelby Crime Commission, is calling for a clearinghouse of data that gives a clearer picture of how the local court system operates. The commission, an independent nonprofit that is funded through private donors, is looking at ways to improve the system. Gibbons says that data is the key to determine where bottlenecks are in the system, including why it takes so long to dispose of cases. Gibbons is being assisted by Jonathan Bennett, associate director of the University of Memphis Center for Community Research and Evaluation. Bennett says it is difficult to get reliable data because of the number of agencies involved in the system. The Daily Memphian has more on the effort.

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump was in Knoxville recently to discuss lawsuits against Knox County and the University of Tennessee Medical Center over the deaths of two Black men following encounters with law enforcement. Crump is representing the families of Daevon Saint-Germain and David Batts, both of whom died after altercations with Knox County law enforcement. Tennessee Lookout has specifics on each case. Over the years, Crump has represented a number of families following the deaths of individuals who interacted with law enforcement, including high profile clients such as George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Tyre Nichols.

Within 10 months of leaving campus, more than 82% of 2024 law school graduates had landed jobs that require bar admission. That percentage, representing the highest rate ever recorded by the ABA for bar admission jobs, was up from 80% in 2023, Reuters reports. The figure is especially notable, because the class of 2024 had nearly 11% more graduates than its predecessor, meaning there were 3,722 more new lawyers competing for jobs. The new data defies predictions that a double-digit enrollment surge would weaken job prospects, the news source reports.

Philadelphia-based law firm Royer Cooper Cohen Braunfeld has opened an office in Nashville. Law firm partner Hope Hammer will lead the office and chair the real estate practice group. Hammer has been with the firm since its inception in 2012 and is a member of its executive committee. Prior to joining the firm, Hammer served on the women's steering committee for the Urban Land Institute's Nashville chapter and co-chaired its professional development series. Hammer earned her law degree from Temple University School of Law. Joining her in the Nashville office is Frank Toub, a graduate of Belmont University College of Law, who handles construction, transportation and health care matters. Toub made news as a law student when he won the 2022 ABA Journal Ross Writing Contest. Finally, firm partner Jennifer Tintenfass will have some involvement in the office. The firm has 71 attorneys with offices in New York and in suburban Philadelphia. The Nashville Post has more.

The Second Annual TBA Young Lawyers Division Trial College will take place on May 9, at Belmont University College of Law in Nashville. The event, running from 8:30 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. CDT, will cover essential litigation topics, including trial preparation, crafting opening and closing statements, conducting direct and cross-examinations and working with expert witnesses. A panel of distinguished judges will provide judicial insights for trial success. For more details and to register, visit the TBA’s website.

Save the date to attend the TBA’s 2025 Health Law Primer and Health Law Forum this fall. The primer will take place Nov. 12 in the Nashville office of Barnes & Thornburg. Designed for those new to health law practice, the primer provides a general health law overview and practical tips to identify and avoid the pitfalls of real-life situations in the heavily regulated health care industry. Then on Nov. 13-14, the forum will take place in Nashville’s Music City Center. This two-day event will dig deeper into topics relevant to seasoned practitioners, providing 12 general and three dual hours of CLE credit. More information coming soon.

The TBA Young Lawyers Division (YLD) selected Amy Dorman as the 2025 CASA Volunteer of the Year. A retired engineer, Dorman has served CASA Works Inc. in Tullahoma for the past 10 years. She has worked tirelessly with 55 families and advocated for over 113 children. During the nomination process, retired Judge Walter Kurtz wrote that Dorman is "simply the best," "the epitome of what a CASA should be," and "deserves recognition for her total commitment and what she does and has done for the betterment of the children caught up in the neglect and dependent court systems." The CASA Volunteer of the Year Award was presented by TBA YLD President Sean Aiello at the TBA's Public Service Breakfast on June 12 in Franklin as part of the TBA's Annual Convention.