The U.S. Supreme Court has blocked the Biden administration’s request to allow temporary enforcement of most of an April 2024 rule that implements Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, which addresses sex discrimination in federally funded education programs. Tennessee and five other states challenged Title IX provisions, arguing that the rules were unlawful. The group previously persuaded two lower courts to stop the rule from taking effect in the state, which the Supreme Court upheld in a 5-4 ruling, SCOTUS Blog reports. Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti states in a press release that, “This is a win for student privacy, free speech, and the rule of law.” The challenge to the rule is ongoing, with additional litigation in other states and oral arguments in one case set for October at the high court.

Oak Ridge Rep. John Ragan has officially challenged his loss to Rick Scarbrough, alleging that more than 1,000 Anderson County voters were illegitimate Republicans who crossed over to cast a ballot in a race he lost by 258 votes, The Tennesean reports. Ragan argues that state law makes it illegal to vote in a political party's primary without being a "bona fide" member of or affiliated with the political party. He says his challenge is based on the Republican Party's bylaws, which have created bona fide definitions for candidates. Scarbrough sent a letter to his future House colleagues asking lawmakers to encourage members of the state Republican Executive Committee not to allow the contest to go forward, saying he is confident in the election results.

The TBA Young Lawyers Division (YLD) is holding an Essential Documents for Essential Workers (EDEW) Clinic on Sept. 20 from 12-4 p.m. EDT at the Sevierville First United Methodist Church gym, 214 Cedar St. in Sevierville. This clinic is free to all first responders and their spouses. To volunteer contact YLD board member Amanda Howard.

RONALD LEE GILMAN, Circuit Judge. A jury found that nurses Melissa Furnace, Chad Goetterman, and James Mollo (collectively, the Defendants) were deliberately indifferent to Wade Jones’s medical condition while Jones was incarcerated at the Kent County Correctional Facility (the Jail). The jury also found that the Defendants’ deliberate indifference was a proximate cause of Jones’s subsequent death, and it awarded Jones’s Estate $6.4 million in compensatory damages. For all of the reasons set forth above, we AFFIRM the judgment of the district court.

MURPHY, Circuit Judge. After carjacking a gas-station customer and robbing a bank, Don Ellis pleaded guilty to several offenses. He admitted that he had, among other things, twice used or carried a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 924(c). On appeal, Ellis argues that the district court should have allowed him to withdraw his guilty plea. He also argues that his indictment failed to allege a § 924(c) offense. And he argues that the court constructively amended the indictment to fix this error. But all three claims suffer from the same problem: Ellis waived his right to appeal as part of his plea agreement. He nevertheless suggests that we may hear these claims because he did not knowingly plead guilty. He adds that the alleged indictment error qualifies as a jurisdictional defect that he could not waive. Because both arguments lack merit, we grant the government’s motion to dismiss this appeal.

This is an accelerated interlocutory appeal as of right pursuant to Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 10B section 2.02 from the trial court’s denial of a motion for recusal. Having reviewed the petition for recusal appeal, we affirm the trial court’s decision to deny the motion for recusal.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has directed Florida lawyer Grace Ingrid Gardiner to respond within 30 days why discipline imposed by the Supreme Court of Minnesota should not also be imposed in Tennessee. On June 20, the Minnesota court imposed an indefinite suspension on Gardiner.

Kentucky lawyer Joy Jaye Minner was reinstated to the practice of law in Tennessee on Aug. 14. She had been on inactive status for more than five years, since May 21, 2010. The Board of Professional Responsibility reported that the petition for reinstatement was satisfactory and the court approved the petition.

Georgia lawyer Timothy Minthorn Klob was reinstated to the practice of law in Tennessee on Aug. 14. He had been on inactive status for more than five years, since Sept. 12, 2012. The Board of Professional Responsibility reported that the petition for reinstatement was satisfactory and the court approved the petition.

The Tennessee Supreme Court yesterday rejected the Board of Professional Responsibility’s recommended discipline for White County lawyer John Edward Hutson. The court stated that based on its review of the entire record, it had concerns that the proposed sanction was too lenient. “One of the mitigating circumstances listed in the protocol memorandum — absence of a dishonest or selfish motive — clearly does not apply to the facts that are admitted by the plea,” the court wrote in its order. Hutson agreed to a conditional guilty plea on April 18. The court rejected that plea and referred the matter back to the board for “further proceedings consistent with” the order.