A federal judge in Florida has dismissed the criminal case accusing Donald Trump of illegally keeping classified documents after leaving office, the Associated Press reports. U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon ruled that Special Counsel Jack Smith, who is leading the prosecution, was unlawfully appointed to his role and did not have the authority to bring the case. Smith, a former Nashville attorney and acting U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee, was named special counsel in November 2022.

The Tennessee Trial Court Vacancy Commission met in Sevierville to consider eight applicants for a circuit court judge vacancy in the 4th Judicial District, which covers Cocke, Grainger, Jefferson and Sevier counties. After holding a public hearing and interviews, the commission selected three nominees to forward to Gov. Bill Lee for his consideration. They are: Dandridge lawyer and Assistant District Attorney Jeremy D. Ball; Newport attorney Jeffery S. Greene with McSween, McSween & Green; and Sevierville lawyer Adrienne Waters Ogle with Green, Waters, Ogle & McCarter. Greene is also the attorney for the towns of Parrotsville and Dandridge. Ogle is also a Sevier County Juvenile Court magistrate and attorney for the city of Gatlinburg. The vacancy in this district was created when the General Assembly approved funding for a new judge.

Tennessee lawyers should have received an email on Friday with a link to the TBA's 2024 Survey. The email came from Avenue M Group LLC, an independent market research firm and our partner for this survey. The survey, which should take about 10 minutes to complete, is intended for both current members and nonmembers and is designed to better understand attorneys' professional needs. Feedback is critical to ensure TBA can best support lawyers now and into the future. If you did not receive the survey or have questions, please contact Membership Director Mindy Thomas.

A piece published today in The New York Times examines the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) on its 50th anniversary. ERISA was established to protect private sector pensions by creating rules for funding requirements, eligibility and fiduciary standards. It also created the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, a federally chartered corporation that insures and guarantees private sector workers' pensions. Regulation and costs eventually led many employers to stop offering traditional arrangements as most shifted to 401(k) plans and Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs). In fact, only 18% of private sector employers offered a pension as of 2022, with 401(k) plans and IRAs soaring to $25.4 trillion in assets. Financial experts were asked by the Times for a wish list of ways to improve retirement security and make the system more equitable. View the full article here.

In interviews with NewsChannel 5 and WSMV, the chief deputy clerk of Davidson County’s criminal courts acknowledged errors occurred during the release of a man, who days later was charged with killing his girlfriend Lauren Johansen in Mississippi. Bricen Rivers, who had been arrested in Nashville in December for allegedly beating Johansen, was released on bond with conditions including GPS monitoring and restrictions on travel outside the county. A mistake in the clerk’s office, however, omitted those conditions from documents sent to jail officials. Rivers was eventually fitted with a monitoring device but left the county before the tracking company was informed that he was not allowed to do so. Within a week he had returned to Mississippi and allegedly killed Johansen. Chief Deputy Clerk Julius Sloss says his office is looking at ways to prohibit such an oversight from happening again and that the employee who made the mistake will face disciplinary action.

Chicago-based law firm Segal McCambridge has announced that it will open of its newest office in Memphis at 6000 Poplar Ave., Ste. 250, 38119. Shareholder Nelson T. Rainey, a University of Memphis School of Law graduate, will oversee the office and will be joined by shareholder Michael S. Litrenta and associates Angel T. Davis and Jaime K. Quezon. Rainey focuses on construction, health care liability, commercial litigation, real estate, family law and civil rights matters. Litrenta focuses on commercial litigation; Davis focuses on product liability, trucking, and medical malpractice litigation; and Quezon focuses on residential and commercial litigation insurance practice. Read more in a release from the firm.

Gullett Sanford Robinson & Martin’s Family Law Section is moving this weekend to join the rest of the firm at The Pinnacle at Symphony Place, 150 3rd Ave. S. in downtown Nashville. When the firm merged with MTR Family Law in 2022, the decision was made to keep the new Family Law Section at its current Midtown office until the firm’s lease ended at The Pinnacle at Symphony Place. GSRM Law recently signed a lease extension at the building through January 2027 and now is brining all of its attorneys, employees and resources together in one location. Read more in a release from the firm.

A Shelby County jury convicted the Defendant, Travis Ruzicka, of rape of a child and aggravated sexual battery. He appeals, contending that (1) the forensic interview did not meet the admissibility requirements of Tennessee Code Annotated section 24-7-123; (2) the trial court erred by admitting the forensic interview of the victim after the victim had testified, thus depriving the Defendant of the opportunity to contemporaneously cross-examine the victim as to the contents of the interview recording; and (3) the victim was incompetent to testify at trial and thus unavailable for cross-examination. We affirm the judgments of the trial court.

The Petitioner, Robert Brooks, acting pro se, appeals the denial of his petition seeking relief from his convictions of reckless endangerment, aggravated robbery, two counts of aggravated assault, and one count of assault, for which he received an effective sentence of ten years, eleven months, and twenty-nine days confinement. State v. Brooks, No. W2020-01026-CCA-R3-CD, 2021 WL 4936969, at *1 (Tenn. Crim. App. Oct. 22, 2021), no perm. app. filed. As we understand the issues raised in the Petitioner’s pro se brief, he contends (1) trial counsel was ineffective based on certain statements made during closing argument conceding the Petitioner’s guilt; (2) trial counsel’s failure to exclude an affidavit of complaint which contained alleged perjury; and (3) the trial court lacked jurisdiction to prosecute his case because the affidavit of complaint lacked probable cause.1 Upon our review, we affirm.

SUTTON, Chief Judge. After a child is born, Tennessee creates a birth certificate that identifies the biological sex of the newborn. While the State permits individuals to change some aspects of their birth certificates (such as a new name or the identity of adoptive parents), it treats the sex listed on a birth certificate as a historical fact unchangeable by an individual’s transition to a different gender identity. At issue is whether that policy violates the United States Constitution. We affirm.