Gilbert Stroud Merritt Jr., the longest-serving member of the current 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, died on Monday after a battle with metastatic prostate cancer, the Tennessean reports. He was 86. A fixture in the judiciary and in state politics, Merritt sat on the bench for 44 years. He attended law school at Vanderbilt University and earned a master of law from Harvard Law School in 1962. His career included a stint as the U.S. Attorney for Middle Tennessee from 1966-1969 under President Lyndon B. Johnson, before  he was appointed to the appellate court in 1977 by President Jimmy Carter. Merritt was considered for a nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court by President Bill Clinton, who ultimately selected Ruth Bader Ginsberg. Merritt was one of several American jurists to travel to Iraq after the fall of Saddam Hussein to help rebuild the country's shattered judicial system. The Tennessee Bar Journal covered his trip in an October 2003 article. Former Vice President Al Gore described Merritt as "A deeply intelligent and deliberative legal thinker, he was an ardent defender of the liberties that form the foundations of our Constitution…” Funeral services will be held for Merritt at the Christ Episcopal Cathedral in Nashville on Jan. 22 at 11:30 a.m. CST, followed by a visitation and reception at the Grand Hyatt Hotel.

The TBA’s BarBuzz podcast is back with the first episode of 2022! Lincoln Memorial University Duncan School of Law Professor Akram Faizer co-hosts the January episode, bringing listeners the biggest news from the Tennessee legal community and the latest updates on bar association events and programs. You can listen to BarBuzz on the TBA’s website or anywhere you listen to podcasts. Like what you hear? Be sure to like and subscribe to all shows from the TBA Podcast Network.

State lawmakers have introduced a bill that would start the process of removing Rutherford County Juvenile Court Judge Donna Scott Davenport following reports that revealed the county’s juvenile justice system, under Davenport’s direction, has been illegally arresting and jailing children. Senate Joint Resolution 0788, sponsored by state Sen. Heidi Campbell, D-Nashville, and co-sponsor Rep. Gloria Johnson, D-Knoxville, would allow for the creation of House and Senate committees to consider Davenport’s removal. Rep. Tim Rudd, R-Murfreesboro, sponsored similar legislation in 2020 that sought to remove Davidson County Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle after she ordered increased access to absentee ballots during the August primary elections. That measure failed. Davenport has said she does plan to run for re-election, but for the first time, is being challenged by the county’s senior judicial commissioner Jacob Flatt and former Legal Aid Society attorney Andrae Crismon. Read more on the story from WPLN. 

The TBA Young Lawyers Division has been named a finalist for the 2022 ABA Louis M. Brown Award for Legal Access for its Tennessee Debt Relief Clinic. The YLD’s virtual Tennessee Debt Relief Clinic began in 2020 as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The virtual delivery of the clinic not only improved access to legal services to clients residing in rural communities and those unable to travel, but it also provided a safe way for attorneys and clients to meet during COVID-19. The clinic continues to grow with plans to expand across Tennessee in 2022. The award is sponsored by the ABA Standing Committee on Delivery of Legal Services and is presented to programs and projects that advance access to legal services for those of moderate incomes. The program is also up for a Brown Select Award, which is awarded to the nominee that receives the most online votes from the public. Vote today for the virtual Debt Relief Clinic before voting ends on Jan. 21 at noon CST.

The Board of Professional Responsibility of the Tennessee Supreme Court today censured Shelby County lawyer Christopher Lynn Taylor. While awaiting summary judgement, Taylor’s client in the matter filed a pro se motion to “disqualify” Taylor. Taylor sent a closing letter and provided the client with a copy of her file, but failed to withdraw from the pending court matter. He then failed to inform his client of the decision on summary judgment and failed to represent her on a motion for costs filed by the defendant, including at several court hearings on the motion for costs.

Probate and estate attorney Andra Hedrick has entered the race for judge in Davidson County’s Seventh Circuit Court, the Nashville Post reports. Hedrick has practiced with the Nashville law firm Gullett Sanford Robinson & Martin since 2000 and has also taught estate planning at the Nashville School of Law. She is a member of the TBA’s Dispute Resolution and Estate Planning & Probate sections. “I am seeking to become Davidson County’s next — and first ever female — probate judge,” she said in a release. “This is a natural extension of my work for the last 23 years. If elected, I will apply my experience and deep understanding of estate and probate law to diligently serve all who come before me, with the utmost compassion, respect and impartiality.”

Rutherford County attorney Andrae Crismon yesterday announced his candidacy for juvenile court judge, WGNS Radio reports. Crismon recently announced his departure from the Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands where he worked for nearly 15 years, serving eight years as managing attorney and finally as director of the Volunteer Lawyers Program. If elected, Crismon says he would “use every opportunity possible to provide a road map for the restoration of youth who have committed an offense,” and would implement a C.A.R.E platform – communication, adjudication, restoration and education. Crismon is pastor at Higher Ground Worship Center in Murfreesboro and has served on the board of directors for Greenhouse Ministries, Doors of Hope, and Matthew Walker Comprehensive Health Center. He is the Middle Tennessee delegate on the TBA’s Access to Justice Committee and a member of the TBA Leadership Law program’s 2015 class.

The TBA Tort & Insurance Law Section will host its annual forum on March 3 from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. CST. Join us for this virtual event to learn about recent developments in both the case law and statutory changes impacting litigation surrounding the Health Care Liability Act. The program also will include a session featuring ethical issues with errata sheets, the use of Zoom in depositions and a panel of attorneys discussing evidentiary issues. Reserve your spot now!

Memphis City Court Judge Tarik Sugarmon made his campaign for juvenile court judge official this weekend via an online announcement, the Daily Memphian reports. Sugarmon will challenge incumbent Judge Dan Michael in the nonpartisan race. The two previously faced off for the same role in 2014, which saw Michael win the seat by 3,752 votes. In his online message, Sugarmon, the son of the late Judge Russell Sugarmon and historian Miriam DeCosta Willis, highlighted his connection with Memphis and the city’s civil rights movement. He also spoke of the high number of juveniles who are transferred out of the court for trial as adults. 

Join the CLE Performer Stuart Teicher for an overview of the ethical duties that are critical to all lawyers. TBA CLE’s "Turning Up the Heat: Ethical Times Are Getting Tougher" program will address issues with technology and competence and the emerging duty to look into the potential misdeeds of our employers/clients. The virtual program will air on Feb. 10 from 9 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. CST and is worth three hours of dual credit CLE. Register today for the program.