Administrative Office of the Courts Director Deborah Taylor Tate was recently honored by the Tennessee Association of Recovery Court Professionals (TARCP) for her work with the organization and with those in recovery courts. TARCP is a nonprofit that supports recovery courts and their partners. “The drive and the passion are unparalleled as to what Debi Tate brings, what she’s brought to this drug court conference since she’s been here,” 4th Judicial District Circuit Court Judge O. Duane Slone said. Obion County General Sessions Judge Jimmy C. Smith also praised Tate for her work at the AOC, calling her a “tremendous asset to judges across the state and the judicial system in general.” Tate announced earlier this month that she will leave the AOC in early 2022. The AOC has more on the story.

Carroll County attorney J. Brent Bradberry was sworn in as circuit court judge for the 24th Judicial District on Oct. 17, filling the vacancy of retired Judge C. Creed McGinley. Bradberry told the Administrative Office of the Courts that the docket on his first day on the bench consisted of 220 defendants. “It was not perfect by any means," Bradberry said, "but it went as well as it could have.” Bradberry was in furniture manufacturing for 20 years before going back to school for his MBA and later a law degree from the Nashville School of Law. “I wasn’t the typical law student. I didn’t start law school until I was 40,” he said. Bradberry maintains that “it’s never too late to go to law school.” Prior to taking the bench, Bradberry was the assistant public defender for the 27th Judicial District. The AOC has more on his journey to becoming judge.

Davidson County Division 7 Circuit Court Judge Randy Kennedy has announced he will retire at the end of his term. Kennedy was appointed to replace Judge Frank Clement in 2003 and was re-elected to the bench three times during his judicial career. Prior to his time as judge, Kennedy was in private practice at Kennedy & Brown and served two terms on the Metro Nashville Council. In a letter announcing his retirement, Kennedy describes Davidson County's probate court as the “busiest single court” in the state. He says he’ll “continue advocating for the allocation of adequate judicial resources of probate administration in Nashville with the same passion we have brought in creating the successful Office of Conservatorship Management.”

Services will be held tomorrow for Nashville lawyer Ed Reynolds Davies, who died Nov. 22 at 90. A third-generation lawyer, Davies served in Korea for the U.S. Marines before earning his law degree from Vanderbilt in 1958. His legal career was spent as a trial lawyer, first at Waller, Lansden, Dortch & Davis and later Boult, Cummings, Conners & Berry. He opened his own firm in 1973 — what would later be known as Davies, Humphreys & Reese — where he practiced with two of his sons until his retirement in 2019. In 1974 he was appointed to fill the unexpired term of Chancellor Frank F. Drowota in Part II of Davidson County Chancery Court. A celebration of Davies’ life will be held tomorrow at West End United Methodist Church in Nashville. Visitation will be held from 2 until 3 p.m. CST, followed by a memorial service at 3 p.m. CST. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to The Webb School or to the West End UMC.

Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin yesterday pleaded guilty to violating the civil rights of George Floyd – the Black man he was found guilty of murdering in 2020, NPR reports. The federal case was scheduled for trial next month, but Chauvin changed his plea to guilty yesterday. In addition to the federal charges against Chauvin relating to Floyd, he was also accused of unreasonable seizure and unreasonable force by a police officer. Those accusations stemmed from a 2017 incident in which Chauvin held a 14-year-old “by the throat” and struck him “multiple times in the head with a flashlight.” Federal prosecutors are recommending a sentence of up to 25 years for the civil rights violations. Chauvin is currently serving a 22.5-year sentence for Floyd’s murder. 

The Tennessee Bar Association (TBA) today announced the sale of the Tennessee Bar Center at 221 Fourth Avenue North in downtown Nashville. “The Tennessee Bar Center has been a great home to the legal community for more than 20 years,” TBA President Sherie Edwards said of the sale. “But the downtown office market and the needs of Tennessee lawyers are both evolving, and we came to believe that members could best be served by making this change at this time.” After the sale, the TBA will maintain offices on one floor of the Bar Center while renovations are being completed at 3310 West End Avenue, where the TBA will move in 2022. Read more about the sale.

Davidson County General Sessions Judge Lynda Jones has announced she is seeking another term. Jones was initially elected to the position in 2014, and during her time on the bench has worked to develop the county’s Homelessness Court program. Jones is serving a five year term on the Tennessee General Sessions Judges Conference Executive Committee and served as president of the conference last year. From 2019-2020, she was presiding judge of the General Sessions court and District 6 director of the National Association of Women Judges. She is currently chair of the General Sessions Court Committee for the Nashville Bar Association and fellow of the Nashville Bar Foundation.

The University of Tennessee College of Law is looking for volunteers to conduct mock interviews with its law students. All interviews will be virtual and can be scheduled at a variety of times Jan. 11-12, 2022. Each interview will last for 30 minutes, allowing for 20-25 minutes to conduct the interview and 5-10 minutes to provide students with feedback. UT will provide the platform for conducting the virtual interview and will send a link to access all interview sessions. Those interested may volunteer by selecting a time on this sign up sheet. If possible, volunteers are asked to sign up for at least one hour (two interviews). If you have any questions, please contact Christie Laird.

Richard Louis Reynolds was today disbarred from the practice of law by Order of Reciprocal Discipline. Reynolds, who now resides in Diamondhead, Mississippi, was disbarred by the Supreme Court of Mississippi on Sept. 23. The Supreme Court of Tennessee gave Notice of Reciprocal Discipline to Reynolds on Nov. 9, but he failed to show why the discipline imposed by Mississippi’s high court should not also be imposed in Tennessee. Reynolds must pay the court’s costs and expenses within 90 days of this order.

The Tennessee Supreme Court suspended 15 attorneys on Tuesday for failure to pay the annual registration fee. Eight of them also failed to file proof that client funds are held in an IOLTA-compliant account. A ninth attorney suspended for IOLTA violations was immediately reinstated after the court determined he had been included on the order in error. View the Dec. 14 fee suspension order and IOLTA suspension order. See the list of all lawyers suspended for fee and IOLTA violations in 2021 or access all administrative suspensions dating back to 2005.