On-demand videos from the TBA’s Creditors Practice Forum are now available. Choose the 1-Click Package to easily purchase all three sessions or pick what you want from the list of individual sessions. This year’s forum explored enforcement of judgment liens on real property, the controversial Hunstein case and cybersecurity issues.

The Tennessee Supreme Court today disbarred Andrew Nathan Hall from the practice of law. He must pay restitution to two clients and cover all costs incurred to the Board of Professional Responsibility (BPR). A hearing panel found, in part, that Hall failed to comply with an order of summary suspension, failed to inform his client of his suspension and led his client to believe another attorney had agreed to represent her and several other. The panel also found that Hall failed to comply with an order of temporary suspension, repeatedly misled clients to believe their petition for bankruptcy had been filed and was proceeding, accepted a fee but failed to provide the professional services for which he had been retained and more.

TBA President Sherie Edwards joins the BarBuzz podcast this month to cover top legal news stories from across the state, upcoming bar association events, attorney shout outs and more! Edwards also discusses the progress she’s made on her presidential initiatives and her latest “President’s Perspective” article in the November/December issue of the Tennessee Bar Journal. Co-written with Edwards’ daughter, Victoria Cundiff, the article takes a personal and honest look at mental health issues. BarBuzz is part of the TBA Podcast Network and can be found on the TBA’s website or wherever you listen to podcasts.  

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump at a press conference today called on the U.S. Department of Justice to investigate Rutherford County Assistant District Attorney John Zimmerman for alleged “racial profiling” and “discrimination,” News Channel 5 reports. Crump, who will represent the minority-owned businesses impacted by the alleged practices, claims Zimmerman “used his position and power to target minority businesses” and pointed to allegations of the assistant DA using racial slurs during speaking engagements. "We want these investigated to the highest levels of the government,” Crump said.

Rutherford County senior judicial commissioner Jacob Flatt has announced he will be running as a Republican for Juvenile Court judge, WPLN reports. A Nashville School of Law graduate, Flatt became the county’s senior judicial commissioner in 2019. He was previously in private practice and is a former clerk for Rutherford County General Sessions Judge Ben Hall McFarlin Jr. Flatt’s campaign marks the first time in 20 years current Juvenile Court Judge Donna Scott Davenport has been challenged for her seat.

Nashville attorney Rachel Buckley has been appointed general counsel for the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury, the Nashville Post reports. Buckley began working for the state in 2013 as a lawyer for the Department of Children’s Services and the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office. She joined the comptroller’s office in 2017, working on open records cases, and was later named assistant general counsel. In her new role, Buckley will field requests from businesses, governmental entities and schools seeking exemptions to newly passed laws banning COVID-19 precautions like mask and vaccine mandates. She drafted the exemption guidelines and will continue to provide legal advice as determinations are made.

A Roane County grand jury yesterday decided it would not bring state criminal charges against the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and a contractor for the 2008 toxic waste spill and subsequent cleanup, the Knoxville News Sentinel reports. The grand jury made its decision after being presented with the findings of a criminal investigation into the incident conducted by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. After a nine-hour hearing, the grand jury voted 10-2 not to bring state criminal charges against the TVA and Jacobs Engineering, but added it found evidence about the cleanup and worker safety to be “very concerning.” The grand jury also commented that “the evidence (is) better suited for federal authorities to investigate and prosecute."

Mark your calendars for the 2022 Estate Planning & Probate Forum set for Feb. 18 from 8:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. CST. The event will offer an in-person and virtual option, providing the insights needed to stay on top of key developments in the practice area. The program offers one dual credit and six general credits of CLE. The program will cover legislative updates, ethics and recent developments to rules on estate and gift taxes. A Clerk and Masters’ panel will also be included in the programming. Get more information and register here.

A portrait of retired Davidson County Chancellor Claudia Bonnyman has been completed and is on permanent display at Nashville’s Chancery Court. A gift to the Nashville Bar Association, the portrait was created by Nashville illustrator and storyboard artist, J. William Myers. Bonnyman retired in January 2019 after serving on the Davidson County Chancery Court for 15 years. She was appointed by former Gov. Phil Bredesen in 2003 and won election three times, most recently in 2014. Bonnyman hopes to hold an official portrait unveiling ceremony in the future. Read more from the Administrative Offices of the Courts.

The Tennessee Supreme Court suspended 26 attorneys on Friday for failure to pay the annual registration fee. Ten of those also failed to file proof that client funds were held in an IOLTA-compliant account. View the fee suspension order or the 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.