Nashville attorney Patricia Lee Newton died Nov. 30 at age 77. She graduated from the University of Tennessee (now Winston) College of Law in 1975 and practiced law at Gilreath & Associates in Knoxville. Newton moved to Nashville in 1978, where she became an assistant public defender for Metro Nashville government. In 1981, Newton began her 45-year career with the Tennessee state government, during which she held numerous leadership roles. Visitation will take place on Dec. 13 from noon to 2 p.m. CST, immediately followed by a funeral mass at St. Mary of the Seven Sorrows Church, 328 Rep. John Lewis Way N, Nashville 37219. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to Old Friends Senior Dog Sanctuary, 765 Nonaville Road., Mt. Juliet, TN 37122.

Mark your calendars for the 2026 Estate Planning & Probate Forum, scheduled for March 6, 2026, in Franklin. This annual event will provide seven hours of CLE credit and include sessions on litigation and estate planning, public receivership, a probate panel, and a legislative update. Speakers will include Rob Malin, Rebecca Blair, Chancellor William Cole, Jennifer Exum, Lisa Helton, Robin Miller, David Parsons, Al Secor, Andrea Sinclair, Jared Smith and Ashley Stearns. Get more information and register on the TBA's website. Section members receive discounted registration. Not a section member yet? Get started here.

The TBA is offering a three-hour "AI Essentials" CLE package focused on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the practice of law, designed to help Tennessee lawyers quickly complete their remaining hours for 2025. Check out the specific courses included in the package on the TBA website. Looking for something else? TBA also has six, eight, 10, 12 and 15-hour packages, packages based on specific topics or practice areas, live webcasts and on-demand video all month long. Explore all the Year End options to complete your CLE requirement by Dec. 31.

TBA's new "Sunrise Series" of early morning CLE offerings continues next week with "10 Ethical Tips from Hollywood Movies." Grab a cup of coffee and enjoy this one-hour webcast reviewing the Model Rules of Professional Responsibility as those rules are depicted in popular movies. Join Joel Oster, the Comedian of Law, as he analyzes the difference between professionalism and ethics and encourages attorneys to view their career as a professional calling. For more information and to register, visit the TBA's website.

The TBA will hold its second annual Conference on Artificial Intelligence and the Law (TCAIL2) on Dec. 12 in Nashville, offering a full day of programming focused on the rapidly evolving intersection of AI and legal practice. The conference will run from 8:45 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. CST and provide up to six dual hours of CLE credit. Sessions will feature live demonstrations of leading AI tools, guidance on navigating ethical and regulatory risks, and strategies for handling AI-generated evidence in court. Speakers include A.J. Bahou, Maura Grossman, Richard Littlehale, Lucian Pera, Neal Pinkston, Bill Ramsey and Oliver Roberts. For more information and to register visit the TBA website.

Belmont University College of Law Dean Alberto Gonzales will step down May 31, 2026, after 12 years of leadership, the university announced in a news release. Gonzales joined Belmont in 2014 and helped elevate the law school nationally. "In just over a decade, Dean Gonzales has positioned Belmont's College of Law among the top law schools in the nation," said Belmont University President Dr. Greg Jones. Under his tenure, Belmont Law has achieved a 96.9% first-time pass rate on the July 2025 Tennessee Bar Exam, maintaining an average bar passage rate above 90%. Gonzales also emphasized practice-ready, purpose-driven training through field placements, clinics, pro bono initiatives and partnerships with organizations such as the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services and Tennessee Justice Center. A national search for his successor is underway according to the school.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to decide the legality of President Donald Trump’s directive to restrict birthright citizenship in the United States, Reuters reports. The order, signed on Trump’s first day back in office, directs federal agencies not to recognize the citizenship of children born to mothers not legally in the country or here temporarily, and whose fathers are not citizens or lawful permanent residents at the time of the birth. The court will take up a U.S. Justice Department appeal of a lower court ruling that blocked the policy. The lower court found that the order violated the 14th Amendment and a federal law codifying birthright citizenship. The executive order was challenged in a class-action lawsuit brought by parents and children affected by the directive. The justices are expected to hear arguments this term and issue a ruling by June, the news source reports.

Hamilton County Circuit Court Judge Jennifer Peck has announced her candidacy for the Republican nomination for the Division II seat on the 11th Judicial District Circuit Court in Hamilton County, according to a press release. Peck currently serves in the position, having been appointed by Gov. Bill Lee on May 9 to succeed Circuit Court Judge Mike Dumitru, who was appointed as a federal magistrate earlier this year. Peck grew up on Signal Mountain and earned her law degree from Regent University. Before her judicial appointment, she ran a law practice focused on domestic relations, litigation and mediation. The Republican primary for the seat set for May 5, 2026.

In the Tennessee Supreme Court’s Sept. 16 order soliciting comments from the legal community, the court asks whether it should "modify, reduce, or eliminate its reliance on ABA accreditation in setting minimum educational requirements for applicants to the Tennessee Bar" and (2) whether "there are any practicable alternatives to ABA accreditation" it should consider. At least three other states are considering this issue as well. Two states, Florida and Ohio, are reviewing their current accreditation requirements, and Florida has formed a workgroup that recently released a report proposing accreditation alternatives. The Supreme Court of Texas in September said it intends to end its reliance on the ABA for law school oversight and instead have the court determine which schools’ graduates can be admitted as lawyers. Feedback on Tennessee's potential modification of law school accreditation may be sent to TBA's newly formed Legal Access & Regulatory Reform Task Force at townhall@tnbar.org as well as directly to the court. Watch TBA Today through the month of December to learn more about the seven points in the Supreme Court’s order and specific ways to engage with the task force. Visit TBA's Legal Access & Regulatory Reform resource page for more information.

The TBA Administrative Law Section will host its annual Administrative Law Forum as a live virtual program on Dec. 11 from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. CST. This year’s agenda features a session on warrantless searches by administrative agents, an ethics update and additional presentations from speakers including Ethics Counsel Laura Chastain, Administrative Judges Mary Collier and Phillip Hilliard, and attorneys William Penny and Jerry Taylor. For more information and to register, visit the TBA website.