U.S. District Judge Aleta A. Trauger earned a reputation as a tough prosecutor after convicting a former Tennessee governor during her stint at the U.S. attorney’s office. The 1981 case, which dealt with selling liquor licenses to political friends, gave her credibility in a male-dominated space. “It really set me up as a woman who was tough and could do litigation,” said Trauger, who serves in the Middle District of Tennessee. From helping to form the Tennessee Lawyers' Association for Women to becoming the first female district judge in the Middle District of Tennessee, Trauger has been a trailblazer for women’s advancement in the law. A new video profile from the U.S. Courts explores her unlikely journey.

The Tennessee Supreme Court Access to Justice (ATJ) Commission is partnering with West Tennessee Legal Services and the Governor’s Faith Based and Community Initiative to host a free expungement clinic on April 19 in Jackson. The clinic is for those who have charges in Madison County General Sessions or Circuit courts. Attorney volunteers will work with clients virtually and use document automation software to generate the petitions needed for the expungements. Clients will be prescreened and no prior experience is required. Sign up to volunteer here or for questions, contact Andy Cole with WTLS.

Tennessee Bar Association leaders recently met with the members of the state’s congressional delegation in Washington. D.C., as part of the American Bar Association's (ABA) annual Day on the Hill. TBA President Jim Barry, President-elect Ed Lanquist, YLD President-elect Sean Aiello, ABA Resource Committee Chair Jonathan Cole and Executive Director Sheree Wright participated in the visits and other activities planned as part of the Day on the Hill event. Members of the group met with representatives from all nine congressional offices and both senators. The focus of this year’s ABA Day on the Hill was promoting support and funding for the Legal Services Corporation, as well as increased funding for federal public defenders, support for attorney-client confidentiality over prison email systems, reauthorization of the Higher Education Act and reforms to student lending. See photos from the event.

The Memphis Bar Association (MBA) will hold a reception on May 2 to honor newly-confirmed Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Mary Wagner. The event will take place from 4-6 p.m. CDT on the second floor of the Judge D’Army Bailey Courthouse, 140 Adams Ave., Memphis 38103. Drinks and hors d’oeuvres will be provided. RSVP by April 29 to info@memphisbar.org or 901-527-3573. Wagner, who currently serves on the Shelby County Circuit Court, was confirmed by the Tennessee General Assembly on March 11. She will join the court after Justice Roger A. Page retires on Aug. 31.

The list of those applicants who achieved a passing score on the February 2024 Uniform Bar Examination in Tennessee will be released tomorrow by the Tennessee Board of Law Examiners. Results will be posted by the board by 2 p.m. CDT and will be available on the TBA.org website as soon as they are released.

A number of legal groups will hold a free virtual name change clinic via Zoom at 4:30 p.m. EDT tomorrow and lawyers are needed to volunteer for the clinic. Those interested may sign up here. After the virtual clinic, clients will gather on the fifth floor of The Edney on April 16, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. EDT to sign and notarize completed documents. The clinic is sponsored by Legal Aid of East Tennessee (LAET), the Chattanooga Bar Association, the TBA Young Lawyers Division, Chattanooga Trans Liberation Collective and the Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands. View a flyer for the event.

The Tennessee Advisory Commission on the Rules of Practice and Procedure has started broadcasting its quarterly meetings. The video feed from the April 5 meeting is now available to view on YouTube.

Hawkins County lawyer James Nelson Point died March 26 at the age of 79. A graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Law, Point also held a master's degree in city planning. He served in the U.S. Navy as intelligence officer, stationed in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He later joined the Tennessee Valley Authority and then opened a law practice in Hawkins County in 1982. Among his clients, he represented the Holston Electric Cooperative, Rogersville Water Commission, Chip Hale Center and McKinney Cemetery. He also was delinquent tax attorney for 42 years. An active member of his local community, Point was a member of the United Way Board of Directors, a Rotary Club member for more than 20 years, and a volunteer basketball and softball coach for 30 years. Services were held last month. Memorial contributions may be made to the United Way of Hawkins County, P.O. Box 277, Rogersville, TN 37857.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has appointed University of Tennessee College of Law Associate Professor and Clinical Director Joy Radice to serve as the next chair of the Access to Justice Commission. Her two-year term began on April 1. The court also appointed two new members to the commission. They are Junaid Odubeko, a partner in Bradley’s Nashville office, and Sevier County General Sessions Court Judge Dwight E. Stokes. The court also reappointed McKenna Cox for a second three-year term, which will end on March 31, 2027. Finally, the court thanked two term-limited members — Nashville lawyer John Farringer with Sherrard Roe Voigt & Harbison and Hamilton County General Sessions Court Judge Alexander McVeagh — for their service. The commission exists to provide collaborative leadership to create solutions and resources that address and eliminate barriers to justice for all. Read more from the Administrative Office of the Courts.

Republican lawmakers have backed away from an effort to abolish Tennessee’s 60-year-old independent Human Rights Commission and reconstitute the agency within Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti’s office, the Tennessee Journal reports. Instead, the House this week went along with a Senate amendment that tasks Skrmetti with examining the agency’s operations and deciding if his office should take over its functions.