There has been a marked increase in discovery disputes in employment cases over the past few year. This program will help you learn how to navigate those disputes with magistrate judges from the Western, Middle and Eastern Districts of Tennessee offering their best discovery practices. They will provide sage advice on their preferences and practices and how you can avoid often unnecessary disputes, while still balancing your obligations to zealously represent our clients. This one-hour employment law webcast will be presented Dec. 12 at 10 a.m. CST

The Knoxville Chamber of Commerce recently recognized the law firm of Kramer Rayson LLP for 75 years of service to East Tennessee. The firm, comprised of 27 attorneys with offices in Knoxville and Oak Ridge, celebrated the milestone anniversary at the Neyland Stadium West Club earlier this year with a number of area dignitaries and many of its clients, friends and staff in attendance. Managing Partner Jackson G. Kramer says the firm attributes its longevity and success to the “hard work and loyalty of our attorneys and staff throughout our years of service.” Read more in a news release from the chamber.

Artificial intelligence is changing how law is practiced, but not always for the better, says The Washington Post. A recent deep dive into the issue includes the story of several lawyers who used ChatGPT to help write legal briefs, only to find later that a number of citations to lawsuits were fabricated by the bot. One young associate in Colorado acknowledged his mistake and reported it to the court, which referred to him to the state’s disciplinary body. He was later fired from his firm. In Los Angeles, a court fined a law firm that used AI to write a legal brief. The firm blamed a young associate, who resigned. Experts tell the paper these issues will only expand as “stressed-out lawyers turn to chatbots to write tedious briefs.” The paper looks at the promises and pitfalls of AI for the future of the legal profession.

The Tennessee Supreme Court yesterday dismissed a petition for reinstatement filed by Elizabethton lawyer Amy D. Williams. On Sept. 5, Williams filed a petition seeking reinstatement. The Board of Professional Responsibility informed her that she had outstanding obligations and was not in good standing with the Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education. On Oct. 2, the court filed an order advising Williams to satisfy outstanding obligations by Nov. 17 or her petition would be dismissed without prejudice. The court now reports that Williams did not satisfy her obligations by the deadline.

The Tennessee Supreme Court yesterday reinstated the Tennessee law license of Maryland attorney Seoyoung Kim. The court took the step after Kim filed a reinstatement petition. Kim had been placed on inactive status on Oct. 20, 2017. The Board of Professional Responsibility informed the court that the petition was satisfactory. The court made the reinstatement retroactive to Oct. 30.

The Memphis Police Department (MPD) has announced changes to its leadership structure. The Daily Memphian reports that MPD has created 125 first-line supervisor positions, for which it is currently testing candidates. MPD Chief Cerelyn “C.J.” Davis said nearly 400 officers have applied for the jobs. “We were top heavy,” Davis said. “We had too many manager positions and didn’t need all of that stuff at the top and (didn’t have) enough career development and opportunities at the bottom layers.” The department has a goal of hiring 2,500 officers, which Davis believes will increase law enforcement visibility and deter crime. MPD currently employs 1,946 officers.

Metro Nashville and Shelby County have withdrawn their lawsuit against the state's private school voucher program law, Gov. Bill Lee's signature legislation during his campaign. Chalkbeat Tennessee reports that the law, which allows the state to give taxpayer money to eligible families to pay toward the cost of private school tuition, was declared unconstitutional by a Nashville judge in 2020 because, at the time, it affected students only in Nashville and Memphis. But after several appeals, the Tennessee Supreme Court ruled in favor of the state in 2022 and resurrected the law, allowing the program to launch last year in the two counties. A second lawsuit filed in 2020 by the Education Law Center and the Southern Poverty Law Center on behalf of 11 public school parents and community members in Memphis and Nashville is pending before the state’s appellate court.

Gov. Bill Lee will not propose a renewed extreme risk protection order bill when the Tennessee General Assembly returns in January, the Nashville Post reports. Addressing gun safety measures during a Monday event, the governor said that while he won't push for ERPO legislation — also known as red-flag laws — he is “looking for an opportunity in this next session to continue to work on public safety.” During last summer’s special session, Lee pushed for legislation that would have allowed guns to be confiscated from someone for up to 180 days following a court ruling that the person was a risk to public safety based on their mental health. Republican opposition in the legislature prevented the measure from moving forward.

A ruling on who has the ability to sue under a key section of the federal Voting Rights Act contradicts decades of precedent and could further erode protections under the landmark 1965 law, the Associated Press reports. The 2-1 decision from a panel of the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals came Monday in St. Louis. It found that only the U.S. attorney general can enforce Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which requires political maps to include districts where minority populations’ preferred candidates can win elections. The majority said other federal laws, including the 1964 Civil Rights Act, make it clear when private groups can sue, but said similar wording is not found in the voting law.

Nearly half of the people arrested this year in Nashville were already on bond or awaiting trial for other crimes, new data from Metro Police shows. The data shows that 40% of the more than 17,742 people arrested through the end of September were on bond for other offenses or in some pre-trial release status. The most recent, and perhaps most notable, case is the man accused of shooting Belmont University freshman Jillian Ludwig. He had been arrested this spring for aggravated assault but was found incompetent to stand trial. He was released after doctors determined he did not meet the state’s criteria for involuntary commitment. News Channel 5 reports on the numbers.