Former Nashville Mayor Megan Barry is actively exploring a run for Congress, according to the Nashville Post. The paper reports that Barry has confirmed to another news source that she is considering a race against Rep. Mark Green, R-Clarksville, for the Seventh District seat. Barry resigned as mayor in 2018 amid a scandal involving her security chief. Barry’s political career started in 2007 when she won one of Nashville’s five at-large councilmember seats. She won a second term in 2011. She ran for mayor in 2015, beating her opponent by 10 percentage points.

A group of Tennessee families and doctors have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn an appeals court ruling that allowed the state to enforce a ban on gender transition medical treatments for minors. In September, the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals allowed Tennessee to enforce the ban, saying the law does not discriminate on the basis of age or sex. Families first sued the state in April and within weeks, the U.S. Justice Department joined the suit. A federal district judge had temporarily blocked the state from enforcing the law. If the high court agrees to take up the case, it would be its first consideration of transgender medical treatment restrictions, according to the Tennessean. The ACLU of Tennessee has the filing and more on the case.

Five states have announced they intend to administer the new “NextGen” bar exam, which is scheduled to eventually replace the licensure test currently given to aspiring attorneys. The National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE) reports that admission agencies in Maryland, Missouri and Oregon intend to administer the new exam in July 2026. Wyoming intends to administer the exam in July 2027. Connecticut has announced it also will administer the new exam but it has not set its first administration date. The NCBE also reports that it has updated its website to include information about the exam and has produced a fact sheet to provide context for the transition.

Although the Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct only briefly mention “zealous representation,” clients, courts and disciplinary authorities often expect and demand it. This three-hour webcast will look at the ethics and malpractice risks when “zealous” representation crosses the line. Learn more or register here.

An item in Tuesday's TBA Today included information about the expansion of Barnes & Thornburg's Nashville office that was incorrect. The firm will double its current office space when it moves into the Broadwest office tower, but it is not adding or announcing new partners at this time.

The Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct issued Shelby County Criminal Court Division 9 Judge A. Melissa Boyd a public reprimand today for failing to abide by the terms of an earlier suspension order, reports the Daily Memphian. The board said it was referring her to the Tennessee General Assembly “for further action” after Boyd failed to complete certain conditions set forth in the suspension order, including a physical, mental health, and/or substance abuse or addiction evaluation by a provider approved by the Tennessee Lawyers’ Assistance Program (TLAP). Boyd has been off the bench since May. She earlier told the Daily Memphian that she didn't plan to have the evaluation because of its high cost – which she estimates at $6,000 – and an ultimate belief it would be unnecessary. 

The state Supreme Court reinstated the license of Tennessee attorney Rachel K. Tyson effective Oct. 19 after Tyson completed requirements of the BPR.

The Nashville Business Journal recently recognized TBA Chief Diversity Officer Mary Beard as an inaugural recipient of its Leaders in Diversity Award. The honorees include individuals and companies who are leading the charge to advance diversity and inclusion practices in the workplace, showing progress over perfection and speaking out for others in the business community. Beard is Senior Human Resources Counsel for HCA Healthcare Inc. “The biggest challenge is for individuals to recognize that unconscious bias exists and that they act on those biases,” said Beard in a feature profile. “Educating stakeholders on the use of micro-inclusions assists in overcoming the challenging effects of those micro-aggressions.” The Nashville law firm Sherrard Roe Voigt & Harbison PLC also was recognized with an award for its DEI efforts.

Indianapolis-based Barnes & Thornburg LLP, one of the nation’s 100 largest law firms, has signed a 26,000-square-foot lease in the Broadwest office tower in Nashville, reports Nashville Business Journal. The firm announced the opening of its office in May. The move will more than double its current temporary space. The arrival of Barnes & Thornburg intensifies the competition within the metro legal scene. Earlier this year Holland & Knight added Nashville firm Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis into its company.

Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Lee Coffee removed himself Friday from the murder trial for the suspects accused of killing Memphis rapper Young Dolph, reports WREG-Memphis. The case will now be sent to the criminal court clerk to be reassigned. An appeals court reversed Coffee’s September decision to reject a motion for recusal. Young Dolph, whose real name was Adolph Thornton Jr., was shot to death at Makeda’s Cookies in Memphis on Nov. 17, 2021. The request for Coffee to recuse himself came after Coffee restricted phone privileges for Justin Johnson, one of the men charged with first-degree murder for the death of Young Dolph.