Keith Lane Edmiston, a South Carolina attorney licensed to practice law in Tennessee, was censured by the Tennessee Supreme Court today. Edmiston accepted a $600 fee to defend a client against a lawsuit filed on a sworn account, but failed to appear at the hearing on the matter. Edmiston then accepted $1,125 to appeal the matter and filed no appeal and took no further action for the client. A few weeks later, Edmiston placed his license on disability inactive status. In another case, Edmiston accepted a filing fee of $335 for a client for whom he filed bankruptcy. Edmiston did not pay the filing fee to the court, did not place it in trust and did not return it to the client.

Retired Davidson County Judge Seth Norman has died at age 89, the Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts reports. Norman served as a criminal court judge from 1990 until his retirement in 2018. He was widely recognized for establishing the Davidson County Drug Court in 1996, one of the first recovery courts in the country. In 1998, the program started the first court-operated residential drug court in the United States. Norman also founded the 13th Judicial District Recovery Court in 2011 and the Morgan County Residential Recovery Court in 2013. Norman was a native of Nashville and had enrolled at Vanderbilt University before leaving college to enlist in the United States Air Force, where he served from 1953-1957. He continued his service in the Tennessee Air National Guard until 1965. He also continued his education, graduating from the Nashville School of Law in 1962.

Georgia lawyer Kara Elizabeth Phillips was reinstated to the practice of law in Tennessee on Sept. 18. She had been on inactive status since May 15, 2015. Phillips filed a petition for reinstatement and the Board of Professional Responsibility found it to be satisfactory. The court issued the order today.

A federal judge in Atlanta has rejected a bid by an anti-affirmative activist group to bar a venture capital fund from awarding grants to businesses run by Black women, reports Reuters. U.S. District Judge Thomas Thrash denied a request by Edward Blum's American Alliance for Equal Rights for a preliminary injunction blocking Fearless Fund from considering applications for grants only from businesses led by Black women. Blum's group was behind the U.S. Supreme Court case that struck down affirmative action in college admissions this July. The lawsuit is one of three that Blum's group had filed challenging grant and fellowship programs designed to help give Black, Hispanic and other underrepresented minority groups greater career opportunities.

In filings released earlier this week, the Tennessee Registry of Election Finance found that from Jan. 1 to June 30, groups spent a combined $35 million on lobbying activity this year, a 66% rise since 2013 and nearly $4 million more than in 2022, reports Tennessee Lookout. The Tennessee Medical Association led spending during the filing period, paying out $330,322 to sway lawmakers. Their primary focus was a bill to address Tennessee abortion law, which initially didn’t provide doctors with exemptions to save the life of a mother. Republican lawmakers passed a narrow exemption bill. The Center for Individual Freedom, the Tennessee Electric Cooperative Association, the Tennessee Hospital Association and the Tennessee Health Care Association rounded out the top five.

More than 500 guests filled the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition facilities in Nashville Friday for the 3rd Annual InterNASHional Night Market fundraiser. Featuring food from 23 different vendors from almost that many countries, the event celebrates Nashville’s wide range of immigrant and refugee communities and provides funds for serving those communities. See photos from the event.

The Tennessee Supreme Court suspended 17 attorneys today for failure to pay the annual registration fee; 11 of them also failed to file proof that client funds are held in an IOLTA-compliant account. View the fee suspension order and IOLTA suspension order. See the list of all lawyers suspended and reinstated for fee and IOLTA violations in 2023 or access all administrative suspensions dating back to 2005.

The University of Tennessee College of Law announced seven new faculty members today. Lonnie T. Brown Jr., dean and Elvin E. Overton distinguished professor, said in a website announcement that “these talented scholars and teachers bring a wealth of knowledge, experience and immense talent that will further enrich our vibrant law school community.” The new members include Tyler Dougherty, Rebecca Eshbaugh, Kristina Kersey, Nicholas Nugent, Tomer S. Stein, Rachelle Ketchum West and Carlos A. Yunsan. Visit the school’s website to learn more.

The Hawkins County Commission has voted to appoint Amy Skelton as a temporary replacement for Juvenile Court Judge Daniel Boyd, who is currently suspended with pay while facing bribery and forgery charges. Skelton, a 2014 graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Law, is an associate attorney with the Law Office of Mark Skelton and a municipal court judge for Church Hill, Rogersville and Surgoinsville. She will remain in the position until Boyd’s suspension is lifted or through the end of the 2024 election cycle. Hamblen County Juvenile Court and General Sessions Court Judge Janice Snider has been filling in since Boyd was suspended. Boyd was charged with three counts of forgery, one count of criminal simulation and one count of bribery. He turned himself into authorities on Aug. 15. WCYB.com has news of the appointment while the Times News has more about Skelton.

The TBA Young Lawyers Division continued its fall law school visits Tuesday evening with a discussion at the Nashville School of Law. YLD Board members Anthony Adewumi and John Murphy led the discussion. Both are graduates of the award-winning DLI program and encouraged the students to apply, as well as to reach out to lawyers and begin networking with members of the TBA while still in law school. See photos here.