Three civil rights groups filed a complaint against Harvard on Monday, claiming its preferential policy for undergraduate applicants with family ties to the school overwhelmingly benefits white students, and therefore violates a federal law banning race discrimination. The complaint, which asks the Department of Education to investigate the matter, comes just days after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down race-conscious admissions policies at the university. The groups said the high court’s decision made it even more imperative to eliminate policies that disadvantage non-white applicants, Reuters reports. In related news, UT Law Professor Ben Barton recently talked about how the Supreme Court’s decision will affect colleges in an interview with WVEC-TV Channel 13 News Now.

U.S. District Judge Terry A. Doughty of Louisiana directed the Biden administration on Tuesday to limit contact with social media companies, Bloomberg Law reports. The preliminary injunction affects large swaths of the government, including the Department of Health and Human Services and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Doughty said the government could not talk to social media companies for “the purpose of urging, encouraging, pressuring, or inducing in any manner the removal, deletion, suppression, or reduction of content containing protected free speech.” The case was brought by Louisiana and Missouri attorneys general who claimed the government was trying to silence posts that questioned COVID policies and the validity of the 2020 election.

A conservative nonprofit legal group, American First Legal, is warning law schools that give preferences to minorities and women that it will sue over those policies following last week's U.S. Supreme Court decision on affirmative action at two undergraduate schools. According to Reuters, the group sent letters to 200 U.S. law schools warning them not to give preferences in admissions, hiring or law journal selection. The group also said decisions based on factors in an applicant's biography that could serve as a proxy for race — such as socioeconomic status — also would be challenged. Read the letter.

The University of Tennessee College of Law recently announced on social media that Kristina “KK” Kersey will be joining the school’s clinic as an advocacy clinic professor. Kersey brings more than two decades of practice, teaching and training experience to the clinic. She previously worked at the Washington, D.C., based Gault Center as senior youth defense counsel, where she trained individuals defending youth in transfer proceedings throughout the country. Kersey’s dog, Biggie Smalls, also joins the clinic as the newest “furry” member.

Legal Aid of East Tennessee will host a free virtual clinic on July 15 at 10 a.m. EDT to assist adults seeking to change their names, Knox News reports. Participants will receive step-by-step assistance in completing their name change petitions as well as advice on filing pro-se. Interested individuals must pre-register by July 7 by calling 423-402-4765. LAET is partnering with the TBA Young Lawyers Division and Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands to hold this event. To volunteer email tglance@laet.org.

Legal Aid of Middle Tennessee & the Cumberlands will hold its McHugh Legal Help Clinic this Saturday at the Belmont Ministry Center, 2005 12th Ave. S., Nashville 37204 (former home of Bass Street Baptist Church). The clinic will run from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. CDT. To volunteer contact Kendra Cheek, 615-780-7131.

The Tennessee Bar Association invites you to join an exclusive Law & Culture in Ireland CLE program in May 2024. A four night trip to Dublin and a six night trip to Dublin and Belfast are available. In conjunction with CLEAbroad, travelers will engage with local experts, academics, officials and change makers who will offer in-depth commentary on the EU and UK legal-political systems, economics, environmental justice, history and religion. In Dublin, the group also will explore ancient castles, visit landmarks, museums and notable legal institutions, and sample local cuisine. In Belfast, travelers will learn about the region's unique political history, Good Friday Agreement, ongoing reconciliation efforts and peace process. Add on trips to the West Coast and Cliffs of Moher also are available. Sign up here to receive registration information and updates about the trip.

If you missed the webcast "Building Your Case Through Depositions" this past spring, catch it on replay next Wednesday from noon to 1 p.m. CDT. You can't win a case in a deposition, but it can be one of the most important (if not the most important) discovery tools in preparing a case for trial. This program will cover tips and techniques on taking depositions, defending them and using them as a case progresses, including preparing clients for depositions. It also will cover tips on how to avoid and recover from common pitfalls.

The July/August issue of the Tennessee Bar Journal is available online. Our cover story is an interview with retiring Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Sharon G. Lee about her career spanning more than two decades as a small-town lawyer to her appointment to the highest court in the state. Also featured is retired Judge Walter Kurtz's article on the Code of Judicial Conduct and its challenges in state courts, Amy Willoughby Bryant's piece laying out the case for the state to improve oversight of conservatorships, and Everett Hixson's article on the Tennessee Supreme Court ruling in Donovan v. Hastings that strengthens the state's "loser pays" statute. Also in this issue are columns from Buddy Stockwell, Wade Davies and Russell Fowler; a review of Jeff Hobbs' book "Children of the State;" as well as news from TBA's Annual Convention and President Jim Barry's vision for the 2023-2024 bar year. 

The flurry of opinions issued last week included one that bolstered the ability of employees to obtain accommodations at work for their religious practices, SCOTUSblog reports. The justices ruled unanimously in Groff v. Dejoy to revive a lawsuit by a Christian former mail carrier who accused the U.S. Postal Service of discrimination after being disciplined for refusing to work on Sundays. The case now goes back to the lower court for additional proceedings.