News
September 1, 2011
Nashville, Tenn. – The Supreme Court’s new universally accepted court forms are now available online for Tennesseans to use in courtrooms across the state. These eight forms, which become effective today, can be used in uncontested divorce cases without minor or dependent children.The forms are…
August 26, 2011
The Tennessee Court system is saddened to learn of the passing of former Chief Justice Adolpho A. Birch, Jr. Birch, who retired from the Supreme Court in 2006, became the state's first African American chief justice in 1996. Birch began his judicial career in 1969 as a General…
August 15, 2011
The Tennessee Bar Foundation is now accepting IOLTA (Interest On Lawyers’ Trust Accounts) grant applications from organizations that provide civil legal services to the indigent or those that work to advance the administration of justice.
The IOLTA grants are made possible from the…
July 27, 2011
Nashville, Tenn. –The Tennessee Supreme Court today adopted a new Rule that allows the high court to make certain court forms universally accepted in courts across Tennessee. The Court also filed a second order today approving eight plain-language forms that can be used in uncontested divorces…
July 26, 2011
A ceremony was held Friday to commemorate the adoption of a Senate Resolution honoring the life of Ross Alderman, former Nashville Public Defender and late husband of Court of Appeals Judge Patricia Cottrell.The resolution acknowledged Alderman’s longstanding service to the Tennessee legal…
July 19, 2011
Nashville, Tenn. – The Tennessee Supreme Court today filed an Order soliciting comments on a proposed Supreme Court Rule that would exempt federal judges and federal officials who are prohibited by federal law from practicing law from paying an annual registration fee to maintain their attorney…
July 15, 2011
Earlier this week, the Tennessee Supreme Court adopted an amended version of Supreme Court Rule 40A, which deals with the appointment of Guardians ad Litem in child custody proceedings. The amended Rule will take effect on September 1, 2011.Click here to read the Supreme Court's Order and the…
June 28, 2011
Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Sharon G. Lee presented the Tennessee Justice Center's Pro Bono Attorney of the Year Award and Pro Bono Firm of the Year Award at a reception on June 17 at Legal Aid of East Tennessee in Chattanooga. Jeffrey C. Smith, partner in charge of the Memphis office of…
June 23, 2011
Nashville, Tenn. – Criminal Court Judge James C. Beasley Jr. of Memphis has been elected president of the 183-member Tennessee Judicial Conference (TJC), which includes all state appellate and trial court judges. Beasley succeeds Chancellor Skip Frierson, who serves 3rd Judicial District.“I’m truly…
June 21, 2011
More than 170 trial and appellate judges from across the state gathered in Chattanooga last week for the annual Tennessee Judicial Conference. The conference included continuing legal education on a wide range of topics such as workers’ compensation, judicial ethics and access to justice.The…
June 10, 2011
The Tennessee Supreme Court today upheld the Court of the Judiciary’s decision that Cocke County General Sessions Court Judge John A. Bell violated the Code of Judicial Conduct for taking too long to decide a personal injury case and participating in an ex parte communication. The high court also…
June 3, 2011
The Tennnessee Supreme Court heard oral arguments at Tennessee Girls State on Thursday as part of the Court's SCALES program, which stands for Supreme Court Advancing Legal Education for Students.This was the first time the Court brought the SCALES program to Girls State, which was held at Lipscomb…
June 1, 2011
Nashville, Tenn. – The Administrative Office of the Courts has received 43 applications for the five seats on the Judicial Nominating Commission that are set to expire on June 30, 2011. The Judicial Nominating Commission is the body that reviews and recommends applicants for vacancies on the…
May 31, 2011
Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Sharon Lee, a graduate of the University of Tennessee School of Law, was profiled in the most recent edition of Tennessee Alumnus magazine.Titled "Small Town to High Court", the article talks about Lee's journey from a small town lawyer to a seat on the Tennessee…
May 24, 2011
More than 1,100 high school students participating in the upcoming Boys State and Girls State programs will hear oral arguments in Tennessee Supreme Court cases as part of the SCALES program, an acronym for the Supreme Court Advancing Legal Education for Students. SCALES is a Tennessee Supreme…
May 19, 2011
The Tennessee Judicial Conference Foundation has announced the establishment of a new scholarship for law school students at the University of Tennessee College of Law. The $1,000 legacy scholarship is funded by former Supreme Court Justice Penny White, who now serves as a law professor at the…
May 12, 2011
Chief Justice Cornelia Clark presented awards to eight women who were chosen as Mothers of the Year by the Tennessee Justice Center, a nonprofit law and advocacy firm in Nashville. On May 5, the Tennessee Justice Center hosted the reception to honor these women for their persistence in…
May 10, 2011
On May 2, Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Sharon Lee visited the students of Brenda Mize’s Fifth Grade Class at Seymour Intermediate School in Seymour, Tenn., to teach them about the court system and help them prepare for their class mock trial.The class mock trial focused on…
May 9, 2011
More than 4,000 people in Washington County have received free legal assistance from a monthly pro bono clinic sponsored by the Washington County Bar Association.During the past two years, 35 attorneys have volunteered more than 2,000 hours of their time to assist financially-challenged individuals…
May 4, 2011
Nashville, Tenn. - The Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) has introduced new efforts to ensure the appropriate and efficient use of the indigent defense fund.Both the federal and state constitutions require courts to appoint counsel for criminal defendants who cannot afford an attorney. In…