News
January 4, 2023
The Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments met today to consider five applicants for an upcoming vacancy on the Tennessee Supreme Court. The vacancy was created by the announcement of the retirement of the Honorable Sharon G. Lee, effective August 31, 2023.After holding a public hearing and…
December 21, 2022
Supreme Court Justice Sharon G. Lee presented awards in the Tennessee Appellate Court’s Eastern Division to the following state employees for their years of service: Missy McConkey (25 years); Renee Hammond (20 years); Jennifer Rosser (15 years); Sally Goade, Tammy Capps, and Rebekah Bradley (10…
December 12, 2022
The Tennessee Supreme Court today appointed Sarah Keith of Knoxville and Donald Capparella of Nashville as new members on the Tennessee Advisory Commission on the Rules of Practice and Procedure. Judge Jennifer L. Smith, a criminal court judge in the 20th Judicial District, was appointed as the new…
December 12, 2022
The Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments will consider five candidates when it meets to select nominees for the Tennessee Supreme Court vacancy created by the retirement of the Honorable Sharon G. Lee, effective August 31, 2023.
The applicants are:
Kristi M. Davis
Tom Greenholtz
John C…
December 9, 2022
The Tennessee Supreme Court today upheld partial consecutive sentencing that was imposed by a trial court after it had found that a defendant’s record of criminal activity was extensive. In upholding the sentence, the Court clarified the principles for determining whether an offender has an…
December 5, 2022
The Tennessee Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in two cases at East Tennessee State University on Tuesday, December 6, 2022 as part of its SCALES program. SCALES stands for the Supreme Court Advancing Legal Education for Students. This nationally acclaimed program, over 20 years in…
November 28, 2022
The Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments is now accepting applications for the Supreme Court vacancy that will be created by the retirement of the Honorable Sharon G. Lee, effective August 31, 2023.Any interested applicant must be a licensed attorney who is at least 35 years of age, a…
November 22, 2022
Today, the Tennessee Supreme Court answered a question of law certified by the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee: whether two video streaming services—Netflix, Inc. and Hulu, LLC—provide “video service” within the meaning of the Competitive Cable and Video Services…
November 22, 2022
Today, the Tennessee Supreme Court affirmed and increased the suspension of McMinn County attorney Joseph H. Crabtree, Jr. from the practice of law in the state.After reviewing disciplinary proceedings filed against Mr. Crabtree, the Supreme Court concluded that the original suspension imposed by a…
November 18, 2022
The Tennessee Supreme Court has ruled that Tennessee’s mandatory sentence of life in prison when imposed on a juvenile homicide offender is cruel and unusual punishment and violates the juvenile’s rights as guaranteed by the Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution. In a narrow ruling,…
November 15, 2022
Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Sharon G. Lee has notified Governor Bill Lee that she will retire on August 31, 2023.
“Serving in the Tennessee Judiciary for the past 19 years has been the greatest honor of my professional life,” Justice Lee said. “I am grateful for the opportunity to serve…
November 7, 2022
The Tennessee Supreme Court has four cases set for its November 9, 2022 docket. The cases will be heard in Jackson, Tennessee, beginning at 9 a.m. CST and will be livesteamed to the TNCourts YouTube page – https://www.youtube.com/user/TNCourts/featuredThe details of the case are as follows:Paul…
November 1, 2022
The Tennessee Supreme Court has amended the Rule for Mandatory Continuing Legal Education to remove limitations on distance-learning continuing legal education (“CLE”) credits. The Order was filed and effective on November 1, 2022.The change to Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 21 deletes the previous…
October 7, 2022
Today, the Tennessee Supreme Court reversed a decision of the Court of Criminal Appeals that granted relief to a defendant on an unpreserved and unpresented issue.Lynn Frank Bristol was convicted on two counts of aggravated sexual battery in Coffee County and sentenced to twenty years in prison.…
October 4, 2022
The Tennessee Supreme Court has five cases set for its October 5, 2022, docket. The first four cases will be heard in Nashville, Tennessee, beginning at 9 a.m. CDT. The final case will be submitted on briefs. The oral arguments for the four cases being heard will be livestreamed to the…
September 27, 2022
The Tennessee Supreme Court has one case set for its September 28, 2022 docket. The case will be heard using Zoom. Per court order, it will not be livestreamed, but will be shown publicly in the courtroom at the Nashville Supreme Court Building. The case will begin at 9 a.m. CDT. The details…
September 20, 2022
Alumni Awards Gala Shines Spotlight on Outstanding Alumni
Story Courtesy of: alumni.utk.edu
Justice Sharon G. Lee has focused her career on seeking justice, first as a small-town lawyer and later on the Tennessee Supreme Court. A graduate of the Webb School of Knoxville, Lee attended…
September 13, 2022
The Tennessee Supreme Court today upheld the premeditated first-degree murder and especially aggravated robbery convictions of Tyler Ward Enix (“Defendant”) in the killing of Kimberly Enix. In October 2015, Ms. Enix was found dead in her apartment with forty-seven stab wounds. At trial…
September 6, 2022
The Tennessee Supreme Court has two cases set for its September 7, 2022 docket. The cases will be heard in Knoxville, Tennessee, beginning at 9:00 a.m., EDT. The cases will be livestreamed to: https://www.youtube.com/user/TNCourts/featured. The details of the cases are as follows:State of…
September 1, 2022
Tennessee jurists from Mountain City to Memphis, from Supreme Court justices to general sessions judges, began new eight-year judicial terms today, September 1, 2022. The judges were elected or retained during the August general election. The previous judicial term ran from September 1, 2014 to…