TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Azya Thornton on Mar 4, 2026

Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti will not intervene in an ongoing lawsuit over the state’s ban on religious charter schools, leaving the Knox County Board of Education to defend the policy against claims of religious discrimination, Chalkbeat reports. The Wilberforce Academy of Knoxville sued the school district late last year in federal court. The school is challenging the constitutionality of Tennessee’s charter school law. According to Chalkbeat, under federal regulations, state attorneys general must be notified and given the option to intervene in lawsuits involving constitutional challenges. Skrmetti did not weigh in on the suit but his office pointed to his November legal opinion questioning the constitutionality of the law. In the opinion, Skrmetti argued there was “no compelling interest” in excluding religious charter schools from participating in a “public benefit.” Last week, a federal judge denied Wilberforce’s request for a ruling that would immediately block the school board from enforcing the ban. A trial on the issue is scheduled for January 2027.