On March 17, the Tennessee Supreme Court directed Georgia lawyer Meredith Gardial to complete outstanding obligations with the Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education by May 1 or it would dismiss her petition for reinstatement. Gardial filed the petition on Feb. 23.

A number of lawyers have been reinstated after being suspended for administrative violations. One lawyer has been reinstated after completing required continuing legal education hours in 2019 and 2020. Four lawyers have been reinstated after paying the annual registration fee to the Board of Professional Responsibility — two in 2025 and two in 2026. And 23 lawyers have been reinstated after paying the professional privilege tax. That includes one suspended in 2024, one in 2025 and 21 this year. See the updated lists at the links above. The TBA has records of all administrative suspensions and reinstatements going back to 2005. See all lists here.

By order of the Tennessee Supreme Court on March 9, the law license of Hamilton County lawyer Johnny D. Houston Jr. was transferred to disability inactive status. Houston may not practice law while on disability inactive status. He may petition the court for reinstatement by showing that his disability has been removed.

On March 6, the Tennessee Supreme Court removed the disability inactive status for Davidson County lawyer Sornavidya Saba Sankar, who has been placed on this status on Aug. 8, 2025. The court also noted that Sankar would not be reinstated but would remain on inactive status pending resolution of any disciplinary proceedings.

Johnson County lawyer Harvey Randolph Fallin was suspended by the Tennessee Supreme Court on March 9 after the court found that he failed to respond to the Board of Professional Responsibility concerning a complaint of misconduct. A temporary suspension typically remains in place until the board determines final resolution of the matter.

The Tennessee Supreme Court today agreed to withdraw a petition for temporary suspension filed by the Board of Professional Responsibility (BPR) against Williamson County lawyer Mitchell Ray Miller. No explanation as to the reason for the withdrawal was provided. Miller previously was suspended on Sept. 5, 2025, for two years with four months to be served on active suspension and the remainder on probation with conditions.

The Tennessee Supreme Court temporarily suspended Shelby County lawyer Mary R. Rudolph from the practice of law on March 5 after finding she failed to respond to a complaint of misconduct. Rudolph is immediately precluded from accepting new cases and must cease representing existing clients by April 4. The suspension will remain in effect until dissolution or modification by the court.

Shelby County attorney Handel R. Durham Jr. received a public censure from the Tennessee Supreme Court on March 3. The court found that Durham mistakenly believed that an existing client had retained both him and another attorney for a separate matter and that the representation would be under the same arrangement as the existing representation. There was no written fee agreement executed for the new matter. The attorneys then improperly attempted to collect a contingency fee of approximately 33.3% from the client. These actions were found to violate Rules of Professional Conduct 1.5(c), 7.1 and 8.4(a).

The Tennessee Supreme Court on March 2 publicly censured Union County lawyer Anthony Marvin Avery for actions during representation of a client in a partition action. During the representation, the court found that Avery failed to provide his client with copies of relevant pleadings and following termination, failed to provide the client with her file. Upon termination of services by the client, Avery delayed his withdrawal and while still counsel of record, attended litigation related matters and failed to protect the interests of his client. The court found that Avery violated Rules of Professional Conduct 1.2, 1.3, 1.16 and 8.4(a).

The Tennessee Supreme Court on Feb. 25 suspended 15 attorneys for failure to pay the annual registration fee, eight of whom also failed to file proof that client funds are held in an IOLTA-compliant account. View the fee suspension order and IOLTA suspension order. Lawyers reinstated in the last month include six in 2026, two in 2025 and one in 2024. Access all administrative suspensions dating back to 2005.