A three-judge panel of the Tennessee Court of Appeals heard arguments Wednesday in a case that could determine the future size of the Metro Council. In 2023, the Tennessee General Assembly passed a law that would reduce the council's size from 40 to 20 members. In 2023 and again in 2024, a court placed an injunction on the law finding it to be unconstitutional under the state's Home Rule amendment, which prohibits legislation that specifically targets one local government. The state appealed that ruling, according to the Nashville Banner. During the hearing, Metro argued that the judges need not address the law's constitutionality and could rule that the council does not have to be reduced based on the law's plain language. The state countered that the law applies to all local governments in Tennessee and that Metro’s claim of exemption violated the Home Rule amendment. The judges did not indicate when a ruling would be issued. The next Metro elections are not scheduled until 2027.

A federal appeals court last week affirmed that a work of art generated by artificial intelligence without human input cannot be copyrighted under U.S. law. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit agreed with the U.S. Copyright Office, which had found that an image created by Stephen Thaler's AI system "DABUS" was not entitled to copyright protection, and that only works with human authors can be copyrighted, according to Reuters. The Copyright Office also has rejected artists' bids for copyrights on images generated by the AI system Midjourney. Thaler's attorney said he and his client "strongly disagree" with the ruling and intend to appeal. U.S. Circuit Judge Patricia Millett, writing for a unanimous three-judge panel, said U.S. copyright law "requires all work to be authored in the first instance by a human being."

An inmate who died at the Shelby County Jail in 2024 died from heart disease, according to an official autopsy report. Lawrence Sumlin died in the jail's intake area. Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner Jr. initially attributed the death to a "medical emergency," the Daily Memphian reports. Sumlin had been arrested for theft and was homeless at the time of his death. According to the autopsy, he had a history of high blood pressure, seizure disorder, poor compliance with medications and substance abuse. The autopsy also stated Sumlin had two "altercations" with inmates on the day he was brought in. Sumlin is one of 60 inmates who have died at the Shelby County Jail since 2019. Four inmates died last month, one by suicide, one from an overdose and two from undetermined "medical emergencies," according to the sheriff's office.

The Tennessee Bar Association again this year will honor the work of Tennessee journalists through the Fourth Estate Award, which honors courageous reporting on justice and the law. This year's prize, honoring reporting in 2024, includes a $250 honorarium for the winner. The TBA strongly supports freedom of expression under the First Amendment, as exercised by lawyers on behalf of their clients and by journalists on behalf of the public, and particularly wants to recognize and encourage journalists who promote public understanding of the rule of law and our system of justice through vigorous exercise of their First Amendment rights. The deadline for entry is April 30. Attorneys who have relationships with reporters or observed a particularly compelling piece of journalism in 2024 are encouraged to submit a nomination. Read about past recipients here and read the TBA's full press release.

A nonprofit group that advocates for students with disabilities and individuals whose discrimination complaints have been put on hold are suing the U.S. Education Department over cuts to the Office for Civil Rights (OCR). According to Bloomberg Law, the department has eliminated seven of OCR’s 12 regional offices and left only “skeleton staffing” at the remaining offices. “These actions harm students and their families who rely on the Department to ensure their access to educational opportunities, as required by the federal civil rights laws Congress charges OCR to enforce,” the complaint says. A similar suit filed by a group of states is challenging the department’s plan to fire 1,378 employees. The reduction in force will undermine the department’s ability to perform work mandated by federal law, that suit says. The National Center for Youth Law and Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates, Inc. are representing the plaintiffs.

The Metro Nashville Council adopted legislation this week to add guardrails to Fusus, a camera surveillance system that will allow the Nashville Police Department to access businesses’ private security footage with the owner’s consent to address calls for service. The proposal had failed by one vote last year. This year, the legislation received eight additional votes. Debate on the measure centered on whether the cameras could be used for government overreach or target marginalized communities. Supporters argued that the system will not be used to target immigrants or specific groups. “It is just a photo of a criminal leaving a business,” said council member Bob Nash. He has supported the system from the beginning. Read more from the Nashville Post.

The U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) and FBI this week announced the launch of Joint Task Force October 7 (JTF 10-7), an initiative that will "seek justice for the victims of the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack in Israel and address the ongoing threat posed by Hamas and its affiliates." According to the department, 47 U.S. citizens were killed that day and eight were taken hostage. The task force will focus on “targeting, charging, and securing for prosecution in the United States” the individual perpetrators of the Oct. 7 attack as well as take responsibility for pending charges against Hamas leadership. In addition, the group will investigate “acts of terrorism and civil rights violations by individuals and entities providing support and financing to Hamas, related Iran proxies, and their affiliates, as well as acts of antisemitism by these groups.” Read more in a release from the department.

Davidson County Sheriff Daron Hall recently announced changes in how county correctional facilities will handle legal mail sent to inmates. Hall says the change is necessary to protect against drug overdoses and related deaths. Several years ago, the process for personal mail was changed after finding that senders were soaking paper in a liquid form of opioids. Inmates then would lick or eat the paper to get the desired high. Now letters are scanned and inmates are provided an electronic version on tablets. At the time, processing of legal mail was left unchanged with letters being opened in front of the inmate. Now Hall says there is “direct knowledge” that envelopes and documents that appear to be legal mail are being used in the same way. Effective May 5, facilities no longer will provide the actual mail but, in the presence of the inmate, will make a photo copy and provide that version. Additionally, no legal mail will be allowed to go directly to inmates in court, at the courthouse or any other location. All mail from attorneys and court staff must be left in the Birch Building mailbox marked “DCSO Legal Mail,” or taken to the Downtown Detention Center or Correctional Development Center lobby.

The TBA Young Lawyers Division (YLD) and its Mock Trial Committee will hold the 2025 Tennessee State High School Mock Trial Competition this week in Nashville. On Friday and Saturday, 16 teams will meet in a bid to be this year's state champion. Participating schools are: Agathos Classical School in Columbia, Central Magnet School in Murfreesboro, Clarksville High School, Cookeville High School, two teams from Chattanooga Southeast Home Education Association, Elizabethton High School, Harpeth Hall School in Nashville, Jefferson County High School in Dandridge, Lausanne Collegiate School in Memphis, Maryville High School, Memphis University School, Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville, Sevier County High School in Sevierville, St. Mary's Episcopal School in Memphis, and University School of Nashville. Students will present their best arguments in Lee Jasper v Reece Witherfork, a civil case centered around a rodeo. This year's competition also will feature the first Artist in the Courtroom Contest. Tennessee's team winner and first place artist then will have the opportunity to represent the state at the National High School Mock Trial Competition in Phoenix, Arizona, May 7-10. The Mock Trial Committee is led by Chair Ashley Tipton, Vice Chair Michael Holmes and Long Range Planning Coordinator Zack Walden. The state competition caps off the district competition process. This year, students from 110 teams competed at nine regional events.

Tennessee Attorney General (AG) Jonathan Skrmetti has announced that a bipartisan coalition of states has reached a final settlement — pending court approval — in a lawsuit against the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA), which will end the NCAA’s NIL (name, image and likeness) recruiting ban. Skrmetti and Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares, along with the Florida, District of Columbia and New York attorneys general, filed a federal lawsuit against the NCAA in January 2024, alleging that the NIL recruiting ban created anticompetitive restrictions that violate federal antitrust law and harm current and future student-athletes. Read more a press release from the AG's office.