West Tennessee Legal Services (WTLS) will receive a Pro Bono Innovation Fund grant of $56,717 to boost pro bono services, the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) recently announced. WTLS plans to use the funds to assess its current pro bono program and plan transformative changes. According to LSC, WTLS will engage in a six-month assessment focused on client-centered internal pro bono processes. It also will look at staffing needs and strategies for volunteer recruitment, training and mentoring. WTLS is one of 17 organizations receiving a grant under the program.

The Board of Law Examiners has released statistics about the July 2023 bar exam. According to the board, 713 individuals — 574 first time test takers and 139 repeaters — took the July exam. They represent more than 90 different law schools and saw an overall pass rate of 67.18%. For first time test-takers at Tennessee law schools, Belmont University College of Law saw the highest pass rate at 93.4%, followed by Vanderbilt University Law School at 88.89%, University of Tennessee College of Law at 81.82%, Nashville School of Law at 78.37%, University of Memphis School of Law at 75% and Lincoln Memorial University Duncan School of Law at 60.61%. See all statistical information from the July exam or from past exams on the board’s webpage. The list of those who passed the July exam was released Oct. 6.

Tennessee clergy and pediatricians are declaring gun violence a public health crisis, reports the Commercial Appeal. The African American Clergy Collective of Tennessee and the Tennessee Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics say they will start collecting data on gun violence and developing new prevention strategies. The groups say they are launching a statewide campaign to pivot from legislation-driven efforts to more direct action. The groups worked with state lawmakers to address gun violence as a public health crisis but legislation they supported did not advance.

Supporters of Gary Sutton, who has been on Tennessee’s death row since 1996, held a news conference Friday to call for removal of his federal public defender, Susanne Bales. Supporters say she did not meet with Sutton for 12 years and he plans to petition the court to remove her, the Associated Press reports. Also at the press conference was a private investigator who says she has uncovered “indisputable facts of exculpatory evidence, witness tampering and constitutional violations” in Sutton’s case. In response to complaints about her work, Bales said her team is working within the bounds of the legal system to “ensure Gary is not executed for a case that is riddled with problems.”

Last Thursday, a three-judge panel on the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed a challenge to a Tennessee law that criminalizes distribution of absentee ballot applications by anyone other than an election commission employee. The decision stems from a lawsuit brought by civil rights and labor groups against Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett. The groups had argued the law violates the U.S. Constitution’s first and 14th amendments by chilling “core political speech” without serving a compelling state interest. A lower court had dismissed the suit in 2021, finding that the law dealt with conduct not speech. Read more from Democracy Docket or read the decision.

Los Angeles-based Southwestern School of Law, an institution known for its entertainment law curriculum, is offering the nation’s first full-time online law degree program, Above the Law reports. The school will begin accepting applications this month with the inaugural class set to begin in fall 2024. President and Dean Darby Dickerson said the program is not “Zoom U” but “a carefully considered, thoughtfully designed program that will allow students to interact with faculty and other students meaningfully while providing scheduling and geographic flexibility.” The American Bar Association (ABA) approved the program last April. Read more from the school.

The Tennessee Department of Human Services reports it is taking significant steps to bolster childcare access for families in need as part of its commitment to improve affordable childcare services. According a news release from the department, a majority of licensed childcare agencies participating in the Child Care Certificate Program will receive increased reimbursement rates starting this month. Under the certificate program, the state pays a reimbursement rate directly to childcare providers on behalf of families who are enrolled and meet the program’s income and work or education requirements.

The number of jobs in the U.S. legal services sector rebounded in September after nearing its lowest level this year in August, Reuters reports. New Labor Department data shows the sector added 5,100 jobs last month. Legal job numbers have fluctuated since hitting an all-time high in July 2022.

In response to a lawsuit challenging its minority fellowship program, the law firm of Perkins Coie has changed its criteria, expanding the applicant pool to all law students, not just members of "historically underrepresented" groups, Reuters reports. The suit, brought by Edward Blum and his American Alliance for Equal Rights, challenged the program as unlawful based on the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent rulings on affirmative action in higher education. The group recently dropped a similar law suit filed against Morrison Foerster after that firm changed eligibility criteria for its diversity, equity and inclusion fellowship. Bloomberg Law has more on that development.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Tennessee has filed a federal lawsuit against a Murfreesboro ordinance designed to ban drag performances from public property, the Associated Press reports. The suit was brought on behalf of the Tennessee Equality Project (TEP), a nonprofit that advocates for LGBTQ rights and has hosted a Pride event in the city since 2016. The organization has faced opposition from city leaders since its 2022 event, which was criticized as being inappropriate. The city first warned TEP it would deny future event permits but later updated its community decency standards to “assist in the determination of conduct, materials, and events that may be judged as obscene or harmful to minors.” The suit alleges the ordinance violates the U.S. Constitution’s first and 14th amendments.