The Memphis Public Interest Law Center recently received a grant from the American Bar Endowment’s Opportunity Grant Program, the ABA Journal reports. The funds will be used to develop a new app to help renters in Tennessee document, gather and organize facts and evidence for their own advocacy efforts or for their legal counsel to use. The grant is one of 12 innovative projects funded by the program to improve access to legal assistance and provide resources to underserved communities. Read more about the grants.

The American Bar Association (ABA) Business Law Section has appointed Chancellor Anne C. Martin as a new Business Court Representative. Martin, who has served as the Business Court Docket judge in Tennessee since 2019, was elected to the Davidson County Chancery Court in 2018 and was reelected in 2022. The ABA program is designed to provide educational opportunities to judges on cutting-edge business law developments and provide Business Law Section members with exposure to judicial leaders in order to obtain their input on those same developments and gain their insights and perspectives on business and commercial litigation. Martin holds a bachelors degree from Smith College and a law degree from Vanderbilt University School of Law. Read more from the Administrative Office of the Courts.

KnoxNews is investigating Tennessee attorney Gordon Ball’s use of the cy pres doctrine, which allows unclaimed class action lawsuit money to be reclaimed and used for other purposes with a judge’s approval. Ball has redirected cy pres funds to make over $3 million in donations to universities and charities throughout Tennessee, KnoxNews reports. Ball has also petitioned the University of Louisville Medical School to return a $128,000 donation he made to the school after hearing that a doctor who had aided Ball in a heart transplant was no longer on staff. The cy pres process has come under fire from some attorneys and judges who think there should be a process in place to direct money that isn't given to plaintiffs to organizations that have some connection to the purpose of the lawsuit that secured the money. Tennessee Judge John D. McAfee from the Eighth Judicial District has called the practice “a racket.”

Nominations are now open for the 2023 American Legal Technology Awards to be held on Oct. 8 at the Gaylord Opryland Resort in Nashville. The awards honor exceptional achievements in legal technology. This year, the annual event is adding a lifetime achievement award to recognize an individual who has displayed leadership, excellence and vision over a long career in law. The deadline to submit nominations is July 31. Finalists will be announced in August. Read more at LawNext.

Hamilton County Chief Homicide Prosecutor Michael Dowd was asked to resign Sunday by District Attorney Coty Wamp after Dowd criticized the TBI Crime Lab for its delay in returning ballistics testing results, News Channel 9 reports. Dowd’s comments were made in court during a hearing for a murder case set for trial on May 23. Dowd said the suspect was indicted in 2021 and TBI had failed to produce results for two years despite an expedition request. Dowd submitted his resignation Sunday, the Chattanooga Times Free Press reports. Wamp said a replacement would be named shortly.

Tennessee Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn, who led the department through the COVID-19 pandemic and oversaw an overhaul of the state’s K-12 funding structure, will leave the position on June 1. Gov. Bill Lee announced that he will appoint Lizzette Gonzalez Reynolds to the post. Reynolds currently serves as vice president of policy at Florida-based ExcelinEd, which advocates for a wide range of student-centered policies, including school choice. In a release announcing the move, Lee said that Reynolds' career "reflects a deep commitment to school choice, assessment and accountability." She will take office on July 1. Deputy Commissioner of Operations Sam Pearcy will serve as interim commissioner in June. The Tennessean has more.

President Joe Biden issued a proclamation today commemorating Law Day and the importance of the rule of law in America. In the proclamation, Biden states that “respecting the rule of law also means supporting equal access to justice.” In addition, American Bar Association President Deborah Enix-Ross issued a statement calling on the legal community as well as the public to join efforts to rebuild trust in American institutions and respect for one another and be willing to collaborate to address challenges that face the nation. Law Day was established in 1958 to educate the public about important concepts such as the rule of law and equality under the law. It is celebrated every May 1 through special events, classroom presentations and pro bono clinics.

U.S. senators Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty are accepting applications from candidates interested in an appointment as U.S. district judge for the Western District of Tennessee or U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Tennessee. Questionnaires and additional information are available online from both senators. Interested candidates must submit a completed questionnaire and resume to appointments@blackburn.senate.gov and appointments@hagerty.senate.gov by June 9. Questions regarding the application process may be directed to the same email addresses.

Those arrested in Nashville who show signs of mental illness can be referred to a Behavioral Care Center where they are provided with 30 days of treatment as an alternative to incarceration. The center has been in operation for three years and now Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris and a delegation from the county criminal justice system plan to visit the facility in hopes of opening something similar in the Memphis area. Harris tells the Tennessean that chances look good for opening a mental health center in Shelby County.

Reporters from across the state gathered in Nashville to learn about open meeting law, investigative journalism and more during the annual Reporters Workshop program, produced jointly by the Tennessee Bar Association, the Tennessee Association of Broadcasters and the Tennessee Press Association Foundation. Participants were selected from a record number of applicants who were interested in developing a deeper understanding of media law issues that may affect their everyday work, including access to government information, defamation and privacy concerns in reporting and other timely topics. Panelists included veteran reporters Demetria Kalodimos, Meribah Knight and Ben Hall, as well as legal media experts Paul McAdoo, Deborah Fisher and Seth May. The program continues tomorrow.