The Tennessee Supreme Court today named Jonathan Skrmetti as the state’s next attorney general and reporter. Skrmetti most recently served as chief counsel to Gov. Bill Lee. He previously was chief deputy attorney general in the Attorney General’s Office, a partner in the Memphis office of Butler Snow LLP, an assistant U.S. attorney in the Western District of Tennessee, a trial attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division/Criminal Section, and law clerk for Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Steven M. Colloton. Skrmetti earned his law degree from Harvard Law School. He was selected from among an applicant pool of six. The court held two days of interviews with the candidates earlier this week. Read more in a release from the Administrative Office of the Courts. In a statement issued this afternoon, current Attorney General Herbert H. Slatery III said the court “made an excellent choice” and “it will be gratifying to pass the baton” to Skrmetti.

The roof of the new Sumner County Courthouse in Gallatin caught fire Sunday night. The local fire department and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) are investigating. The cause is still unknown, though Sumner County Mayor Andy Holt speculated that the fire was caused by a lightning strike during Sunday night's storms. It is estimated that 30% of the roof will need to be replaced, likely delaying the 2023 opening of the building. Nashville's NPR station WPLN and Nashville's Fox affiliate have more information.

The Shelby County Commission voted 13-0 Monday to approve $3.45 million in operating and capital spending for a new bail courtroom. Shelby County District Attorney Amy Weirich and Shelby County District Attorney-elect Steve Mulroy were both in attendance to advocate for a fully-staffed courtroom to hear bail requests 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The Daily Memphian reports that Weirich favors the new courtroom if it is fully staffed with a chance for prosecutors and the victims of crime to also be present for bail determinations currently not made in such a formal setting by judicial commissioners. "Victims have the right to be present," she told the Memphian. "That is the driving force behind my recommendation that we needed additional staff and resources." Some bail bond companies are questioning the commission's authority to set up such a courtroom.

At the American Bar Association annual meeting this past week in Chicago, three Tennessee lawyers were recognized. Former TBA president Danny Van Horn took office as chair of the ABA’s Litigation Section and was celebrated at a reception hosted by his firm. He will serve during the 2022-2023 bar year, which marks the section’s 50th anniversary year. Van Horn is a trial attorney in the Memphis office of Butler Snow. Then at a reception hosted by the TBA, Knoxville lawyer Heidi Barcus and Nashville lawyer Sam H. Poteet Jr. were honored for their ABA service. Barcus, a special counsel at Lewis Thomason, is the immediate past chair of the ABA Law Practice Management Section and an ABA Fellow. Poteet, a principal at Manier & Herod, is a past chair of the ABA Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section and past chair of the ABA Tort, Trial & Insurance Practice Section’s Fidelity & Surety Law Committee. See more photos from the meeting.

A drop in demand for legal services, combined with rising pay and overhead costs, could spell trouble for U.S. law firms this year, Reuters reports. The Thomson Reuters Law Firm Financial Index, a quarterly composite score of demand, expenses, rates, productivity and other economic indicators at large and midsize law firms, was released today. It showed the index fell to its lowest point this past quarter since its 2006 founding. A year ago, the index was at an all-time high. So, what changed? Reuters points to a decrease in demand for law firm services combined with a 12% rise in direct expenses.

A new lawsuit has been filed on behalf of six Davidson County children, collectively known as the “Baby Doe Plaintiffs,” all of whom were born dependent on opioids as a result of in utero exposure. The claim, which was filed under the Tennessee Drug Dealer Liability Act (DDLA), seeks compensation for the harm inflicted on the children by the alleged actions of numerous drug producers, distributors, pharmacy chain and pill mill defendants. Branstetter, Stranch & Jennings is handling the case. Read more in a release or read the filing.

The U.S. Justice Department declined to pursue a civil rights investigation of a federal agent allegedly captured on video placing his boot on the neck of a Latino worker at a Grainger County slaughterhouse, Tennessee Lookout reports. The department’s refusal to probe the actions of agent John Witsell in the April 2018 raid on Southeastern Provision was disclosed in a recent filing in U.S. district court. The motion states that the department’s Civil Rights Division was notified of the alleged excessive force but, within days, decided not to conduct a formal inquiry. The motion also reveals that the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Office of Professional Responsibility declined to take disciplinary action against Witsell. Latino workers at the slaughterhouse have filed a civil rights conspiracy suit, arguing they were targeted solely because of their race or ethnicity. They claim they were handcuffed, detained without any proof of wrongdoing, mocked and brutalized. As part of their suit, they are seeking access to the video in question.

The Tennessee Bar Foundation has announced the process for applying for its grant awards for 2023. The grant application and additional instructions will be available on Aug. 17 on the foundation’s website. Though applicants will fill out the form electronically, only a hard copy of the completed application should be submitted. Applications must be postmarked no later than midnight on Sept. 14. New and current recipients of IOLTA grants are invited to participate. Read more in the attached announcement.

Tennessee's school voucher program can go ahead for this school year, a three-judge panel ruled late Friday afternoon, the Tennessean reports. The judges — Davidson County Chancellor Anne C. Martin, Blount County Circuit Court Judge Tammy M. Harrington and Shelby County Circuit Court Judge Valerie L. Smith, sitting as a special chancery court — heard arguments against the law earlier that day but ultimately denied a motion for an injunction. School started today in both affected jurisdictions, Nashville and Memphis.

The American Bar Association today announced a newly formed Law, Society and the Judiciary Task Force to evaluate developments involving the state of the judiciary in the country. The group also named seven members to the task force, which will be chaired by former ABA President Linda Klein. Among its responsibilities, the task force will identify and recommend steps to be taken to educate the nation on what courts do and why judicial independence is critical to the protection of rights and institutions of government.