The American Bar Association is once again considering dropping its requirement that law schools use a “valid and reliable test” in admissions decisions, Reuters reports. It previously considered the idea in 2018 but the proposal was pulled moments before a vote by the House of Delegates. Supporters of the testing requirement argue that eliminating it would disadvantage weaker students who would spend considerable time and money but then likely not succeed in the first year. Opponents argue that the cost of standardized tests and uneven access to preparation programs can create disparities across racial groups. The ABA’s Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar is slated to consider the proposal when it meets May 20. Any changes approved by the council would also need to be approved by the ABA House of Delegates.

A number of Tennessee law schools brought home honors in various competitions this spring. Two Belmont College of Law moot court teams competed in the ABA Appellate Advocacy Competition. One team was named regional finalist while the other took the regional championship. Duncan School of Law students also participated in the ABA competition with wins for the third oral advocacy round and the school’s first individual advocacy award. One team also advanced to the semifinals, missing the finals by one ballot. University of Tennessee College of Law students won for the best draft agreement at the Jaffe Transactional Law Invitational hosted by Wayne State University Law School. And Vanderbilt Law School students won the Bass Berry & Sims Moot Court Competition with one student receiving the Best Oralist Award and two others receiving the Best Brief Award.

Gov. Bill Lee has signed off on legislation banning transgender athletes from participating in female college sports, Action 5 News reports. The bill will go into effect July 1. The collegiate ban comes after a separate bill banned transgender athletes from competing on middle and high school sports teams. According to the Human Rights Campaign, Tennessee is one of eight states that have passed anti-transgender sports bills.

The Tennessee Bar Association is launching a survey of Tennessee lawyers this week and both TBA members and nonmember lawyers are encouraged to participate. The survey focuses on the impact COVID-19 has had on the working habits of Tennessee lawyers, the state of work/life balance in the Tennessee legal community, and current practices related to hiring, developing, promoting and compensating attorneys. The TBA’s Women in the Profession Committee worked with Yacoubian Research to develop the survey, which should take about 10 minutes to complete. While each attorney will receive a unique link to the survey by email, all results will be presented in the aggregate so individual responses will remain anonymous and confidential.

Gov. Bill Lee last week signed legislation increasing criminal penalties for anyone distributing abortion medication through telehealth or mail, the Tennessean reports. The bill prohibits any distribution of abortion medication except when prescribing is done in person by a physician. The physician is not required to monitor a patient during or after taking the medication, except for a required follow-up appointment within two weeks. The bill also makes it a Class E felony punishable by a fine of up to $50,000 if the new procedure is not followed.

Gov. Bill Lee has declined to sign a “truth in sentencing” bill championed by legislative Republicans, The Tennessee Journal reports. Under the final version of the bill, those convicted of nine categories of crimes, including murder, vehicular homicide and carjacking, would be required to serve 100% of their sentences. Those convicted of 17 other violent offenses — such as aggravated assault, reckless homicide or possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony — would be required to serve 85% of their sentences. In declining to sign the bill, Lee said, “Data does not support the basic premise of the legislation ... Similar legislation has been enacted before and resulted in significant operational and financial strain, with no reduction in crime. Widespread evidence suggests that this policy will result in more victims, higher recidivism, increased crime, and prison overcrowding, all with an increased cost to taxpayers.” The bill passed the House on a vote of 86-9 and 20-7 in the Senate. It will become law without Lee’s signature.

The American Bar Association's push for required bias training for law students and its initiative to beef up law school diversity and inclusion rules have disturbed some who say the body is imposing a specific ideology on future lawyers, Reuters reports. Legal blogger and Cornell Law Professor William Jacobson told a panel at the Federalist Society’s 10th Annual Executive Branch Review Conference that the ABA has "stepped out of its lane" and should not impose mandates in the “hotly contested” arena of diversity and bias. Others have criticized the requirement for encroaching on law schools' autonomy. In February, the ABA adopted a requirement that law schools provide training in bias, racism and cross-cultural competency. It is now in the final stages of adopting a revised diversity and inclusion standard that schools must meet regarding racial and ethnic diversity among students, faculty and staff. Law schools would undergo an annual assessment of their inclusivity under the proposal.

The new Fred D. Thompson U.S. Courthouse and Federal Building in downtown Nashville officially opened last week after several days of partial operations and years of planning, designing and construction, the Nashville Post reports. The new building has already been christened with its first protest, as hundreds of pro-choice advocates gathered there earlier this week following news of a draft U.S. Supreme Court ruling that would overturn Roe v. Wade. The process of building the new courthouse began in 2015 when Tennessee’s congressional delegation secured funding. Initial work began in 2016. The Church Street property had been eyed as a possible location for a new courthouse for at least two decades.

The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last week that Wisconsin’s mandatory bar does not violate the First Amendment rights of lawyers in the state, the ABA Journal reports. The appeals court turned down a challenge, which argued that the 2018 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Janus v. AFSCME implicitly overruled the 1990 decision in Keller v. State Bar of California. In Keller, the court held that compulsory state bars can use dues to regulate the profession and improve legal services, but not for political or ideological activities. In Janus, the court held that mandatory union dues for collective bargaining violate public employees’ free speech rights. Despite the apparent tension between the two decisions, the appeals court said Keller remains binding precedent. “The foundations of Keller have been shaken,” the court wrote. “But it’s not our role to decide whether it remains good law. Only the Supreme Court can answer that question.” So far, the high court has declined to review the issue.

Gov. Bill Lee made two cabinet appointments today, the Nashville Post reports. Deputy Governor and Department of Finance and Administration Commissioner Butch Eley will now head up the Department of Transportation. He’ll keep his deputy governor role as well as his office in the Capitol. Eley will take over for Clay Bright, who left the department to oversee the new Megasite Authority of West Tennessee. Jim Bryson will succeed Eley at the Department of Finance and Administration. Bryson is currently the deputy commissioner of the Bureau of Parks and Conversation at the Department of Environment and Conversation. He served one term as a state senator and was a candidate for governor in 2006.