A new episode of the TBA Legislative Updates podcast is now streaming with TBA Public Policy & Government Affairs Director Berkley Schwarz and Adams and Reese attorney and TBA lobbyist Brad Lampley. This week, Berkley and Brad discuss the Tennessee Supreme Court’s ruling on the Senate redistricting plan and the TBA’s probate bill (HB2359/SB1799) which just cleared the Senate, as well as providing an update on the professional privilege tax. To see a list of all of TBA’s bills, visit our online bill tracker. Legislative Updates airs every Thursday on the TBA’s Facebook page. It is also released as a podcast on the same day and can be found on the TBA’s website or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Professor Anming Hu, a world-renowned nanotechnology expert, has returned to the classroom at the University of Tennessee two years after being labeled as a spy by the federal government, WPLN reports. After a jury deadlocked on the charges, U.S. District Judge Tom Varlan dismissed the case. Hu is now back to his position with tenure, back pay and $300,000 to rebuild his lab. In a statement, UT Provost John Zomchick said the school is “pleased and grateful” to welcome Hu back to the faculty. Meanwhile, the Department of Justice is ending the China Initiative, but some people charged under it are still going to trial. The news outlet recaps the events leading up to Hu’s arrest and how his case played out.

A new entertainment tax credit, an incentive for everything from television shows and films to video game development and post-production, was recently announced by the Tennessee Department of Revenue and Department of Economic and Community Development. The credit was initiated last July after a bill became law allowing for a payroll tax credit up to 40% with a 10% incentive for economically distressed areas, and a 9.25% to 9.75% sales tax break for goods and services used for production. Categories eligible for the tax credit include scripted and unscripted television shows, feature films, video game development, animation, commercials and audio/visual postproduction, the Nashville Post reports.

A new nonprofit recently launched in Tennessee to advocate for public policy changes in the adoption system, with the goal of making the Tennessee the most adoption-friendly state in the nation. According to a news release, The Adoption Project plans to research policies that exist across the country and then develop best practices for the child welfare system. The group is led by CEO Jeremy Harrell, a government relations strategist, and COO Jennifer Donnals, a former chief of staff at the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services. Both also are adoptive parents. Two advisory committees also have been recruited to support the group’s work. Former Gov. Bill Haslam will serve as honorary chair of the Founder’s Committee, while former First Lady Crissy Haslam will serve as honorary chair of the Policy Committee. Read more about the group’s launch.

Health care attorney Nina Kumar received Nashville Cable’s 2022 ATHENA Young Professional Award during the organization’s award ceremony last month, Main Street Nashville reports. Chaired by attorney Liz Sitgreaves, the event marked the 32nd year that Nashville Cable has recognized local accomplished women. Kumar is an attorney at Ardent Health Services. She was previously a partner at Nelson, Mullins, Riley & Scarborough LLP and began her legal career as a clerk for Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Holly Kirby. As part of the program, Cable presented $9,000 in scholarships to eight female rising college students and one female nontraditional student.  

Davidson County Criminal Court Judge Mark J. Fishburn is looking forward to the next phase of his legal career after he retires from the bench in August. “…whether it be pro bono work, volunteer work, offering myself and my service to the Supreme Court as a substitute judge, or if there’s anything I can do to help them out,” Fishburn said. “I’m looking forward to a turn in the road for continued living and enjoying life.” Fishburn has been off the bench for several months while undergoing treatment for Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, but will return to court later this month ahead of his August retirement. Read more about Fishburn’s career from the Administrative Office of the Courts.

Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals Judge D. Kelly Thomas Jr. has announced he will retire from the bench on June 30. Thomas began his judicial career in 1990 after being elected to the Fifth Judicial District Circuit Court, Division II. He was re-elected in 1998 and 2006 before being appointed to the Court of Criminal Appeals by then-Gov. Phil Bredesen later that year. Prior to his judgeship, Thomas was an associate with Thomas & Cunningham and later a partner at Thomas & Thomas. He is a past president of the Blount County Bar Association and former president of the Tennessee Judicial Conference. The Administrative Office of the Courts has more on Thomas’ retirement plans.

Davidson County Criminal Court Judge Angelita Blackshear Dalton yesterday denied a petition to reopen the case of death row inmate Oscar Smith, who is set to be executed later this month for murdering his estranged wife and her two sons in 1989, the Associated Press reports. Smith’s attorneys said in the petition that newly available technology led to the discovery of unknown DNA left on an awl found at the crime scene. However, Dalton ruled yesterday that the evidence of Smith’s guilt was overwhelming and the DNA evidence does not tip the scales in his favor. Smith, who has maintained his innocence, is set to die by lethal injection on April 21.

The American Bar Association has dropped a 2017 requirement that its continuing legal education programs with three or more presenters include at least one diverse speaker. The Florida Supreme Court in December ruled the ABA’s diversity requirement constituted a discriminatory quota system. An ABA spokeswoman said that its CLE programs were reinstated in Florida the day the new policy was approved. Reuters has more on the development.

The Judicial Ethics Committee issued Advisory Opinion 22-01 on March 29 to address whether judicial candidates are permitted to solicit and accept campaign contributions now that Gov. Bill Lee has signed SB2010/HB1708 into law. The committee finds that the new law does allow judicial candidates to solicit and accept campaign contributions, but notes that other sections of the Code of Judicial Conduct may be implicated by the solicitation or receipt of campaign contributions and recommends that judicial candidates “be mindful of the Code as a whole when deciding whether or how he or she should personally solicit and accept contributions.”