The Tennessee Supreme Court last week adopted an amendment to Rule 11, Section V to remove the name “Cornelia A. Clark” and add the name “Sarah K. Campbell” as the justice assigned to Circuit No. 3. The circuit consists of the following six judicial districts: 14th, 15th, 16th, 18th, 19th and 20th.

The General Assembly today confirmed Nashville attorney Sarah Campbell to the Tennessee Supreme Court, the Tennessean reports. Campbell, Tennessee’s associate solicitor general, clerked on the U.S. Court of Appeals and for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito until 2015 when she joined the Attorney General’s Office. "As a judge, I will be firmly neutral on the issues that come before me," Campbell said in recent interviews with lawmakers. "The role of a judge, in my view, is to decide cases based on neutral, objective principles that don't lend themselves to any one outcome or the other." The vote to confirm Campbell was nearly unanimous, with the lone dissenting vote cast by Rep. Gloria Johnson, D-Knoxville. Johnson voiced concerns about the “partisan nature” of Campbell’s work in the attorney general’s office.

Join TBA Director of Public Policy & Government Affairs Berkley Schwarz and Adams and Reese attorneys and TBA lobbyists Brad Lampley and Ashley Harbin for a brand new episode of TBA Legislative Updates. Tune in for news on the newest Tennessee Supreme Court Justice, House Majority Leader William Lamberth’s Truth in Sentencing measure, the state’s new deputy governor and more! 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. 

The state Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday unanimously recommended that Gov. Bill Lee’s Tennessee Supreme Court nominee, Sarah Campbell, be confirmed to the bench, the Daily Memphian reports.  Campbell, 39, is a lawyer in the state attorney general’s office where she has defended the executive branch in lawsuits since she took the job in 2015. She was appointed to the high court by Lee in January and would replace the late Justice Cornelia A. Clark, who died in September. When asked what she would do when the state attorney general argues cases before the Supreme Court, Campbell replied that she would recuse herself if it was a case in which she had “substantial personal involvement.” She said her ethical decisions about conflicts of interest would be guided by the Tennessee Code of Judicial Conduct. 

TBA Director of Public Policy & Government Affairs Berkley Schwarz and Adams and Reese attorneys and TBA lobbyists Brad Lampley and Ashley Harbin are back for another episode of TBA Legislative Updates. In this edition, Schwarz and Lampley review the governor’s State of the State address and give an update on the professional privilege tax. Harbin also details Tuesday’s Senate Judiciary Committee meeting at which Tennessee Supreme Court nominee Sarah Campbell was interviewed by state lawmakers. 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.  

The Tennessee Supreme Court recently granted review to six cases. The Raybin Supreme Court Hot List reviews the cases, which raise issues including malicious prosecution, the GTLA, withdrawals of voluntary dismissals, criminal jury instructions, consecutive sentencing and the Competitive Cable and Video Services Act. Read more here.

The Tennessee Supreme Court yesterday named Michele Wojciechowski as the new executive director of the Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education. Wojciechowski is a graduate of the Nashville School of Law (NSL). She held a variety of management positions during a 13-year career at the Tennessean newspaper and from 2012 to 2016 was director of communications for the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC). Most recently, Wojciechowski served as communications director at NSL, where she implemented a major curriculum overhaul, revived NSL’s Continuing Legal Education program and more than doubled job listings for students and alumni by revamping the career development process. Wojciechowski will replace former Executive Director Judy Bond-McKissack, who recently announced her retirement. Read more from the AOC.

The Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments today filed amended notices for vacancies in the Court of Criminal Appeals Eastern Section and Court of Appeals Middle Section. The application deadline for the Court of Criminal Appeals is now noon CST on Feb. 21. The hearings dates remain March 3 and March 4. The application deadline for the Court of Appeals is now noon CST on Feb. 28. The hearing dates for those applicants will now be March 17 and March 18. More information and instructions for applying are available online.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has ruled that the Tennessee Health Care Liability Act applies to a lawsuit based on theories of medical battery and intentional misrepresentation against health care providers for injuries arising from a surgical procedure. The justices unanimously agreed in Donna Cooper et al. v. Dr. Mason Wesley Mandy et al. that, under the language of the act, it applies to all claims alleging that a health care provider caused an injury that related to the provision of health care services, regardless of the theory of liability. Read more on the case and the high court’s ruling from the Administrative Office of the Courts.

The Tennessee Supreme Court yesterday appointed five individuals to two of its commissions. First, it appointed Court of Appeals Judge Carma McGee to the Advisory Commission on the Rules of Practice and Procedure effective today. She replaces Court of Appeals Judge Steven Stafford. The court also appointed four new members to the Access to Justice Commission. They are: Sara E. Barnett with Spragins, Barnett & Cobb in Jackson; Lindsay Frilling with the Obion County Joint Economic Development Corporation in Union City; Adolpho A. Birch III, chief legal officer for the Tennessee Titans in Nashville; and Kendra Mansur with the Tennessee Valley Authority in Chattanooga. They replace J. William “Bill” Coley, Mary Jo Middlebrooks and Beverly Watts, who are not eligible for reappointment, and Sean Hunt who died. The new members will take their seats April 1. Read more about the appointees.