The new Fentress County Justice Center will be dedicated at a ceremony June 29 at 2 p.m. in Jamestown. Tennessee Supreme Court Chief Justice Sharon Lee will deliver the keynote address. Built on 13 acres off Rugby Avenue, about one-half mile east of the courthouse, the facility contains two courtrooms, a jail that will hold 163 prisoners, and offices for the sheriff’s department, probation officers, district attorney, judges and court clerks.

First Judicial District Chancellor John Rambo will speak at the Tri-Cities Legal Support Staff Organization meeting July 9 at 6 p.m. at Bella Vita Restaurant, 2927 North Roan St. in Johnson City. The group has invited local attorneys and their staff to join the event. For more information contact Washington County Bar Association President Sunny Sandos, (423) 246-8176.

Richard Hughes, public defender for the 10th Judicial District, will host an educational program on June 30 to explain the process by which certain offenders may have the chance to expunge their criminal records. The session is scheduled to run from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Hughes’ office located at 85?Central Ave. in Cleveland. For more information, contact the public defender’s office at (423) 478-0329. The Cleveland Banner has more.

NALS will host its third annual After Hours Silent Auction on July 16 at 5:30 p.m. All proceeds benefit Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands, the state’s largest non-profit law firm. Attendees will have the chance to bid on donated items such as massages, gift certificates, hotel stays and more. 

Lipscomb University’s Institute for Law, Justice and Society will hold a free legal advice clinic 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. on June 23 at St. James Missionary Baptist Church in Nashville. Due to scheduling conflicts, the clinics will be meeting on the fourth rather than third Tuesday of each month. For more information or to volunteer, contact Randy Spivey at randy.spivey@lipscomb.edu

The U.S. District Court, in coordination with the Federal Courts Committee of the Nashville Bar Association, will honor retiring Magistrate Judge Juliet Griffin at a reception July 31 from 3 to 5 p.m. Please plan to drop by and wish Judge Griffin well on her retirement from the bench. The reception will take place in the courtroom of Judge Aleta Trauger, Room 873, Estes Kefauver Federal Building and Courthouse, 801 Broadway in Nashville. Wine and light refreshments will be available.

Veteran civil rights attorney Fred D. Gray will speak this Thursday at Lipscomb University as part of the 2015 Law Camp. The camp, which is sponsored by the TBA and the university’s Institute for Law, Justice & Society, brings high school students from across the country to Nashville for a week of programs on historical and currently relevant legal issues. This year’s camp is focused on the development of key freedoms and the concept of equality under the law, with a special focus on the Civil Rights Movement. Gray, who represented Rosa Parks in her fight for equality in Montgomery, Alabama, and was Dr. Martin Luther King’s first lawyer, will speak at 6 p.m. in Swang Chapel of the Ezell Center. The event is open to the public.

The Knoxville Bar Association is challenging lawyers and law firms to set a specific day for everyone in the office to wear seersucker and donate to Childhelp, a group dedicated to the prevention and treatment of child abuse. Offices are asked to participate by June 25. View a flyer with more information.

The Chattanooga NAACP will host its 8th Annual Criminal Justice Seminar this Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Chattanooga Choo Choo Imperial Ballroom. The theme of the event is "Know your Rights." Speakers include NAACP National Director of Criminal Justice Carlton Mayers, Tennessee ACLU Executive Director Hedy Wienberg, District Attorney General Neal Pinkston and the president of Georgia NOBLE, Robert Ford.  The Chattanooga Times Free Press has more.

Author Keel Hunt will discuss his book, Coup, about the early ouster of former Tennessee governor Ray Blanton in 1979 at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday at the Clement Railroad Hotel Museum near Dickson. Blanton is the only governor in United States history to be replaced in this manner. It occurred two days after Blanton pardoned or commuted sentences for 52 convicted criminals. The Tennessean has more.