Planning expert and chair of the TBA Probate Study Group Al Secor will provide his annual legislative update at this week's Estate Planning & Probate Forum. Secor's session features a report of statutory changes in conservatorships, guardianships, estate administration, trusts and wills that were enacted during the 2025 Legislative session. Bills pending in the same topics in the 2026 legislative session will also be discussed. Other topics at the forum include probate litigation, how AI is shaping estate planning workflows, public receiverships, a probate panel, ethics and more. Estate Planning & Probate Section members receive a discounted rate to attend. Register now.

Across Tennessee, estate planners are encountering a new reality: land that has been in families for generations is now worth more on paper than at any time in its history, and that value is increasingly driven by what can be built, not what can be grown or stewarded. For many clients, this creates a real tension. They want to plan responsibly for their heirs, taxes and long-term financial security, while still keeping the farm, forest and homestead intact. Increasingly, conservation easements are entering those conversations, not as an environmental statement but as a practical planning tool that can help families shape the future of their land. Continue reading...

This issue's Closing Statements features answers to the question “How has the definition of success evolved throughout your legal career?”

Learn more about TBA's leadership in 2028, register for Day on the Hill, get an update on the TBA's new office construction and more!

The trustees of the Justice Frank F. Drowota Trust, a charitable fund dedicated to providing supplemental financial support to direct providers of civil legal services, have announced grant recipients for 2025. Read more about the fund's work.

Read about the lawyers who have recently been reinstated, disbarred, suspended, censured or transferred their licenses to disability inactive status.

Tennessee Bar Association members who have died recently are memorialized.

Most lawyers turn to mentors when a problem arises — constantly playing defense. But what if they switched to an “offensive” mindset? Mentor and mentee pair Buck Lewis and Brock Willis offer a proactive, strategic approach that emphasizes regular engagement and long-term growth rather than reactive crisis management. By meeting regularly with mentors and following a professional development plan, both new attorneys and experienced lawyers can maximize the benefits of mentorship for both parties.

In this installment of President's Perspective, Heidi Barcus encourages lawyers to mentor others, not only because it strengthens the profession, it strengthens the community.

When Elvis Presley died in 1977, Shelby County Medical Examiner Dr. Jerry Francisco performed the autopsy, finding that Presley died of a heart attack and that there was no evidence of drug use. In History's Verdict, Russell Fowler describes the subsequent media frenzy and court cases that followed when reporters and others put aside the autopsy report in favor of scandal.