The next free advice clinic for Black-owned small businesses and nonprofits is set for May 21 from noon to 1 p.m. CDT in Nashville. The clinic, sponsored by the Arts & Business Council's Volunteer Lawyers & Professionals for the Arts and Bradley, provides assistance with business formation and corporate governance, review of contracts and guidance in navigating local ordinances and state regulations. Space is limited, so early registration is recommended. Attorneys should email vlpa@abcnashville.org to volunteer.

Tennessee lawmakers passed a new congressional map today, the Daily Memphian reports. The House approved the new map on a 65-24 vote with three present and not voting. The Senate passed the proposal 25-5. The governor signed HB7003/SB7004 today as well. House Speaker Cameron Sexton, R-Crossville, and Majority Leader William Lamberth, R-Portland, said the new map “was drawn based on population and politics,” according to the Nashville Banner. Multiple individuals and entities have indicated they will sue, including the American Civil Liberties Union, the NAACP of Tennessee — which did file an emergency petition today — and current District 9 Rep. Steve Cohen. The Daily Memphian and Commercial Appeal report on those efforts.

The legislature also passed HB7001/SB7001 with an amendment to set a new filing deadline of May 15 and giving political parties until May 17 to decide whether candidates are qualified to run. Candidates who already qualified under the March 10 deadline do not need to requalify if they run in the same numbered district even if that district has been redrawn. It also passed HB7002/SB7002 to repeal a 1972 state law that prohibited congressional redistricting in between decennial census cycles. The governor signed both of those bills today.

The new map will affect multiple districts, as summarized below.

• District 4, currently represented by Republican Rep. Scott Desjarlais of rural Marion County, would cover the area southeast of Nashville, including Rutherford County, but also pick up a slice of Antioch in Davidson County according to Axios.
• District 5 would no longer include Davidson County but would be reshaped into a sprawling district from the southwest corner of the state in Shelby County all the way to the Kentucky border in the north and then back down into suburban counties south of Nashville. The change means that the district’s incumbent Republican Rep. Andy Ogles no longer would face Democrat Chaz Molder, who would have to run for District 9 if he wants to continue representing his hometown of Columbia, according to the Tennessean. Other parts of Nashville would be divided between two districts, according to Axios.
• The 6th District, represented by Republican Rep. John Rose, would take in a portion of Davidson County and reach into small portions of Sumner County, while the 7th District, currently represented by Republican Rep. Matt Van Epps, would include the bulk of Davidson County.
• The 8th District, currently held by Republican Rep. David Kustoff, would take in the northeastern portion of Shelby County, including Memphis suburbs, and run across rural West Tennessee counties such as Haywood and Madison, ending in Perry County in Middle Tennessee, according to Memphis Flyer.
• The 9th District, which currently includes Memphis and part of Tipton County and is represented by Democratic Rep. Steve Cohen, would run across southern Shelby County along the state’s southern border, taking in the eastern part of Maury and Williamson counties, as well as Moore County, according to Memphis Flyer.

The Trial Court Vacancy Commission sent one application to the governor to fill a vacancy in the 26th Judicial District Chancery Court, which covers Chester, Henderson and Madison counties. The commission began accepting applications for the vacancy April 21. After the May 6 deadline, only one candidate — Jennifer C. Covellis of Jackson — had applied, leaving the commission unable to provide the governor with the names of three qualified candidates as required by state law. Under state code, the governor may fill the vacancy with any person qualified to serve as a chancery court judge in the district. The vacancy was created when Judge Steven W. Maroney was elevated to the appellate bench.

Plaintiff/Appellant has filed an accelerated interlocutory appeal as of right under Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 10B, Section 2, seeking review of the Davidson County General Sessions Court’s order denying Appellant’s motion to recuse the General Sessions judge in a civil warrant proceeding against Defendant/Appellee. We conclude this Court lacks jurisdiction to entertain a Rule 10B appeal from the General Sessions Court of Davidson County when it is not exercising concurrent jurisdiction with a court of record. Accordingly, this appeal is transferred to the Circuit Court of Davidson County for disposition.

The Petitioner, Demetrice Livingston, appeals the denial of his petition for post- conviction relief from his second degree murder conviction. On appeal, the Petitioner argues that the post-conviction court erred in denying his petition after concluding that trial counsel provided effective assistance of counsel. After review, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

JULIA SMITH GIBBONS, Circuit Judge. Amanda Martin filed this lawsuit after unsuccessfully appealing the denial of long-term disability benefits pursuant to the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland’s disability income plan. The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland (the Bank) named Matrix Absence Management, Inc. (Matrix), as administrator of the Bank’s Long Term Disability Income Plan for Employees of the Federal Reserve System (the Plan). Martin, who experienced symptoms associated with long-haul COVID-19, filed a claim for benefits under the Plan. Matrix denied her claim and Martin appealed that denial. Following its review on appeal, Matrix issued Martin a final denial. Martin then sued the Bank, Matrix, and the Plan in federal district court. Because the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) does not cover governmental plans administered by agencies of the United States, Martin brought breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty claims against the defendants. See 29 U.S.C. § 1003(b)(1). In the course of this litigation, Martin moved for the district court to permit discovery outside of the administrative record, but the court denied her motion. Martin subsequently moved for the district court to permit limited discovery outside of the administrative record, but the court denied most of her requests. The defendants and Martin moved for judgment on the administrative record. The district court granted judgment on the administrative record for the defendants and denied Martin’s motion. Martin appealed from the district court’s judgment and the court’s two orders denying her discovery. We affirm the district court because it properly applied the relevant legal standards, denied Martin’s requests for discovery, and determined that Matrix did not arbitrarily deny Martin long-term disability (LTD) benefits pursuant to the Plan. For the foregoing reasons, we affirm the district court.

SUTTON, Chief Judge. Darrick Bell transformed a Detroit motel into the base for a drug dealing enterprise. A jury convicted Bell of three related counts of drug distribution, and the district court sentenced him to a below-guidelines sentence of 336 months. We affirm.

The Petitioner, Jason Henderson, Jr., appeals the Madison County Circuit Court’s denial of his petition for post-conviction relief, claiming that he received the ineffective assistance of trial counsel. Based upon our review, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

Defendant, Gerry Stitts, appeals from his jury convictions for rape of a child and aggravated sexual battery, for which he is serving an effective sentence of thirty-five years. On appeal, he argues that the evidence is insufficient to support his convictions and that the trial court erred by denying his motion for new trial based upon newly discovered evidence. After a thorough review of the record and applicable law, we affirm.

The Defendant, Sharod Demon Greer, was convicted by a jury of aggravated sexual battery and assault by offensive touching, for which the trial court imposed an effective sentence of twelve years’ imprisonment. On appeal, the Defendant contends that (1) the evidence was insufficient to support his aggravated sexual battery conviction because the State failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that any touching of the victim was sexually motivated and (2) the trial court failed to consider the purposes and principles of sentencing when it imposed the maximum in-range sentence for aggravated sexual battery because it did not explain why the sentence was more justly deserved than a lesser sentence. After review, we affirm.