The Tennessee Supreme Court has appointed a three-judge panel to hear a dispute over control of the Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport Authority, Chattanoogan.com reports. The panel includes Hamilton County Chancellor Jeff Atherton, who will serve as chief judge, along with 21st Judicial District Circuit Court Judge Joseph Woodruff and 28th Judicial District Chancellor Michael Mansfield. The appointment comes as the new state-appointed airport board seeks to dismiss the lawsuit filed by the locally appointed board and replace that board's attorney, John Konvalinka with Grant Konvalinka & Harrison. Chattanooga lawyer and former U.S. Attorney Sandy Mattice with the Mattice Group filed a motion to represent the new state-appointed board, dismiss the suit and dismiss Konvalinka.

A new Memphis group has joined a network of local organizations supporting the state takeover of Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS). According to Chalkbeat, Together4Students launched in May and advocates for using the state intervention to pursue ambitious achievement goals, including doubling the number of students in high-performing schools by 2035. The group also is seeking 2,500 signatures for a petition calling on MSCS to drop its lawsuit challenging the state takeover, with more than 300 signatures collected as of Tuesday. Although the group supports the new oversight board, founder Henry Jones said Together4Students is committed to improving the district regardless of who is in charge. In early July, a federal judge temporarily blocked the state board from beginning operations.

Retired Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Thomas T. Woodall was honored July 14 with the unveiling of his official judicial portrait at the Tennessee Supreme Court building in Nashville. Woodall, who served on the Court of Criminal Appeals for 24 years, including six years as presiding judge, retired in 2020 after a legal career that included private practice, service as an assistant district attorney and leadership on the appellate bench. During the ceremony, Tennessee Supreme Court Chief Justice Jeff Bivins and Court of Appeals Judge Tim Easter praised Woodall's collegial leadership, mentorship and commitment to justice, while portrait artist Frank Morris reflected on the role judicial portraits play in preserving the history of Tennessee's courts. Read more about the ceremony or about Woodall's career from the Administrative Office of the Courts.

Access to courts at the Walter L. Bailey Criminal Justice Center in downtown Memphis continue to be affected by a recent water main break. According to the Daily Memphian, on nine of the past 17 weekdays, parts of the building have been closed, often with little public notice for residents appearing for scheduled court dates. Most recently, the city closed Memphis Municipal Courts Divisions 1, 2 and 3 and the Memphis City Court Clerk’s Office on Monday and Tuesday of this week. The Shelby County Mayor’s Office chief of staff said Tuesday that Divisions 1 and 2 should reopen today. Ongoing repairs are being made on the building’s lower level after a water-main break flooded portions of the facility. The city said residents should “contact the appropriate court directly” for information about rescheduling their cases.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has ruled in two cases that a prior product liability decision does not require dismissal of a lawsuit over a fatal accident involving use of a seatbelt extender with a child’s booster seat. The case arose from a 2013 head-on collision that killed Benjamin Woodruff and seriously injured his 6-year-old son, Ethan, after the booster seat restraint allegedly released during the crash. The boy's mother, Sarah Woodruff, subsequently sued Ford Motor Co. and Dorel Juvenile Group, alleging the companies failed to warn consumers about the dangers of using a seatbelt extender to secure a booster seat. In the opinion, the high court held that its 2021 decision in Coffman v. Armstrong International Inc. did not bar failure-to-warn claims involving the combined use of two products. It thus found the Court of Appeals erred in dismissing the claims on that basis. Read more in a press release from the Administrative Office of the Courts or read the first opinion and the second opinion.

Early voting is off to a strong start across Tennessee, with voter participation running well ahead of the pace during the state's last gubernatorial primary, WJHL reports. According to election data, more than 122,000 voters cast ballots during the first three days of early voting for the Aug. 6 primary, putting turnout more than 50% ahead of where it stood at the same point in 2022. The election also marks the first statewide primary held under Tennessee's new congressional district boundaries. Early voting continues through Aug. 1 ahead of the Aug. 6 primary.

The Tennessee Department of Correction (TDOC) declined to respond to a lawmaker's request for details about the failed execution of death row inmate Tony Carruthers. According to WJHL, Rep. Jody Barrett, R-Dickson, requested information from the department about what changes, if any, had been made to prevent a similar incident from happening in the future. Barrett gave TDOC until Monday to respond. In the request, he asked whether the department had implemented new training, revised procedures, strengthened oversight or adopted additional safeguards before the scheduled Aug. 13 execution of Darrell Hines. TDOC responded in a letter Tuesday, saying it would not comment because the issues are the subject of ongoing litigation. The department also said it remains committed to fulfilling its legal obligations and complying with state law.

The TBA will rebroadcast its Legislative Update from this summer's Convention on July 30 from noon to 1 p.m. CDT. The program will review legislation from the most recent session of the General Assembly with a focus on how these measures affect Tennessee lawyers. Join TBA's government affairs team Brad Lampley and Ashley Harbin of Adams & Reese and Berkley Schwarz of Pier Strategies as they discuss key legislative developments and the impact on the legal profession. Learn more and register on the TBA website.

Make plans now to attend TBA's Topgolf Estate Planning Tee-off on Aug. 21 at Topgolf Nashville. Designed for newer estate planning practitioners, this annual favorite is a rare opportunity to build practice knowledge and fine-tune your drive game all in one day. This year's speakers include Davidson County Circuit Court Judge Andra Hedrick, Charles Frazier with the Law Offices of Charles R. Frazier, Michael Goode with Lewis Thomason, Robert Hazard with Hazard Law, Rob Malin with Pinnacle Financial Partners and Ashley Stearns with Trail, Coleman & Stearns. The package includes three general hours of CLE, breakfast, lunch and two hours of Topgolf after the presentations. Estate Planning & Probate Section members receive a discounted rate to attend. Space is limited, so register now before it’s too late!

The Tennessee Supreme Court continued its longstanding SCALES (Supreme Court Advancing Legal Education for Students) program this year, engaging with rising high school seniors at both Volunteer Girls State and Volunteer Boys State. Justices Sarah Campbell and Mary Wagner took part in the 80th American Legion Auxiliary (ALA) Volunteer Girls State (VGS) session at Lipscomb University, where they held a candid fireside chat that ALA VGS Chair Jenise Gordon said gives the roughly 500 attendees "permission to be ambitious and uncertain at the same time." Meanwhile, Chief Justice Jeff Bivins and colleagues visited the 87th Volunteer Boys State at Tennessee Tech University, where 400 young men observed oral arguments and interacted with justices off the bench. Since 1995, SCALES has brought the state's judiciary directly to these mock-government programs — which together have educated tens of thousands of Tennessee students since the 1940s — with organizers crediting the experience for inspiring many delegates to pursue law careers. Read more in a press release from the Administrative Office of the Courts.