Last week, a federal judge said the Trump administration’s response to his request for more information on recent Venezuelan deportation flights was insufficient and failed to show it complied with an earlier court ruling, The Hill reports. In a new order, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg said the Justice Department missed the deadline to hand over flight information. The department instead had submitted a declaration that “Cabinet Secretaries are currently actively considering whether to invoke the state secrets privilege.” Boasberg on Wednesday had given the administration an extension to today to respond to his request for detailed information about weekend flights that deported alleged Venezuelan gang members, despite his order to turn the planes around. Last week, Boasberg preemptively blocked efforts to deport Venezuelan nationals under the Alien Enemies Act (AEA) of 1798 after the ACLU sued over the plan.

A three-judge panel of the Tennessee Court of Appeals heard arguments Wednesday in a case that could determine the future size of the Metro Council. In 2023, the Tennessee General Assembly passed a law that would reduce the council's size from 40 to 20 members. In 2023 and again in 2024, a court placed an injunction on the law finding it to be unconstitutional under the state's Home Rule amendment, which prohibits legislation that specifically targets one local government. The state appealed that ruling, according to the Nashville Banner. During the hearing, Metro argued that the judges need not address the law's constitutionality and could rule that the council does not have to be reduced based on the law's plain language. The state countered that the law applies to all local governments in Tennessee and that Metro’s claim of exemption violated the Home Rule amendment. The judges did not indicate when a ruling would be issued. The next Metro elections are not scheduled until 2027.

A federal appeals court last week affirmed that a work of art generated by artificial intelligence without human input cannot be copyrighted under U.S. law. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit agreed with the U.S. Copyright Office, which had found that an image created by Stephen Thaler's AI system "DABUS" was not entitled to copyright protection, and that only works with human authors can be copyrighted, according to Reuters. The Copyright Office also has rejected artists' bids for copyrights on images generated by the AI system Midjourney. Thaler's attorney said he and his client "strongly disagree" with the ruling and intend to appeal. U.S. Circuit Judge Patricia Millett, writing for a unanimous three-judge panel, said U.S. copyright law "requires all work to be authored in the first instance by a human being."

An inmate who died at the Shelby County Jail in 2024 died from heart disease, according to an official autopsy report. Lawrence Sumlin died in the jail's intake area. Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner Jr. initially attributed the death to a "medical emergency," the Daily Memphian reports. Sumlin had been arrested for theft and was homeless at the time of his death. According to the autopsy, he had a history of high blood pressure, seizure disorder, poor compliance with medications and substance abuse. The autopsy also stated Sumlin had two "altercations" with inmates on the day he was brought in. Sumlin is one of 60 inmates who have died at the Shelby County Jail since 2019. Four inmates died last month, one by suicide, one from an overdose and two from undetermined "medical emergencies," according to the sheriff's office.

West Tennessee Legal Services (WTLS) will host a virtual Simple Wills & POAs clinic for clients across West Tennessee on March 27 and 28. Attorneys can volunteer from anywhere and will be scheduled based on their availability. They will use WTLS automation software to complete documents with clients. Volunteers will receive specific times to call clients while WTLS will handle coordination for document signing. Volunteers can sign up by the end of this week. To volunteer please fill out the WTLS online form.

The Tennessee Bar Association again this year will honor the work of Tennessee journalists through the Fourth Estate Award, which honors courageous reporting on justice and the law. This year's prize, honoring reporting in 2024, includes a $250 honorarium for the winner. The TBA strongly supports freedom of expression under the First Amendment, as exercised by lawyers on behalf of their clients and by journalists on behalf of the public, and particularly wants to recognize and encourage journalists who promote public understanding of the rule of law and our system of justice through vigorous exercise of their First Amendment rights. The deadline for entry is April 30. Attorneys who have relationships with reporters or observed a particularly compelling piece of journalism in 2024 are encouraged to submit a nomination. Read about past recipients here and read the TBA's full press release.

The Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) on behalf of the Tennessee Supreme Court has proposed a new structure for handling the appointment of attorneys in indigent cases. One question that has been raised is how the practice of law will change if the plan is enacted. In a recent interview with TBA President Ed Lanquist Jr., AOC staff explained that the new system should improve administrative processes for those who take appointed civil cases. Lawyers no longer will have to apply for reimbursement through the ACAP system and will not be subject to caps. Flat fees for misdemeanor cases will be paid out quicker and with less paperwork. And while there will be some reporting requirements, they will not be as onerous as required under the current system. Those who currently have hourly contracts for capital cases will not see any real changes as they already enjoy many of the benefits provided by the new plan. Watch the full interview or learn more about the plan and indigent representation in Tennessee.

A nonprofit group that advocates for students with disabilities and individuals whose discrimination complaints have been put on hold are suing the U.S. Education Department over cuts to the Office for Civil Rights (OCR). According to Bloomberg Law, the department has eliminated seven of OCR’s 12 regional offices and left only “skeleton staffing” at the remaining offices. “These actions harm students and their families who rely on the Department to ensure their access to educational opportunities, as required by the federal civil rights laws Congress charges OCR to enforce,” the complaint says. A similar suit filed by a group of states is challenging the department’s plan to fire 1,378 employees. The reduction in force will undermine the department’s ability to perform work mandated by federal law, that suit says. The National Center for Youth Law and Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates, Inc. are representing the plaintiffs.

The Trump administration has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on three preliminary injunctions issued by federal district judges in Seattle, Maryland and Massachusetts, which bar the government from implementing the president’s executive order ending birthright citizenship in certain situations. The court is giving the other side until April 4 to respond, according to SCOTUSblog. The executive order made it official government policy that children born to mothers not legally in the country or here temporarily, and whose fathers are not citizens or lawful permanent residents at the time of the birth, would not automatically become citizens of the country.

Legislation proposing state intervention in Memphis-Shelby County Schools (MSCS) passed its first hurdle in the Tennessee House's K-12 Education Subcommittee Tuesday morning, the Commercial Appeal reports. The bill now moves to the full Education Committee though no date for consideration has been set. The bill, if enacted, would establish a state-appointed board to assume control of school systems in four specific situations: when 30% of student grades are D or F, when the district falls into the bottom 5% of statewide performance, when there is 25% chronic absenteeism rate for students or when a vote of no confidence is taken by the local government body. Sponsor Rep. Mark White, R-Memphis, says he has been working on the proposal for two years and believes the move is in the best fiscal interest of the state due to the amount of money provided to MSCS.