A Nashville man who has spent nearly two decades in prison for a 2005 murder he maintains he did not commit is awaiting a final decision from Gov. Bill Lee after the Tennessee Board of Parole recommended his exoneration. According to the Tennessean, Thomas Clardy was convicted of first-degree murder but has long asserted his innocence, a claim his attorneys and supporters — including the Tennessee Innocence Project — persuaded a majority of the board to support in February. The board’s recommendation is nonbinding, leaving Lee to determine whether to formally exonerate Clardy. In interviews, Clardy described a mix of relief and frustration as he continues to wait in prison, having previously been released for nearly two years before an appellate court reversed that decision in 2025.

The U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals has dismissed a request from three former Memphis police officers charged in Tyré Nichols’ death, which would have allowed them to conduct discovery into alleged disparaging comments by then U.S. District Judge Mark Norris. According to the Daily Memphian, the men — Tadarrius Bean, Demetrius Haley and Justin Smith — were seeking to overturn U.S. District Judge Sheryl Lipman's ruling on discovery, which she rejected when she granted new trials to the former officers. In documents filed this week, the 6th Circuit said it lacked jurisdiction to consider the cross-appeals, noting defendants cannot challenge interlocutory decisions in that manner. It did, however, say that the former officers may raise their arguments at a later stage. Meanwhile, the government's appeal of Lipman's ruling granting a new trial is still pending before the court.

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings has launched a Medical Office Buildings Team to serve clients in the medical real estate market, the Nashville Post reports. The team will be led by Nashville-based real estate partners Robert Leonard and Elizabeth Sauer, along with Dallas-based counsel Lawrence McFarland. Composed of real estate and health care attorneys, the group will advise clients on regulatory requirements, zoning laws and health care-specific compliance issues, and provide counsel on medical office building projects and the formation of investment vehicles. The team also will structure joint ventures, assist with financing and work with borrowers and lenders. “Our robust team of health care real estate attorneys regularly assists clients with medical real estate assets that not only serve as premier investment opportunities, but also as vital continuum-of-care delivery hubs,” Leonard said in a press release.

A new study finds that earning a law degree increases graduates’ earnings by an average of 59%, trailing only medicine and pharmacy degrees, Reuters reports. Average income rose from about $55,500 before law school to more than $132,500 after graduation. The study also found that higher-ranked law schools tend to produce greater financial returns, aligning with American Bar Association data showing elite institutions send more graduates into large law firms with starting salaries of about $225,000. After accounting for the relatively high cost of law school, researchers found a law degree still yields a 41% earnings boost.

The Knoxville Bar Foundation recently announced it will award grants to local law-related projects and programs in June, continuing a longstanding effort that has distributed more than $600,000 in funding since its inception. Individual grants typically are $5,000 or less, and applications are due by April 30. Funding may not be used for operating costs or endowments. The foundation encourages interested organizations to apply and learn more on its website.

The Tennessee Bar Association (TBA) and Tennessee’s American Inns of Court are now accepting nominations for the 2026 Judge Pamela L. Reeves Tennessee Professionalism Award. The annual award is presented to a lawyer or judge whose life and practice display sterling character and unquestioned integrity, coupled with ongoing dedication to the highest standards of the rule of law and the highest standards of the legal profession in Tennessee. This year's award will be presented to a lawyer or judge residing in the Eastern Grand Division. Nominees must be alive when nominations are submitted but they need not be an active member of an American Inn of Court or the TBA. The award will be presented at the TBA's Annual Convention, which will be held in Knoxville June 10-13. The deadline for submitting nominations is May 8. See past recipients of the award.

Save the date for the TBA's 2026 Business Law Forum! The full-day program will take place on May 5 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. CDT at the new TBA office in Nashville. This year’s program will focus on artificial intelligence and its impact on business law, offering sessions on AI fundamentals, legal and cybersecurity considerations, contract drafting and ethics. Designed for attorneys at all experience levels, the forum will provide practical insights and strategies for integrating AI into legal practice. For featured speakers and registration information, visit the TBA website.

Jones Day said hackers breached the law firm and accessed the files of 10 clients, Bloomberg Law reports. A prolific cybercriminal group known as Silent took credit for the attack, listing Jones Day among its victims on an extortion website. “Jones Day recently experienced a cyber ‘phishing’ incident in which an unauthorized third party accessed a limited number of dated files for 10 clients,” a spokesperson said in a statement. “All impacted clients have been notified.” The identities of the affected clients were not immediately clear. Silent specifically targets U.S. law firms, taking advantage of the “the highly sensitive nature of legal industry data,” according to a 2025 FBI alert. Jones Day was also hit by a cyberattack in 2021.

The state Department of Revenue on Monday extended the deadlines for franchise and excise tax filing to May 22 for businesses located in counties that were designated federal disaster areas as a result of January’s winter storm Fern. Those include Davidson, Williamson, Wilson, Cheatham and more. Those affected will have additional time to file returns and make payments that were due beginning with Jan. 22. Due dates after May 22 will not be altered or extended. Read more in a press release or official notice from the department.

Tennessee Attorney General (AG) Jonathan Skrmetti on Monday sent a letter to Acting U.S. AG Todd Blanche, asking the Department of Justice (DOJ) to reconsider its proposed rule that any ethics complaints made against DOJ attorneys would be reviewed by the department before a state, territory or District of Columbia disciplinary investigation could occur. The letter reads, in part, "While the Proposed Rule responds to a real problem, it unconstitutionally infringes on the prerogatives of the state judiciary contrary to the Tenth Amendment and black-letter federal law," and that the proposal "risks eroding key structural components of our constitutional order by intruding on the States' authority to regulate the legal profession and Congress's choice to reinforce that traditional role for the States with respect to attorneys for the federal government." Read the letter here. In related news, the American Bar Association and a group of 20 attorneys general also filed comments opposing the rule. Reuters reports on the state group.