The need for free, civil legal services continues to grow at exponential rates. Laura Brown, executive director of Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services (TALS), shares about the work that Equal Justice Works Fellows Tomi Robb and Nick Gau are moving forward in housing and disaster resilience.

Those of us who went to law school used to know what a trust was, but in Tennessee we need to update our understanding. The traditional view says a “settlor” transfers assets to a “trustee,” who holds, invests, manages and distributes the assets for the benefit of, and owes fiduciary duties to, the “beneficiaries,” pursuant to the terms of the trust instrument. Eddy Smith untangles what a trust can actually mean under the Tennessee Trust Code in this issue's Where There's a Will column.

In theory, we all want to do pro bono work, but we often beg off for a number of reasons. We’re too busy. We don’t do litigation. We don’t feel comfortable with the subject matter. And most often, we just don’t know where to start.

Well, let’s try to demystify pro bono.

The legal system was created by lawyers, for lawyers. The nuances of the constitution, its amendments, laws and ordinances were never intended to be navigated by laypeople. Additionally, in most states, the law forbids anyone other than a lawyer from offering legal advice or representation in court. The unauthorized practice of law can result in legal consequences that would discourage many from even trying. So, if you cannot afford an attorney in a civil matter, where can you turn for legal help?

Read more from DarKenya Waller, executive director of the Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands.

Chattanooga lawyer Russell Fowler will receive the prestigious Justice Joseph W. Henry Award for Outstanding Legal Writing on June 16 during the Tennessee Bar Association’s (TBA) Annual Convention in Knoxville. The award, which will be presented at the Lawyers Luncheon, was established nearly 40 years ago and is given each year to the lawyer who writes the most outstanding article published in the Tennessee Bar Journal for the preceding year.  Fowler is being recognized for his article "Tennessee Lawyers Impact America: A History of Advancing the Right to Vote" and companion piece "Dunn v. Blumstein: A Young Tennessee Lawyer Wins Expansion of the Right to Vote, which ran in the March/April 2022 issue of the Journal. Fowler is director of litigation and advocacy at Legal Aid of East Tennessee. He has written many pieces on law and legal history, and is a regular columnist for the Journal. Read the full release.