News
June 26, 2007
NASHVILLE, June 26, 2007. Lance Bracy, former chief disciplinary counsel at the Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility, was awarded the Justice Frank F. Drowota III Award for Outstanding Judicial Service during the Tennessee Bar Association's annual convention in Nashville.Named for former…
June 26, 2007
Court of Criminal Appeals Judge D. Kelly Thomas of Maryville has been elected president of the 178-member Tennessee Judicial Conference (TJC), which includes all state appellate and trial court judges.Thomas succeeded Chancellor Jeffrey Stewart, of the 12th Judicial District, including Bledsoe,…
June 27, 2007
Governor Bredesen today appointed Michael H. Meares as Circuit Court Judge for Division II in the 5th Judicial District of Tennessee. Meares, who serves as a practicing attorney and partner at the law firm Dungan & Meares, fills the vacancy created by the appointment of Judge D. Kelly Thomas to…
July 24, 2007
Improving conditions for thousands of Tennesseans who receive notices every year to render verdicts in civil and criminal trials and encouraging participation on juries are among the missions of a new committee created by the Tennessee Judicial Council.
The panel will review state laws dealing with…
July 25, 2007
Chancellor J. Steven Stafford of Dyersburg has been named Trial Judge of the Year by members of the Tennessee Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA).“ABOTA is an invitation-only organization of plaintiff and defense lawyers which seeks to promote professionalism, courtesy and the…
July 30, 2007
Court of Appeals Judge Charles Susano received a 2007 Spirit of the Americans With Disabilities Act award during a ceremony in Knoxville. Lillian Burch, executive director of the Knoxville Disability Resource Center, said Susano is "a good example of an individual who has continued working in the…
August 8, 2007
Tennessee Supreme Court Chief Justice William M. Barker has been elected to a two-year term on the 14-member Board of Directors for the Conference of Chief Justices (CCJ) at the organization’s annual meeting in Michigan.
CCJ’s membership includes the highest judicial officers from all 50 states,…
August 9, 2007
Nashville - Governor Phil Bredesen today appointed John T. Fowlkes Jr., of Memphis as Criminal Court Judge for the 30th Judicial District, Division VI, in Shelby County. Fowlkes, who currently serves as Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) responsible for the overall management of day-to-day…
August 13, 2007
NASHVILLE - Governor Phil Bredesen has appointed Kenneth F. Irvine Jr. of Knoxville, Tenn., to serve as special criminal court judge for Knox County effective Monday, August 20. Irvine currently serves as an assistant district attorney for Knox County."The experience Ken Irvine brings to this…
August 15, 2007
Defendants may be eligible for the death penalty in Tennessee if they have scored at least 70 on IQ tests before age 18, regardless of later lower scores, the Tennessee Supreme Court said in a case involving a man charged with beating a Bledsoe County store owner to death during a 2001 robbery.
In…
August 21, 2007
Circuit Court Judge Robert L. Childers of Memphis has been appointed chair of the American Bar Association (ABA) Commission on Lawyers Assistance Programs (CoLAP), which provides help for legal professionals and law school students with addiction, mental health and other issues that affect their…
August 23, 2007
Circuit Court Judge Don Ash of the 16th Judicial District, including Rutherford and Cannon counties, has been elected presiding judge of the Tennessee Court of the Judiciary. The 15-member panel receives complaints against judges and imposes sanctions for violations of the Code of Judicial Conduct…
September 13, 2007
Future attorneys attending the Nashville School of Law will have an opportunity to hear oral arguments in three Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals cases without leaving campus.A three-member panel of the Court of Criminal Appeals, with Judge Jerry Smith presiding, will sit at 6 p.m. Sept. 18 in an…
September 18, 2007
Nashville – Governor Phil Bredesen today appointed Dickson County native Andy D. Bennett to fill a position on the Tennessee Court of Appeals, Middle Section.“Andy Bennett has developed extensive experience in his career with the Office of Attorney General, bringing both administrative experience…
October 16, 2007
Students from six public and private 5th Judicial District high schools will hear arguments in three state Supreme Court cases Thursday, Oct. 25, in Maryville as participants in a program that educates young Tennesseans about the judicial branch of government.The 420 students and their teachers…
November 5, 2007
Courthouses in 83 counties will become safer soon with the additions of new security equipment to be purchased with $2 million appropriated by the Tennessee General Assembly.
“As you may be aware, the Supreme Court requested, and the governor included, $2 million in the court system’s budget for…
November 13, 2007
Abused and neglected children, disabled and rural attorneys, high school students and substance-addicted mothers are among thousands of Tennesseans who will benefit from $1.2 million awarded to organizations across the state.Excess fees and penalties collected from attorneys by the Commission on…
November 15, 2007
Children will leave the Hamblen County Chancery Courtroom in Morristown on Saturday with new permanent families, new names and new Teddy bears, following a special 9 a.m. adoption ceremony to be conducted by Chancellor Thomas (Skip) Frierson.“This is the fourth year we’ve celebrated National…
November 26, 2007
Most jury service exemptions would be eliminated under proposed legislation that would overhaul state laws detailing how jurors are selected in Tennessee.The proposal will be considered when the Tennessee Judicial Council meets at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC),…
December 10, 2007
Governor Phil Bredesen has appointed Kenneth F. Irvine Jr. of Knoxville, Tenn., to fill the vacancy on the Knox County Criminal Court, Division II. The vacancy was created by the death of Judge Ray Lee Jenkins. Bredesen first appointed Irvine as Special Judge in August to fill the seat on a…