News
December 15, 2021
The Tennessee Supreme Court announced today that Deputy Director Michelle Long will become the next Director of the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC). Long was appointed Deputy Director in 2019 and has over 25 years of experience in private practice, government, and in-house counsel offices…
AOC Director Tate Honored at Annual Tennessee Association of Recovery Court Professionals Conference
December 14, 2021
Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) Director Deborah Taylor Tate was honored by the Tennessee Association of Recovery Court Professionals (TARCP) for her work with the organization and individuals struggling with substance misuse. Director Tate announced earlier this month that she will leave…
December 13, 2021
The Tennessee Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates presented the Judicial Excellence Award to Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle for her outstanding contributions towards Tennessee’s fair and impartial rulings, in addition to her leadership in and out the courtroom. Chancellor Lyle serves as…
December 9, 2021
The Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments met today to consider nine applicants for the Tennessee Supreme Court vacancy. After holding a public hearing and conducting public interviews, the Council selected the following applicants:…
December 9, 2021
Students from 15 Middle Tennessee high schools gathered in Columbia last week to hear two live court cases pending before the Tennessee Supreme Court as part of the SCALES project, which stands for Supreme Court Advancing the Legal Education for Students. The project, founded in 1995, has touched…
December 8, 2021
Judge William Andrew Lockhart realized his elementary school dream, when he was sworn in as judge of the 14th Judicial District Circuit Court of Tennessee, which covers Coffee County. Judge Lockhart was sworn in August, filling the vacancy left by the Honorable L. Craig Johnson. “I took the…
December 7, 2021
In an opinion released today, the Tennessee Supreme Court upheld the death sentence for Urshawn Miller who was convicted of murdering an employee of the convenience store that he attempted to rob in Jackson, Tennessee. On the night of November 25, 2015, Mr. Miller entered the Bull Market…
December 7, 2021
Four Tennessee judges recently attended the 15th Annual Judicial Symposium on Civil Justice Issues, sponsored by the Law & Economics Center (LEC) of George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School.“The program presented discussions of a variety of issues currently being faced by our legal…
December 3, 2021
Chancellor Pamela Fleenor, 11th Judicial District, was excited and honored to swear-in her daughter, Christina Michelle Fleenor, on November 17.
“She asked me. She said, ‘Mom, do you want to swear me in?’ And I said, ‘sure.’ The other choice this year was to do it virtually by the Supreme…
December 2, 2021
Tate is credited with historic innovations, modernization of the court system, child welfare reforms and innovative national pilot projects Deborah Taylor Tate, Director of the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) for the Tennessee Supreme Court, will leave her current role in early 2022…
November 29, 2021
The Tennessee Supreme Court today reinstated the conviction of a defendant for premeditated first-degree murder. The Court determined that there was sufficient proof of premeditation to support the jury’s verdict and also concluded that the introduction of evidence about gang membership did…
November 22, 2021
First Judicial District Circuit Court Judge Jean A. Stanley is retiring next year, after 30 years of service to the people of Carter, Johnson, Unicoi and Washington Counties. She wanted to announce her retirement early to give those who are interested in taking her place time to establish…
November 22, 2021
An early Thanksgiving celebration took place at the Hawkins County Courthouse Friday, in honor of National Adoption Day. “It’s most apropos that we celebrate National Adoption Day through the season of Thanksgiving because in our community and communities all across America, adoptive…
November 19, 2021
The Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments will consider 11 applicants when it meets to select nominees for the Tennessee Supreme Court opening created by the passing of Justice Cornelia A. Clark on September 24, 2021.
The applicants are: …
November 18, 2021
The Tennessee Supreme Court Access to Justice Commission joins countless others in the legal and equal justice communities in mourning the loss of Sean A. Hunt. Hunt was initially appointed to the Commission in 2016 and was re-appointed for a second term in 2019. He served on and grew to become a…
November 18, 2021
The Tennessee Supreme Court has affirmed the three-year suspension of Nashville attorney Charles Edward Walker from the practice of law in Tennessee.A Board of Professional Responsibility hearing panel found that Mr. Walker violated multiple provisions of the Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct…
November 17, 2021
Judge Lanning P. Wynn is retiring after 43 years of service to the Sevierville Municipal Court, as the city’s first and only judge. “I started in December of 1979. I was appointed City Judge by then Mayor Gary Wade, who later went on to become Chief Justice of the Tennessee Supreme Court,”…
November 16, 2021
Chattanooga City Judge Sherry Paty received the Sharon G. Lee Award of Excellence at the 2021 Tennessee Municipal Judges Conference.The award is presented each year to a municipal judge who makes a significant contribution to the conference over his or her years of service to the bench. It was…
November 15, 2021
Chancellor George R. Ellis passed away on November 15, a day after his 73rd birthday.Chancellor Ellis served the 28th Judicial District, which includes Crockett, Gibson and Haywood counties, since 1993, and was re-elected four times.Prior to taking the bench as a chancellor, he served as a General…
November 15, 2021
A portrait of retired Davidson County Chancery Court Chancellor Claudia Bonnyman was recently completed by Nashville Artist, Illustrator and Storyboard Artist, J. William Myers.
Myers is an ADDY-award winning artist and illustrator of numerous posters, book covers, children’sbooks,magazines,murals…