View the Tennessee Supreme Court's Order soliciting comments to proposed amendments to Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 21 with Appendix, filed January 15, 2021 under ADM2020-01728. 
Document link: https://www.knoxbar.org/docDownload/1703397

The Blount County Circuit Court has announced that effective immediately, any garnishments filed in Blount County must use the new form.

View the new form here. 

United States Bankruptcy Judgeship Eastern District of Tennessee

Notice of Vacancy

The Sixth Circuit Judicial Council is soliciting applications from persons interested in appointment as a United States Bankruptcy Judge for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Greeneville. This position is vacant due to the retirement of United States Bankruptcy Judge Marcia Phillips Parsons.

United States Bankruptcy Judges exercise highly important judicial powers and responsibilities as officers of the United States District Courts. All bankruptcy cases under Title 11, United States Code, and all proceedings arising under Title 11 or arising in or related to a case under Title 11 are referred to the Bankruptcy Judges of a district. A person appointed as Bankruptcy Judge should have the character, ability and impartiality to qualify such person for service in the Federal Judiciary. The term of office is 14 years with a possible renewal appointment in accordance with the Regulations for the Reappointment of United States Bankruptcy Judges adopted by the Judicial Conference of the United States and the Sixth Circuit Judicial Council Procedures for the Reappointment of Bankruptcy Judges. The current salary of the position is $199,088.

Bankruptcy Judges are appointed by the United States Court of Appeals pursuant to the Bankruptcy Amendments and Federal Judgeship Act of 1984, P.L. 98-353, 98 Stat. 345, and regulations promulgated by the Judicial Conference of the United States. The Court of Appeals will make an appointment to this vacancy from a list of at least three nominees submitted to it by the Sixth Circuit Judicial Council.

Qualifications. To be qualified for appointment as a bankruptcy judge, an applicant must possess the following minimum qualifications:

(a) Be a member in good standing of the bar of the highest court of at least one state, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and a member in good standing of every other bar of which the applicant is a member.

(b) The applicant must have engaged in the active practice of law for at least five years (with some substitutions authorized).

(c) The applicant must possess the following abilities or characteristics: (1) competence to perform the duties of the office; (2) integrity and good character; (3) commitment to equal justice under the law; (4) sound physical and mental health; (5) outstanding legal ability and competence as evidenced by ability to deal with complex legal problems, aptitude for legal scholarship and writing, and familiarity with courts and court processes; (6) demeanor, character and personality that would exhibit good judicial temperament.

(d) An applicant may not be related to a judge of the appointing Court of Appeals or Judicial Council of the Circuit, or to a judge of the District Court to be served, by blood or marriage within the degree of first cousin.

The selection process is confidential and may take up to 12 months or longer to complete. Persons shall be considered without regard to race, color, sex, gender, gender identity, pregnancy, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, age (40 years and over), or disability. The selected nominee will be required to satisfy FBI and IRS background investigations prior to appointment and must comply with the financial disclosure requirements of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, Pub. L. No. 95-521 (1978) (codified at 5 U.S.C. app. §§ 101-111).

Interested applicants may obtain a Bankruptcy Judge Application from the Circuit Executive’s Office or by accessing the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit website at www.ca6.uscourts.gov. Persons interested in applying for this position should send their application to: Office of the Circuit Executive, 503 Potter Stewart United States Courthouse, 100 East Fifth Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202. Applications are to be submitted only by the applicant personally and must be received by January 6, 2021. Candidates whose applications are not received by the closing date will not be considered.

The U.S. Courts is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

View the announcement online here. 

The Tennessee Supreme Court today extended the deadline for comments on a proposal from the Nashville Bar Association that would require all attorneys to complete two hours of continuing education in diversity, inclusion, equity and elimination of bias. Those who would like to comment on the proposal now have until March 3, 2021, to do so. The TBA requested the extension to allow time for its House of Delegates and Board of Governors to consider the issue at meetings in January and February.

The Knoxville Bar Association (KBA) is pleased to announce the release of PLANNING AHEAD: A GUIDE TO PROTECTING YOUR CLIENTS’ INTERESTS IN THE EVENT OF YOUR DISABILITY OR DEATH handbook to help members fulfill their ethical obligations to protect their clients' interests in the event of death, disability, impairment, or incapacity. Although it is hard to think about events that could render a lawyer unable to continue practicing law, freak accidents, unexpected illness, and untimely death do occur. Following the suggestions in this handbook will help to protect the clients' interests and will help to make the law practice a valuable asset to the attorney’s estate. In addition, it will simplify the closure of the law office - a step a lawyer’s family and colleagues will very much appreciate.

All of the forms contained in the publication are available on the KBA website and sample forms can be downloaded in Word for easy customization. 

• Short and long form agreement. Agreement forms for clarifying your arrangement with assisting attorney for closing your office and authorized signers on your lawyer trust account and law firm general account.
• Limited power of attorney. A power of attorney form limited to authorizing your agent or attorney-in-fact to handle your lawyer trust account, law firm general bank accounts and law firm safe deposit box or boxes.
• Specimen signature of attorney-in-fact (notarized). It is always a good idea to attach a notarized specimen signature of the attorney-in-fact to a power of attorney document, as it helps with authentication.
• Letter of understanding. This provides written instructions to another person to hold the limited power of attorney until notified of your impairment and to then release it to your authorized signer. This can put an extra safeguarding step into turning over the authority to sign trust account checks.
• Sample will provisions. There are sample will provisions that would be necessary in the event of your death, so that the named personal representative is directed to carry out your agreement with your assisting attorney, or in the alternative, for your personal representative to have sole authority to wind down your law practice, notify clients or attempt to sell your law practice in compliance with ethics rules.
• Letters of notification. There are sample letters to advise that the lawyer is unable to continue in practice, is closing the law office or from a firm offering to continue representation.
• Authorization for transferring client file. The client needs to consent to the transfer of his or her client file. This sample allows the client to direct where to send it.
• Request for client file. This is a sample request to have a copy of client file documents be sent directly to the client.
• Office closure file tracking chart. This chart can help keep track of which clients have been contacted, what instructions have been received and when files have been sent.
• Law office list of contacts. This is a great document for gathering all the important information for your assisting attorney, including computer, email and voice mail passwords!

By planning ahead, you gain the peace of mind of knowing that should some unexpected emergency require the closure of your office — short- or long-term or even permanently — your clients will be protected. This peace of mind is then shared with your clients, your family and your colleagues.

ADM2020-01159

The Court is soliciting written comments on proposed amendments to Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 21, section 3.01(a) of the Rules of the Tennessee Supreme Court requires each attorney admitted to practice in the State of Tennessee to obtain fifteen hours of continuing legal education (“CLE”) in each compliance year. On August 28, 2020, the Nashville Bar Association (“NBA”) filed a petition asking this Court to modify Rule 21, section 3.01(a) to require each attorney to complete two hours of the required fifteen in diversity, inclusion, equity, and elimination of bias. Comment deadline: December 30, 2020. Comments should reference the docket number and should be e-mailed to appellatecourtclerk@tncourts.gov or mailed to: James M. Hivner, Clerk, Tennessee Appellate Courts, 100 Supreme Court Building, 401 7th Avenue North, Nashville, TN 37219-1407.

Click here to view the Order.

The Knoxville Bar Association sent a survey to KBA members on September 2 to get input on event planning in 2020-2021. Members were asked to complete the ten-question survey by 5 pm on September 21. 30% of the attorney members of the KBA completed the survey.

The complete survey results can be found here.

Summary:

• The majority of members indicate that they would attend in-person events in Spring or Summer 2021, with an equal number indicating that they are unsure at this time.
• Members would feel most comfortable attending in-person events if staff and attendees wore masks. Limiting the group size or the facility to 50% of capacity was somewhat important.  
• 29% of members feel that the availability of a vaccine would impact their decision to attend live events.
• The majority of members would feel comfortable with temperature checks, answering questions about COVID-19 symptoms, and disclosing recent travel.

The KBA thanks everyone who completed the survey to assist with our planning in 2020-2021.

Applications Being Accepted for Sixth Judicial District Chancery Court Vacancy

The Trial Court Vacancy Commission is accepting applications for a Chancellor in the Sixth Judicial District, which covers Knox County. This vacancy was created by the retirement of Judge Michael W. Moyers, effective Jan. 23 of next year. Qualified applicants must be licensed attorneys who are at least 30 years of age, have been residents of the state for five years and are residents of the Sixth Judicial District. Those interested should submit the Trial Court Vacancy Commission Application to the Administrative Office of the Courts by noon CDT on Sept. 30. The commission will hold a hearing virtually via Zoom on Oct. 29 at 10 a.m. EDT. It will be live streamed for the public on the AOC’s YouTube page. Those who wish to address the commission to express their objection or support concerning an applicant must email Ceesha Lofton or call 615-741-2687 by 4 p.m. CDT on Oct. 14. Read more about the vacancy on the AOC’s website. 

Applications Sought for Knox Circuit Court Vacancy