DICTA.April 2017

Legal Update: Supreme Court Reviews Claim by Tennessee Resident Who Pled Guilty Based on Bad Immigration Advice . . . Page 11 Schooled in Ethics – Ethically Avoiding Client Fee Disputes . . . Page 21

A Monthly Publication of the Knoxville Bar Association | April 2017

IS PRESIDENT TRUMP AN “OLD HICKORY” FOR THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY?

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DICTA

April 2017

In This Issue

Officers of the Knoxville Bar Association

April 2017

Cover Story 16 Is President Trump

an “Old Hickory” for

the Twenty-First Century?

President President Elect Amanda M. Busby Keith H. Burroughs

Treasurer Wynne du Mariau Caffey-Knight

Immediate Past President Wayne R. Kramer

Secretary Hanson Tipton

KBA Board of Governors Dwight Aarons E. Michael Brezina III Kathryn Ellis Stephen Ross Johnson Lisa J. Hall

Dana C. Holloway Rachel P. Hurt Mary D. Miller Carrie S. O’Rear Mitchell Panter

M. Samantha Parris Cheryl G. Rice John E. Winters

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Lawyerpalooza 2.0—For Those About to Rock!

Knox County Juvenile Court: News from Division Street

Advocating More Intensely Without Intensifiers

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The Knoxville Bar Association Staff

Critical Focus

President’s Message Judicial News Practice Tips Legal Update

Supreme Court Reviews Claim

by Tennessee Resident Who Pled Guilty Based on Bad Immigration

Advice

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Management Counsel: Law Practice 101

Bring Your Dog to Work Day?

Schooled in Ethics

Ethically Avoiding Client Fee Disputes Marsha S. Watson Executive Director

Tammy Sharpe CLE & Sections Coordinator

Jonathan Guess Database Administrator

Lacey Dillon Programs Administrator

Knoxville Bar Association 505 Main Street Suite 50 Knoxville, TN 37902 865-522-6522 Fax: 865-523-5662 www.knoxbar.org

Tracy Chain LRIS Administrator

Adelyn Bryson LRIS Assistant

Volume 44, Issue 4

Dicta

DICTA is published monthly (except July) by the Knoxville Bar Association. It is designed to offer information of value to members of the local bar association. The news and features should illustrate the issues affecting the bar and its members. The opinions expressed do not necessarily represent those of the Knoxville Bar Association.

All articles submitted for publication in DICTA must be submitted in writing and in electronic format (via e-mail attachment).

Exceptions to this policy must be cleared

by KBA Executive Director Marsha Watson (522-6522).

Dicta subscriptions are available for $25 per year (11 issues) for non-KBA members.

April 2017

Dicta is the official publication of the Knoxville Bar Association

Publications Committee Executive Editor Executive Editor Executive Editor Editor Heidi A. Barcus Casey S. Carrigan Elizabeth B. Ford Joseph G. Jarret F. Regina Koho David E. Long

Cathy Shuck Chris W. McCarty Melissa B. Carrasco Lee Nutini Matthew R. Lyon Jack H. (Nick) McCall Jr. Angelia Morie Nystrom Katheryn Murray Ogle Melissa C. Reinders Ann C. Short

Managing Editor Marsha Watson

KBA Executive Director

DICTA

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Conventional Wisdom Hello My Name Is

Zachary Walden

Time Out

Adventure Traveling

Legally Weird

Behavior Modification?

Lawyer’s Almanac

April’s Never Fool

Outside My Office Window

One Buggy Love

Lawyer Hobbies

Women on the Greens

Thankworthy

A Jury for His Peers

Open Service Project

Open Service, Year Three: The Importance of Community

Book Review: Go Set a Watchman

by Harper Lee

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Well Read

Long Winded

Give Hamilton a Chance

Life Hacks

Hacking Stress Before It Hacks You

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Bill & Phil’s Gadget of the Month

SunnyCam

Life & Law in Harmony

Four Ways to Improve Your Resiliency

Legal Myth Breakers

…The Verdicts Will Never Perform Again

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Common Ground

Section Notices/Event Calendar Barrister Bullets Word Play Ask McLawyer Bench & Bar In the News Pro Bono Project Last Word

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EVENT CALENDAR & SECTION NOTICES

event

Section Notices

calendar

There is no additional charge for membership in any section, but in order to participate, your membership in the KBA must be current.

Alternative Dispute Resolution Section The ADR Section has monthly CLE programs planned through the end of the year. If you have program topic or speaker suggestions, please contact the ADR Section Chairs Kim Burnette (546-7000) or Dana Holloway (643-8720).

Bankruptcy Law Section The Bankruptcy Section will meet quarterly. To have your name added to the section list, please contact the KBA office at 522-6522. If you have program topic or speaker suggestions, please contact the Section Chairs Tom Dickenson (292-2307) or Greg Logue (215-1000).

Corporate Counsel The Corporate Counsel Section provides attorneys employed by a corporation or who limit their practice to direct representation of corporations with an opportunity to meet regularly and exchange ideas on issues of common concern. If you would like to get involved, please contact Section Chairs Marcia Kilby (362-1391) and David Headrick (599-0148).

Criminal Justice The KBA Criminal Justice Section represents all attorneys and judges who participate in the criminal justice system in Knox County. To have your name added to the section list, please contact the KBA office at 522-6522. If you would like further information on the Criminal Justice Section, please contact Section Chairs Joshua Headrick (524-8106) and Sarah Keith (215-2515).

Employment Law The Employment Law Section is intended for management and plaintiffs’ counsel, in addition to in-house and government attorneys. If you would like further information on the Employment Law Section or have suggestions for upcoming CLE programs, please contact the Employment Law Section co-chairs: Howard Jackson (546-1000), Tim Roberto (691-2777) or Mark C. Travis (252-9123).

Environmental Law The Environmental Law Section provides a forum for lawyers from a variety of backgrounds, including government, corporate in-house, and private firm counsel. For more information about the section, please contact Section Chairs LeAnn Mynatt (549-7000) or Jimmy Wright (637-3531).

Family Law Section The Family Law Section has speakers on family law topics or provides the opportunity to discuss issues relevant to family law practice. To have your name added to the section list, please contact the KBA office at 522-6522. For more information about the section, please contact Chairs Jo Ann Lehberger (539-3515) or Steve Sharp (971-4040).

Government & Public Service Section The Government & Public Service Section is open to all lawyers employed by any governmental entity, state, federal, or local, including judicial clerks and attorneys with legal service agencies. If you would like further information on the section, please contact Leah McClanahan (545-4260) or Ron Mills (215-2050).

Juvenile Court & Child Justice Section Members of the KBA are invited to join the KBA’s Juvenile Court & Child Justice Section, formerly the Unmet Legal Needs of Children Committee. For information about the Section, please contact Section Chairs Mike Stanuszek (696-1032) or Justin Pruitt (215-6440).

Solo Practitioners & Small Firms Section The goal of the Solo & Small Firm Section is to provide and encourage networking opportunities and CLE. To have your name added to the section list, please contact the KBA office at 522-6522. For more information about the section, please contact Chairs Heather Anderson (934-4000) or Tripp White (712-0963).

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DICTA

April n 3 ADR Section CLE n 6 Law Practice Today Expo n 7 Law Practice Today Expo n 10 Functions Committee n 11 Professionalism Committee n 12 Barristers Veterans Legal Advice Clinic n 12 Barristers Access to Justice Committee n 12 Barristers Executive Committee n 13 Judicial Committee n 13 Lunch & Learn n 16 Interprofessional Relations Committee n 17 Diversity in the Profession Committee n 18 Solo Small Firm CLE n 19 Board of Governors Meeting n 26 Government Section CLE n 26 Lawyerpalooza

May n 1 ADR Section CLE n 3 Law Day Luncheon n 3 Open Service Project n 4 Barristers Corn Hole Tournament n 9 Professionalism Committee n 10 Barristers Veterans Legal Advice Clinic n 10 Barristers Access to Justice Committee n 10 Barristers Executive Committee n 11 Judicial Committee n 11 Knoxville Bar Foundation Dinner n 12 Juvenile Court CLE n 13 Spring Memorial Service n 15 Diversity in the Profession Committee n 16 Criminal Justice Section CLE n 17 Board of Governors Meeting n 19 Chancery Court Bench Bar CLE n 23 CLE Committee Meeting

KBA Law Practice Today Expo April 6 & 7 April 2017

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE By: Amanda M. Busby Anderson Busby PLLC

LAWYERPALOOZA 2.0— FOR THOSE ABOUT TO ROCK!

Mark your calendars. This is an event you will not want to miss!

The KBA wants to see you and your lawyer and non-lawyer family and friends at Lawyerpalooza 2.0 on Thursday, April 27th from 6:30 - 9:30 p.m. at Scruffy City Hall on Market Square in downtown Knoxville. Lawyerpalooza is a music festival showcasing the talented and charismatic side of our bench and bar. Invite lawyers and staff from your firm/organization to attend and encourage them to also invite their family and friends. When it comes to music, I have noticed that nonlawyers especially are curious as to whether “Lawyers Got Talent”. And, believe it or not, we have some amazing musicians in our local bench and bar. Our featured performers this year include: • • • •

• • •

The Verdicts (KBA Members David Long, Doug Weinstein, Rick Carl, Jacob Gibson) Roman Reese & The Cardinal Sins (KBA Members Roman Reese, Michael Davis) Greg Coleman (Elvis impersonator) & The King of Rock Band (KBA Member Greg Coleman) Dor L’Dor Klezmer Band (KBA members Ken Brown, Joe Christian ) Richard Stooksbury (KBA Member) Kourtney Hennard (KBA Member) Carol Anne Long (KBA Member)

Tickets to the event are only $20 per person if ordered before April 21st. Your ticket includes admission to the concert, appetizers and one drink ticket for draft/domestic beer, wine and premium well drinks.

Craft beers and top-shelf liquors are also available if purchased separately.

From 6:30 - 9:30 p.m., the KBA will have exclusive use of all of Scruffy City Hall for its ticketed guests. Included with your ticket price, you receive a wristband that allows you to re-enter Scruffy City Hall and/ or Preservation Pub during the event and after the event with no cover charge. Money raised during Lawyerpalooza 2.0 will be donated to the Knoxville Police Department’s Teddy Bear Fund to assist children in crisis situations. If you have not already purchased tickets, you can buy them now on the KBA website at knoxbar.org. The ticket price will go up $5 per person after April 21st and may also be purchased at the door for $25 per person.

We are fortunate to have many generous sponsors for Lawyerpalooza 2.0. Our gold sponsors include: Atlantic Capital; Coulter

April 2017

& Justus, P.C.; Regions; and The McLaughlin Group of Merrill Lynch Wealth Management. Silver sponsors include Bible Harris Smith, P.C.; and Image Matters. School of Rock, which is an organization comprised of 190+ schools teaching performance-based music education, is an in-kind sponsor and has also graciously agreed to be our house band for the evening with top students from its Knoxville school showing off their talent by playing a couple of sets at Lawyerpalooza 2.0. I have a friend whose child plays in School of Rock. I attended one of their classic rock concerts at Hard Rock Café in Pigeon Forge. School of Rock is incredible. We want to thank these businesses for supporting the KBA by sponsoring this event.

We held the first Lawyerpalooza in 2015 and it was awesome!

We have included a couple of throwback pictures from the 2015 Lawyerpalooza in this article. Several of the 2015 performers are returning again this year and we are excited to have them back.

Lawyerpalooza is a wonderful opportunity for KBA members to relax, enjoy great food and drink, and take time for fellowship with friends of the KBA. We had several hundred lawyers and non-lawyers attend the event in 2015. While lawyers made up the majority of attendees, I was frankly surprised by the number of non-lawyers that came to hear the musical talents of our local bench and bar. Because the event was promoted on social media in 2015 and will be again this year, we even had people walk in off the street and purchase tickets.

Scruffy City Hall is a music venue with a great stage and unique atmosphere. If you have not been to Scruffy City Hall, it is on Market Square on the east side of the square near the Market Square stage. The location will make it easy for anyone who works downtown to just walk over after work. Or, if you are driving in for the show, there is convenient parking in The Market Square garage located on the corner of Walnut Street and Wall Street and best of all, parking is free when entering the garage after 6:00 p.m.

Lawyerpalooza is one of the many efforts of the KBA Functions Committee, co-chaired this year by Courtney Read of Watson, Roach, Batson, Rowell & Lauderback, P.L.C. and Emily Stulce of Bunstine, Watson & Becker. The Functions Committee works very hard to develop fun, creative events that provide an opportunity outside of work to really get to know your fellow KBA members. The Functions Committee has other events planned for later in the year and we hope you will take advantage of all of these opportunities in 2017 by attending and socializing with your colleagues. We look forward to seeing you at Lawyerpalooza 2.0 and at other KBA Functions Committee events throughout the year.

DICTA

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HELLO MY NAME IS

. . .

ZACHARY WALDEN

By: Katheryn M. Ogle McDonald, Levy & Taylor

Not every first-year attorney can add to their résumé that they received course credit for spending a law school spring break in the Cayman Islands, nor can they work into a conversation that they’ve been playing the piano since age six, but for Zachary Walden, this is simply a casual chat. I had the opportunity to interview the 2016 Tennessee Bar admittee for this month’s column, and was certainly impressed with his wit and knowledge.

The Campbell county native graduated from Campbell County High School and immediately began his undergraduate studies at East Tennessee State University. While there, Zack was actively involved in the Student Government Association and was elected Vice-President of the organization. He also became involved in the Residence Hall Association and was selected as the National Chairperson for the National Association of College and University Residence Halls. Zack was also selected as an Admissions Ambassador for the university and was one of the student members of the Tennessee Higher Education Commission during his time in college.

It was also during college that Zack developed his plan to become an attorney. With a major in English, a minor in Political Science, and a concentration in legal studies, his educational goals were certainly tailored to this career. “My initial goal when I started college was to be an attorney, and plan on going to law school unless something more fitting crossed my path. When things kept leading me in this direction, I decided this was my calling.”

After carefully considering various options for law school, Zack ultimately left Tennessee and pursued his legal studies at the University of Alabama College of Law. Continuing in the routine of a rigorous academic schedule, in addition to his extracurricular commitments, Zach was the Acquisitions Editor for the Alabama Law Review, as well as an Admissions Ambassador for the law school. He was president of the Christian Legal Society, Vice-President of the Criminal Law Society, and Treasurer of the Bench and Bar Legal Honor Society. Law school is also where his trip to the Cayman Islands for class credit comes into play.

“As part of a class I took in Offshore Financial Transactions, we spent the majority of the semester learning about captive insurance, investment funds, and securitization. Since the Cayman Islands is a world leader in offshore finance, a jurisdiction of choice for investment funds, and a top provider for trust and company management services, it only made sense for the class to take a ‘field trip’ to further our understanding, right?”

Not only did Zack focus his energies on demanding academic studies, but he found time to incorporate his piano skills into his law school activities. The University of Alabama College of Law has an acapella group aptly named The Footnotes. The group performs once or twice each semester, and practices about an hour each week. Initially, Zack was approached by the group to play the piano and then began singing with them. Zack continues to donate his musical talents as the youth band leader at his church, Covenant Life in Norris, TN and notes that working with teenagers is not for the faint of heart.

Upon his move back to the Knoxville area following law school, Zack knew that he wanted to be involved in some aspect of criminal law, either as a prosecutor or a defense attorney. As luck would have it, Eldridge and Blakney, P.C., was looking for an associate attorney to add to their criminal defense practice. “I am so fortunate to work with great attorneys,” notes Zack. “Every attorney with whom I’ve come into contact has made me feel welcome in this profession, but I’m sure part of this is because I work with a great firm.” He also notes, as most young

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lawyers do, that patience shown by the clerk’s office when he shows up at the wrong desk in the City/County Building is much appreciated.

When Zack isn’t practicing criminal defense in and around Campbell county, he can be found watching “House of Cards” on Netflix or cheering for the Crimson Tide. He also notes that it’s been 3,791 days since Tennessee beat Alabama. Despite his questionable taste in football teams, we certainly appreciate Zack taking time to provide an interview for DICTA and are happy to have him as part of the Knoxville Bar Association.

DICTA

April 2017

JUDICIAL NEWS By:

Patti Jane Lay Lay and Baugh Law

KNOX COUNTY JUVENILE COURT: NEWS FROM DIVISION STREET

According to Knox County Juvenile Court Judge Tim Irwin, the biggest change he has seen in his eleven and a half years on the bench has been the dramatic rise in his caseload. When he became judge, he had 300 children in state’s custody. Today, he has 750 children in state’s custody. Judge Irwin attributes this dramatic rise in children going into state custody to the epidemic of opiate drug abuse in this area. One of the hardest things he has to do is to remove children from drug addicted parents because “we cannot leave a child’s safety in the care of an active addict.” According to Judge Irwin, “the social and financial cost in dealing with the problems of addiction is staggering.”

In an effort to fight the problem with drug addiction and its effects on the children of this county, Judge Irwin, along with the help of Magistrate Dirk Weddington and program director Barry Rast, have created a Juvenile Recovery Court that is designed to help children overcome addiction problems from drugs or alcohol. The program is voluntary and usually lasts an average of seven to nine months, although some children have been in the program for over a year. There are seventy children that have taken advantage of the program that range in age from fourteen to seventeen years of age. The participants must attend weekly meetings, be drug tested twice a week, and make a court appearance twice a month. The parents participate in the program through the court appearances and group meetings. Referals into the program are made by the probation counselor or caseworker following an initial hearing. Most participants have a prior drug or alcohol charge.

A child has an opportunity to take advantage of this program to avoid a conviction or harsher consequences. The program focuses on the positives of staying “clean.” According to Judge Irwin, “ Lawyers need to understand that Recovery Court can be an attractive option resulting in a clean record for the child, but it is a tough and lengthy program with the emphasis on recovery for the health and long-term success of the child.” The program accepts cases from the public defender, private attorneys and pro se litigants. When a child graduates from the program, the pending charges may be dismissed, which will result in the charges being expunged and the file destroyed. If pre-trial or judicial diversion is granted, then once the conditions of the diversion has been completed, the case is dismissed and the record expunged. Even convictions can be expunged in Juvenile under the provisions of Tenn. Code Ann. Section 37-1-153.

In addition to the creation of Recovery Court, the Juvenile Court has instituted an “Initial Appearance Docket” that sets all petitions for an initial hearing on the first Friday of the month following the filing of the petition. The purpose of the Initial Appearance Docket is to get everyone before the court to verify service of process, define the issues that need to be resolved, take preliminary steps to ensure the safety of the child pending final hearing and for referral to mediation, if appropriate.

Parties should not expect to have the case heard and resolved at the initial appearance, but should expect to receive a final hearing date and any bridging or temporary orders to protect the child until the final hearing date. According to Judge Irwin, “the process is working very well” since April 2017

its inception in September of last year.

Other exciting news from Juvenile Court is the opening of the Tennessee Volunteer Challenge Academy (TNVCA) in July of this year that will allow at-risk youth between the ages of 16-18 to voluntarily enter the academy located in Nashville, TN. The quasi-military school teaches troubled youth life coping skills, self-discipline and educational skills to enable them to receive a high school degree. Several other states have opened similar academies and the Tennessee Challenge Academy will be the 40th in the country when it opens in July. The Knox County Juvenile Court has offered participation in a similar program in Harlan, KY prior to the opening of the Tennessee Volunteer Challenge Academy. This 17 month program is available for children in Knox County who are struggling with behavioral issues that their parents are not able to address, and the court feels the child can be saved from criminal consequences by entering the structured program. The program is voluntary, focusing on eight core components: academic excellence, physical fitness, leadership/followership, responsible citizenship, job skills, service to the community, health and hygiene and life coping skills. The students are constantly monitored during a three phase instructional period. The cadets begin with a two week acclimation period followed by a 20 week residence phase and 1 year post residence “mentoring” phase.

Judge Irwin is pleased that Tennessee has this resource available to help struggling youth before they get in the criminal justice system.

In the fall, juvenile court is planning on offering a guardian ad litem training program for attorneys wanting to be placed on the appointment list. While still in the planning stage, the course will enable attorneys to get insight into the court’s expectations of their role as an appointed guardian ad litem in Knox County. Stay tuned for more details.

DICTA

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TIME OUT By: Ann C. Short The Bosch Law Firm

ADVENTURE TRAVELING “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do.”

Mark Twain

Vacations come in a variety of shapes and flavors. According to Anne Morgan Scully, President of McCabe World Travel, “A vacation should really be about you and what your body needs, what your mind needs, what your soul needs and what your heart needs.”1 In other words, if your vacation causes you stress, it’s not a vacation.

Sitting on the beach drinking Margaritas is just the thing for some people. For people with highly active, risk-taking personalities that are not satisfied through regular work, adventure traveling can relieve stress.

This month I want to focus on adventure traveling and the corresponding benefits.

When I researched the benefits of adventure traveling, I found an article by Candice Gaukel Andrews entitled, “Ten Reasons Why Adventure Travel Is Good for You.”2 I found her list thought provoking: 1) When you get dirty, you improve your physical health. Getting dirty could just be the best path to developing a strong immune system.

2) Outdoor activities can prevent (or treat) a wide range of health problems. Doctors around the country are now handing out “park prescriptions” for health conditions, and adventure travel takes park prescriptions to the next level.

3) There are no age limits on adventure.

4) Take a hike, get a bigger brain. Research indicates that hiking grows the hippocampi, on average, by 2 percent, which could improve memory retention for years.

5) Going on adventures raises your tolerance for uncertainty. You learn to cope with the uncertainties in life.

6) Adventure travel lets you “try on” alternate lives. You can shed your familiar skin for a while and pretend to be anything you want to be — before you take a drastic and permanent step.

7) Going on adventures fosters reflectiveness, a mental skill often in short supply today. Reliving our adventures again and again allows us the time — and capability — to learn something from them.

8 ) Adventure travel feeds your dreams and builds your confidence.

Adventures build your confidence. With each successive adventure, you challenge yourself just a little bit more.

9) Adventure experiences remedy a societal ill: loss of adventurous children and the extinguishing of wanderlust.

10) Adventure travelers may be more important than ever for saving the world. Global warming may become impossible to reverse. If so, a group of individuals is going to have to come forward and upgrade their environmental efforts.

Armed with the foregoing talking points, I went in search of a KBA member who indulges in adventure traveling. Consulting Facebook, I quickly found my target: KBA member Joe Fanduzz. Joe chronicles on Facebook his sailing adventures – and I don’t mean puttering around Ft. Loudon Lake. Joe agreed to meet and be interviewed, and the rest you can read here.

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Premier Knoxville architect and developer Buzz Goss and Joe are fast friends. In June 2013, Joe asked if he could join Buzz on a planned sailing adventure around Greece. Joe flew and met up with Buzz in Mykonos, Greece. Joe spent a week onboard and sailed to Syros, Tinos, Kythnos, and up to Athens. Joe was a probie, but as he explained, he “learned, got a feel for sailing, and immediately was hooked.” New Year’s Eve that year found him sailing the British Virgin Islands.

In 2015, Joe traveled to Abaco, Bahamas where the American Sailing Association offers courses to become certified in various levels of sailing. Joe became certified in Keelboat, Coastal, Bareboat and Catamaran Sailing. Both that year and in 2016, he sailed Croatia. Joe told me that Hvar is his favorite island. It has been described as the Queen of the Croatian Dalmatian islands. Joe found the beaches there and the food “amazing.” Another attraction was Dubrovnik, Croatia, one of the filming locations for Game of Thrones.

Joe’s scariest sailing adventure occurred in April 2016, when Buzz organized a humanitarian trip to Cuba aboard a 44-foot racing sloop.

Buzz, Joe, and two other experienced boaters were on the trip. Because of the Gulf Stream currents, the crew left Key West at 4:00 p.m. and planned to sail all night. By midnight, wind and waves up to 12 feet were proving dangerous, and they decided to pull in all sails and utilize the motor. The mainsail failed to lower as intended, and when Buzz attempted to fix the problem, a wave struck the boat, sending a boom across the deck and knocking Buzz overboard. Buzz’s trained instincts and great teamwork from the other sailors brought Buzz safely back on board. To commemorate the trip, Joe had the coordinates where Buzz fell into the Gulf tattooed on his leg.

As for decompressing and my talking points, Joe volunteered that sailing provided “alternative mental stimulation, something else to focus on that was a lot of fun.” Joe enjoys the intense preparation that goes into planning a sailing trip, “somewhat like preparing for a trial.” While often exhausted at the end of a trip, Joe says he is then ready to “mentally get back to the law.” I asked Joe if he missed not being plugged in 24/7 with a cell phone and computer. Joe explained it was impractical not to have some communication device with him, but during the day he focused 100% on sailing and didn’t miss the constant alerts in the least.

As for learning to cope with the uncertainties in life, Joe said that when Buzz fell overboard, the adrenaline rush and having to cope with that life-threatening situation have increased his confidence level and served him well in the courtroom. If nothing else, because of the uncertainties of sailing, few incidents in the courtroom intimidate him.

One last thing Joe mentioned that wasn’t part of my talking points is that adventure traveling can have a romantic side. Joe met his wonderful girlfriend, Jessica, in Mykonos, Greece. They have been together ever since and love to share sailing adventures together.

1 2

http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/13/travel/vacation-planning-stress/index.html. http://goodnature.nathab.com/ten-reasons-why-adventure-travel-is-good-for-you/.

DICTA

April 2017

PRACTICE TIPS By: Stephen Cobb Law Clerk, Hon. Pamela Reeves, U.S. District Court

ADVOCATING MORE INTENSELY WITHOUT INTENSIFIERS

As attorneys, and especially as litigators, we advocate zealously for our clients. Whether face-to-face with opposing counsel, in person before the court, or in pleadings and filings, we take every opportunity to gain an advantage for those we represent. It’s our duty and our calling.

As a law clerk, though, I’m merely a spectator to all of this. I get to witness intense advocacy only when it comes into court, sometimes in person but mostly in writing. I read motions, briefs, and pleadings, and see how attorneys use those opportunities to gain the upper hand for their clients. Often this intensity comes out in ways that make all that reading worth it. There’s little that brings me more joy in my job than reading an argument that is carefully thought out, applies the case law while recognizing the nuances, and uses the record effectively and efficiently.

Even the best argument, however, can be weakened by its presentation. And this is where zealous advocacy becomes a doubleedged sword: our desire to get the best results for our clients can drive us to craft good arguments, yet it can also make us present those arguments in a way that obscures their quality. The most conspicuous way that intensity can tarnish an argument – and one of the easiest to fix – is the use of intensifiers.

Intensifiers give emphasis to a word. They can be adjectives (nonsensical, arbitrary, disingenuous), adverbs (clearly, conveniently), participles (confusing, overwhelming), and more. In my experience, and to no surprise, they are more common in briefs than in less adversarial filings. They are most common in reply briefs. But while the other side’s argument may be clearly wrong, there are a few reasons not to say it like that.

Above all, using intensifiers actually weakens an argument. Using them to discuss the other side’s argument lowers the bar for them. When a judge weighs two competing arguments, the only question is, Who has the better argument? But if plaintiff ’s counsel calls the defendant’s argument “patently absurd,” then another question is thrown into the mix: Is the defendant’s argument patently absurd? If not, then the defendant’s argument looks more convincing.

On the flipside, using intensifiers to support your argument actually raises the bar. Say that plaintiff ’s counsel writes in his brief, “Clearly, the case law favors our position.” When the attorney makes his argument, either he vindicates his claim, making clearly redundant, or he does not, making his argument look less convincing. At best, this use of an intensifier adds nothing but words for the judge to read. At worst, counsel has undermined his client’s cause.

There are also concerns outside the actual substance of one’s argument. Intensifiers give the reader a poor impression of the writer.

They “generally mean not much more than ‘believe me.’ Used to excess, they make us seem arrogant or at least defensive.” After reading countless briefs and watching countless advocates in court, I’ve learned a good rule of thumb: if you wouldn’t use that tone in open court before the judge, then don’t use it in the briefs. No one wants to seem arrogant or defensive to the judge in court. Neither should anyone want to seem arrogant or defensive to the judge in writing.

Last, intensifiers create tension between counsel. As attorneys, we must have thick skin. Sometimes we’re wrong, and we can accept when that happens. But even the toughest attorneys can’t help but take it April 2017

personally when the other side calls their argument “confusing,” their version of the facts “disingenuous,” and their application of the law “spurious.” Often that leads to a response that is just as inflammatory.

Then both sides are using intensifiers, presenting the problems posed in this article.

More than once, I’ve seen two KBA attorneys file opposing briefs laden with intensifiers, using words like clearly, ridiculous, and baseless to take potshots at each other. This is surprising, because it starkly contrasts with what I’ve seen at KBA events. We’re a collegial, engaged, and even friendly group of attorneys, all invested in making the most of the Knoxville legal community. It’s obvious in person, to members and nonmembers alike. Intensifiers, however, serve to undermine relationships among KBA members and our reputation as a group.

Having read many filings from KBA members, it’s clear that we have no problem being zealous advocates. It shines through in filings, often to great effect. But sometimes the zeal is so strong that intensifiers start appearing. Intensifiers undermine the client’s cause, relationships with other attorneys, and the KBA’s reputation. In the end, it’s best to just remove them and let the argument speak for itself. When it comes to tone in legal argument, less is more.

1 Wayne Schiess, Intensifiers Part 1: Are You Blatantly Bolstering?, LEGIBLE (Jan. 12, 2017), goo.gl/muvrnK. Brendan Kenney, Why Hyperbole Will Destroy Your Case and Understatement Will Save It, LAWYERIST.COM (June 29, 2016), goo.gl/ZoBc13.

JOSEPH M. WILLIAMS, STYLE: TOWARD CLARITY AND GRACE 127 (1995).

NOTICE KNOX CO. JUDICIAL MAGISTRATE Qualifications – Licensed attorney and are required to be a resident of Knox County, Tennessee Salary - $92,330.42, plus benefits Term – Four year term to begin June 30, 2017 Duties – Include, but are not necessarily limited to, issuance of arrest warrants, search warrants and mittimus. The judicial magistrates also issue forfeiture warrants and conduct jail arraignments by means of real-time video conference. The judicial magistrates have the duty of determining whether or not probable cause exist to issue an arrest warrant when a crime is alleged to have been committed.

Please send resume by noon, Friday, April 28, 2017 at the address below.

Donna Corbitt, Judicial Court Administrator Room M-70, City-County Building P.O. Box 2404 Knoxville, TN 37901 Telephone (865) 215-2370 or FAX (865) 215-2403 donna.corbitt@knoxcounty.org

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L E G A L LY W E I R D By: Rameen J. Nasrollahi Egerton, McAfee, Armistead & Davis

Behavior Modification?

As a downtown resident, the changing of the seasons means a few things. While there are plenty of dedicated physical fitness enthusiasts who are out downtown at all hours regardless of sunlight and temperature, generally the dreaded daylight savings time and warmer weather heralds a growing number of people that will be enjoying all that downtown has to offer as the year moves on. And with them come their pets, especially their dogs. Downtown Knoxville is dog friendly, especially with the outside seating many restaurants and bars provide.

During the Young-Williams Animal Center’s Mardi Growl Parade and Festival in downtown Knoxville,1 I began to wonder: what kinds of strange, obscure laws are out there that affect our pets? Better yet, what strange sort of (mis)information regarding pets is floating around via the most nefarious of all information delivery apparatuses, the internet? And how can we interpret such information?

In Turin, Italy, dog owners are supposedly required to walk their dogs at least three times a day.2 What constitutes an actual “walk,” of course, is anyone’s guess. Three walks a day seems to be a bit draconian to me: if I walk my dog five miles, which is roughly eight kilometers in Italy, do we really need to go on two more walks? The city of Turin seems to think so. Hopefully each walk need not be equidistant.

Another question about this law: who saw fit to pass it? A citizen concerned about their neighbor’s dog? A local animal rights group? A spouse hoping to get their partner out of the house more than once a day? Or maybe someone decided that they, and not necessarily their dog, needed the exercise. The mysteries abound.

The internet informs us that, in Anchorage, Alaska, motorists are forbidden to tie their dogs to the roofs of their vehicles.3 The law itself is more general, as it merely prohibits a motorist from transporting an animal in such a manner that might be dangerous to the animal, danger to the animal constituting a situation where the animal could be thrown from, fall off, or jump out of the vehicle.4 Fortunately for Mitt Romney, who infamously transported his Irish Setter via a pet carrier strapped to the top of a station wagon during a family trip,5 his vacations never took him to Anchorage. I have to wonder about the exact combination of transportation method and poor judgment that this ordinance was created in response to, but details are scarce. Nevertheless, refraining from tying a dog to the roof of a vehicle stands as good sense and generally humane behavior.

The internet also informs us that, in Little Rock, Arkansas, it is illegal for a dog to bark after 6 PM.1 Rather than address the issue of poor control by the owner, Little Rock, apparently, has found the solution

to noisy dogs in the evening to be separating them from their owners and keeping them in a pound with all of the other noisy dogs. The thinking, I assume, is to cause the animals even more stress by separating them from familiar surroundings while creating a symphony of noise at the local pound. Heaven forbid the dog was notifying its owners of trespassers. Or an early-evening visit from a late mailman.

My favorite of these laws supposedly regulating animal behavior is that International Falls, Minnesota has allegedly passed an ordinance forbidding cats from chasing dogs up telephone poles.7 One has to wonder about the incident that would give rise to such an ordinance.

Did a city councilman’s dog get embarrassed by the neighbor’s cat?

Was the feud between canines and felines causing damage to the city’s telephone network? Personally, I’d like to see a dog that could actually climb a telephone pole to the point where it could escape a cat. That’s not something to pass an ordinance about, but rather thank the offending cat for such a discovery.

For all of the focus on animals in these laws, I note that, in reality, it’s the humans that should really take heed of the intent of these socalled laws. A little common sense, including actually letting your pet stretch its legs and transporting your pet in a safe manner, goes a long way. Although we certainly don’t need any kind of written or verbal test for pet ownership, which Switzerland has demonstrated is a failed experiment anyhow,8 I’m sure that the folks over at Young-Williams would like to know that any of the animals they adopted are protected by the common sense these supposed laws codify. I’m also positive that if your dog runs up a telephone pole while fleeing from a cat, you have a truly athletic dog that doesn’t need legal protection. But it probably does deserve its own YouTube video. mardigrowl.org.

Darell, Richard. The 40 Strangest Pet Laws Around the World. 2015. http://www. bitrebels.com/lifestyle/40-strangest-pet-laws-around-world/.

3 Uppin, Tasmai. 15 Weirdly Specific Laws About Dogs You Didn’t Know Existed. 2015. http://stories.barkpost.com/life/strange-dog-laws-in-us/.

4 Anchorage, Alaska, Municipal Code § 9.36.150.

5 Holan, Angie Drobnic. Mitt Romney and the dog on the car roof: one columnist’s obsession. Sep. 13, 2011. http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2011/ sep/13/gail-collins/mitt-romney-and-dog-car-roof-one-columnists-obsess/.

6 Dumb Laws in Arkansas. http://www.dumblaws.com/laws/united-states/arkansas 7 Thornton, Kim Campbell. 12 strange animal laws. http://dogtime.com/reference/doglaws/19486-12-strange-animal-laws.

8 Switzerland scraps mandatory dog training. BBC.com. Sep. 20, 2016. http://www. bbc.com/news/blogs-news-from-elsewhere-37418371.

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LAWYER’S ALMANAC By: Chris McCarty Lewis, Thomason, King, Krieg & Waldrop, P.C.

APRIL’S NEVER FOOL

On April 13, 1743, Jane Randolph Jefferson gave birth to a son, Thomas Jefferson. During the next 83 years, I think it’s safe to say her boy made quite a mark on both United States and legal history.

You all know Jefferson authored, with a little help from John Locke, the Declaration of Independence. You all also know Jefferson is the President responsible for the Louisiana Purchase. But what do you know about Jefferson’s A Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom?

Jefferson, while serving as the Governor of Virginia, first introduced the Bill in 1779. A final version of the Bill was not adopted until 1786, after being reintroduced to the Virginia General Assembly by a guy named James Madison.

The Bill’s influence, both on our country and on the primary author of our Constitution, Madison, is undeniable. According to the Bill,

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no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer, on account of his religious opinions or belief; but that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of religion, and that the same shall in no wise diminish, enlarge, or affect their civil capacities.

Jefferson may have been in France when Madison and others penned the Constitution, but the foregoing illustrates that the man deserved a citation at the very least.

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April 2017

L E G A L U P DAT E By: William Gill Assistant Professor LMU Duncan School of Law

SUPREME COURT REVIEWS CLAIM BY TENNESSEE RESIDENT WHO PLED GUILTY BASED ON BAD IMMIGRATION ADVICE

In Padilla v. Kentucky, the U.S. Supreme Court established that the Sixth Amendment right to effective assistance of counsel requires an attorney to inform a non-citizen defendant when a guilty plea may result in deportation.1 The holding in Padilla spawned numerous collateral issues, including whether a defendant whose attorney misinforms him of the immigration consequences of a guilty plea may successfully claim ineffective assistance despite overwhelming proof of guilt. The circuit courts that have addressed this issue are evenly divided.2

To resolve this split, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed this term to review a claim asserted by Memphis resident Jae Lee, a citizen of South Korea who legally immigrated to the U.S. as a child but never became an American citizen. Lee, a “successful restauranteur” and “small-time drug dealer,” was charged in 2009 with possession of ecstasy with intent to distribute.3 The government’s proof included a witness who had bought ecstasy from Lee, ecstasy pills found at Lee’s home, and Lee’s own admission that he had distributed ecstasy. Lee’s attorney told him that the evidence against him was strong and assured him that pleading guilty would not result in deportation. On his attorney’s advice, Lee entered a guilty plea.4

Lee soon learned that his lawyer was wrong about the immigration consequences of his guilty plea. Because possession of ecstasy with the intent to distribute meets the Immigration and Nationality Act’s definition of an “aggravated felony,” Lee’s conviction made him deportable. He moved to vacate his conviction based on ineffective assistance of counsel, asserting that he would not have entered a guilty plea had he known that it would render him deportable.5

Because there was no dispute that the performance of Lee’s attorney was deficient, the claim hinged on whether the attorney’s bad advice resulted in prejudice. Specifically, Lee had to show that if his lawyer had informed him of the effect of a guilty plea on his immigration status, he would have rejected the plea bargain. Moreover, given the objective nature of the prejudice standard, Lee had to show that the decision to reject the plea would have been rational.6

The district court rejected Lee’s claim, and the Sixth Circuit affirmed. In doing so, the appellate panel relied on circuit precedent providing that “no rational defendant charged with a deportable offense and facing ‘overwhelming evidence’ of guilt would proceed to trial rather than take a plea with a shorter prison sentence.”7 The court showed sympathy for Lee’s position that, had he known he was facing deportation, he would have proceeded to trial whatever the odds, even if only to make a bid for jury nullification. Ultimately, however, the court found Lee’s argument foreclosed by Strickland v. Washington, in which the Supreme Court instructed that “[a] defendant has no entitlement to the luck of a lawless decisionmaker” – a proposition that excludes from the prejudice analysis “the possibility of arbitrariness, whimsy, caprice, ‘nullification,’ and the like.”8 The Sixth Circuit was less solicitous of Lee’s contention that he could have achieved a different outcome by pursuing a plea bargain involving a non-deportable offense; according to the court, that argument consisted of “sheer speculation.”9 Notably, the court clarified that “a claimant’s ties to the United States should be taken into account in evaluating, alongside the legal merits, whether counsel’s bad advice caused prejudice.”10 But when a claimant faces overwhelming proof of guilt, even strong ties to the U.S. and dire deportation consequences will not allow a court to characterize the decision to forgo a plea bargain as rational.

April 2017

As noted, several courts disagree with the Sixth Circuit’s analysis. In DeBartolo v. United States, for example, the Seventh Circuit ruled in favor of a claimant in similar circumstances.11 The claimant, an Italian citizen, had legally immigrated to the U.S. at the age of one. After pleading guilty to a marijuana offense, he was deported to Italy, separating him from his wife and seven children, all U.S. citizens. Like Jae Lee, DeBartolo moved to vacate his conviction based on his lawyer’s failure to inform him that his plea would render him deportable. In contrast to the Sixth Circuit, the Seventh Circuit cited several reasons why a properly informed defendant might rationally reject a plea bargain despite strong evidence of guilt. For one, he may decide that “a small chance of remaining with his family in the United States [is] worth the significant risk of a long prison term.”12 Or he may find a long prison term preferable because it would keep him in the same country as his wife and children, whereas a short sentence leading more quickly to deportation could permanently sever his family ties. The court also invoked the constitutional right to trial by jury, which applies to a defendant who “has no sturdy legal leg to stand on but thinks he has a chance that the jury will acquit him even if it thinks he’s guilty.”13 In the court’s final assessment, with strong ties to the U.S. and harsh deportation consequences, a claimant can show that, had he been properly informed, he would have exercised his right to “roll the dice,” which is all that is required to establish prejudice.14

In the briefs currently before the U.S. Supreme Court, each side portrays the other’s position as a categorical extreme. According to the government, “Attaching dispositive weight to a defendant’s subjective assertions that he would [have] gone to trial, regardless of any objective likelihood of success, would make Strickland relief all but automatic in such cases.”15 Jae Lee contends that the rigid approach adopted by the Sixth Circuit, among others, makes it so that a non-citizen defendant faced with strong proof of guilt “can never be prejudiced by accepting a plea” – even a defendant whose deportation could result in severe persecution or death.16 It will be interesting to see whether the Supreme Court chooses one of these categorical approaches, finds a middle ground, or – given its current composition – perpetuates the controversy with a 4 – 4 tie.

559 U.S. 356, 369 (2010).

Compare Lee v. United States, 825 F.3d 311, 316-17 (6th Cir. 2016), United States v.

Kayode, 777 F.3d 719, 724-29 (5th Cir. 2014), Kovacs v. United States, 744 F.3d 44, 52-53 (2d Cir. 2014), and United States v. Akinsade, 686 F.3d 248, 255-56 (4th Cir. 2012), with United States v. Rodriguez-Vega, 797 F.3d 781, 789-90 (9th Cir. 2015), DeBartolo v. United States, 790 F.3d 775, 776 (7th Cir. 2015), Hernandez v. United States, 778 F.3d 1230, 1234 (11th Cir. 2015), and United States v. Orocio, 645 F.3d 630, 643-46 (3d Cir. 2011), abrogated on other grounds by Chaidez v. United States, 133 S. Ct. 1103 (2013).

3 Lee, 825 F.3d at 312-13.

4 Id. at 313.

5 Id. (citing 8 U.S.C. §§ 1101(a)(43)(B), 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii)).

6 Id. 7 Id. (citing Pilla v. United States, 668 F.3d 368, 373 (6th Cir. 2012)).

8 Id. at 315 (emphasis added) (citing Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 695 (1984)).

9 Id. 10 Id. at 316.

11 790 F.3d at 780.

12 Id. at 779.

13 Id. 14 Id. at 780.

15 Brief of the United States at 13, Lee v. United States, 137 S. Ct. 614 (No. 16–327), 2017 WL 908855.

16 Brief for the Petitioner at 15, Lee, 137 S. Ct. 614 (No. 16–327), 2017 WL 474714.

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OUTSIDE MY OFFICE WINDOW By: Robert E. Pryor, Pryor, Priest & Harber robertpryorjr.blogspot.com

Jr.

ONE BUGGY LOVE

The fellowship room at Concord Presbyterian Church filled up on Valentine’s Day for the annual Sweetheart Banquet. Mike Berger made a special Chicken Cordon Bleu with rice and roasted vegetables. There was a Strawberry Pretzel Salad. I’ve never been to a church social or potluck dinner in the absence of Strawberry Pretzel Salad. Perhaps its origins can be found in Leviticus. The director of the night’s festivities called in November to invite me to serve as the featured speaker at the banquet.

“You’ll follow Peggy, who will play a few pieces on the piano,” Jim Shawn told me. “And, of course, we’d love for you to bring your sweetheart.”

Given the occasion, I knew what Jim was asking me to do. Jim’s daughter, Amy, was my first wife’s best friend growing up. Amy and Cheryl grew up in the same Farragut neighborhood where skinned knees were healed with a mother’s kiss and the sounds of children at play danced on the branches of the Pines and Sugar Maples. Mrs. Shawn was my 7th Grade teacher. Jim relayed that I was her favorite student in a long and distinguished teaching career. No surprise there. She did say “favorite,” not “best.” The Shawns loved Cheryl, and in the Fall of 1984 I began to join in the sentiment. Jim Shawn was asking me to talk about Cheryl and Nancy, the only two sweethearts I’ve ever had, and the story that goes along with us. He expected me to inspire, to cause laughter and tears. I suppose I shouldn’t complain. When you are crazy enough to write about your life, you should expect to be asked to talk about it. I accepted. When my kids asked what Nancy and I were doing for Valentine’s Day, I told them I was giving a speech about LOVE. “Why?” asked the always inquisitive Cori. “Don’t ask silly questions, girl. I am an expert in the field.” Eyes rolled.

There has been one constant in my life for 48 years - Love. My story is not a secret - Boy meets beautiful girl, they fall in Love. High school romance turns to Marriage. They have babies and start to build a life. Girl dies unexpectedly, boy is broken. Sadness ensues. Then, lightning strikes - boy meets another girl, and an unexpected and great Love follows. If you want the details, read my blog or stop me on the street. The first Epistle to the Corinthians proclaims “Love is not proud,” but give me a minute or two and I’m sure to disappoint the Apostle Paul. I love telling my story. It celebrates Nancy, the most magnificent and remarkable woman on the planet, and it keeps Cheryl present and warmly remembered as the special woman, wife, mother, daughter and friend that she was. Not to mention, I get to brag a bit about the two amazing women who had plenty to choose from but chose ME. So I sat down to craft an inspirational oral history of my life and the Love that has been visited upon me when the phone rang - It was my Dad. I set my pen aside and listened as he told me about taking my mother to the grocery store. During the recounting of that momentous event, I was reminded of the origins of my understanding of Love and the fact they came along way before Cheryl and Nancy.

“You take half the list, and I’ll meet you at the register,” my mother told him. Her knee needs to be replaced. She’s already had one of them replaced and avoids the subject. My father struggles with some arthritis in his knees. Orthopedic visits have become a regular thing. “Nope,” he said with enthusiasm, “we’ll take one buggy and do the whole thing together.” The two of them meandered through the grocery store, aisleto-aisle, each grasping the cart and each other at times for support as they carefully selected the ingredients for a meal they would prepare together. During the trip to the store and while making dinner they

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talked about their children, grandchildren, and their two golden retrievers (Maggie and Molly). As Dad shared with me the major event in his day, the subject matter took me back 16 years when I first heard of this kind of Love.

I sat across from him in his office in the Winter of 2001, just weeks after Cheryl died. We were trying to understand something incapable of understanding. The focus had been on the children, but my father took this opportunity to tell me how he mourned for me. He spoke of his sadness that I hadn’t been able to experience the ultimate stage of love.

He described it as the Love that is formed in the fires along life’s road, that takes a place above and beyond the puppy love of adolescence, is far superior to the life-altering passion of youth, and more transcendent than the work-horse love of raising children and seeing them to adulthood. I made the connection between the two conversations as I listened to him, smiling through the phone, talk about his walk with my mom through Publix. After 52 years together, they are in love. It is a love forged by time, perseverance, and patience. Those who have acquired it celebrate with linked hands and walks on the beach. It is found in the aisles of grocery stores and within the confines of the banquet hall at Concord Presbyterian Church on Valentine’s Day while Peggy’s hands dance on the pearly keys. It is a peaceful and quiet Love, confident in its origins and strengthened by the battles it has won. In its purest form, it is incurable and contagious. As I looked around the room from the podium, I saw it. I was in its midst.

While a story about my path must include my beloved Cheryl and Nancy - the heartbreak of loss, the solitude of grief, the rising of hope of new romance and, without doubt, the dress Nancy wore to a Latin dance class in the spring of 2001 - it is Bob and Norma Pryor who deserve the ultimate salute. Simply put, they have shown the way.

After my talk and another helping of Strawberry Pretzel Salad, Nancy and I stopped by Kroger for a bag of dog food, a gallon of milk and some ice cream for Cori. We used one buggy.

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April 2017

MANAGEMENT COUNSEL: LAW OFFICE 101 By: Cathy Shuck General Counsel, East Tennessee Children’s Hospital

BRING YOUR DOG TO WORK DAY?

At Children’s Hospital, we are dog-friendly. We regularly have dogs from the HABIT1 program come and visit our patients, and in some circumstances we let our patients have a visit from their own pet dog.

But for mostly obvious reasons, we don’t let our employees bring their dogs or other pets to work.

We are not alone; according to the Society for Human Resource

Management (SHRM), about 93% of employers do not permit pets at work.2 The minority who do, however, are very enthusiastic about it.

According to a 2016 survey of 1,000 employees and 200 human resources professionals, almost 90% of employees in pet-friendly work environments report increased morale and decreased stress.

Approximately 80% of employees reported increased company loyalty and improved work relationships.3 Human resources professionals also noted that being pet-friendly is a good recruiting tool and that employees who bring their pets to work are more willing to work long hours.4

If the benefits of going pet-friendly – especially decreased stress and the ability to work longer hours – make you wonder about creating a petfriendly environment at your law office, here are some considerations: 1. Poll your employees first. Organizations that have successfully gone pet-friendly report that it is important to get employee buy-in. If employees are opposed because of allergies or fear of dogs, for example, consider how to address that before someone brings her German Shepherd to the office.

2. Consider starting slow. Many organizations permit pets just one day a week or month.

3. Consider your clients. If you see clients in your office, consider keeping conference rooms, reception areas, restrooms and other areas animal-free to accommodate any allergies, fears, or dislikes your clients may have.

4. Consider your space. If you rent your office space, be sure that your landlord will permit pets in the office. If you own your space but have shared common areas, be sure that it is acceptable for pets to be in the elevators, lobbies, or other common areas.

5. Set the ground rules. Yes, you need a policy for this. In addition to the considerations above, think about, for example: a. Which animals are permitted? Are dogs acceptable but not pigs or goats? What about small animals like birds or guinea pigs? Cats may seem like a natural fit for a law office, but any cat owner will tell you they also have a tendency to step on your keyboard and sprawl all over your papers. At Children’s Hospital we started out thinking that we would permit patients to bring any type of pet from home, but by the time we considered allergies, hygiene, infection control, and other dealbreakers, we ended up only permitting dogs. b. What characteristics are acceptable? Some animals have a tendency to whine, bark, sniff, or engage in other behavior that may not be acceptable at work. Consider what type of “manners” pets at work will be required to exhibit. Biting should be a deal-breaker; some pet-friendly work environments have a “three strikes” policy for bad behavior but a zerotolerance policy for biting. c. What are the owner’s responsibilities? Depending on your office set-up, you might need to specify that the animal be confined or otherwise under someone’s control at all times.

Chores like taking a dog for potty breaks or minding the animal should not fall to support staff or others in the office unless there is clear willingness on both sides. Specify that the owner

is responsible for cleaning up after the pet (inside and outside).

Also consider requiring that the animal be well-groomed and treated with a flea-preventative.

6. Remember that pets are not the same as service animals under the ADA. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires employers to permit employees’ and clients’ services animals as accommodations under the ADA, not as pets. A “service animal” is a dog or miniature horse that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability.5 If you have an employee or client who uses a service animal, you must permit the animal in your workplace regardless of what your pet policy is, as long as the animal is under the owner’s control at all times and is housebroken. Note that comfort animals and therapy animals are not “service animals” under the ADA and do not have to be accommodated.6

One last option for being animal friendly is to adopt a pet as a group. At Children’s Hospital we recently adopted a Golden Retriever “facility dog” named Farley, whose mission is to bring happiness and stress-relief to everyone in our organization. She has a dedicated primary caretaker and we have a policy about who is responsible for her and what her job duties are. So far she has been well-received by virtually everyone in the organization. With a little consideration, planning, and flexibility, animals might be a positive addition to your work environment, too.7 1 HABIT stands for Human Animal Bond in Tennessee, a volunteer program that fosters pet visitation to hospitals, nursing homes, rehabilitation centers, and even on occasion the UT College of Law. See https://vetmed.tennessee.edu/outreach/Pages/habit_home.aspx (visited March 10, 2017).

2 SHRM, “How to be a Pet-Friendly Employer,” available at https://www.shrm.org/hrtoday/news/hr-magazine/0317/pages/how-to-be-a-pet-friendly-employer.aspx (visited March 10, 2017).

3 See Banfield Pet Hospital, “Pet-Friendly Workplace PAWrometer” (get it?), March 2017, available at https://www.banfield.com/Banfield/media/PDF/Banfield-PAWrometerSummary_032916_FINAL-TM.pdf (visited March 10, 2017).

4 See id.

5 See 28 C.F.R. § 36.104 (definitions); 28 C.F.R. § 36.302(c) (service animals). Yes, dogs and miniature horses. Apparently they are not only super-cute but also make excellent guide animals as they are long-lived and very trainable. See, e.g., information from the Guide Horse Foundation, http://www.guidehorse.com (visited March 10, 2017).

6 See 28 C.F.R. § 36.104.

7 For even more information on pets at work, see Liz Palika and Jennifer Fearing, Dogs at Work: A Practical Guide to Creating Dog-Friendly Workplaces (Humane Society Press 2009).

About this column: “The cobbler’s children have no shoes.” This old expression refers to the fact that a busy cobbler will be so busy making shoes for his customers that he has no time to make some for his own children. This syndrome can also apply to lawyers who are so busy providing good service to their clients that they neglect management issues in their own offices. The goal of this column is to provide timely information on management issues. If you have an idea for a future column, please contact Cathy Shuck at 541-8835.

April 2017

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LAWYER HOBBIES By: Katheryn M. Ogle McDonald, Levy & Taylor

WOMEN ON THE GREENS

It’s no secret that there is often as much business done on the golf course as there is in the boardroom. For many attorneys who golf, it becomes less about the game and more about networking. Whether it is bonding with new clients or quality one-on-one time with fellow attorneys, the time on the course, and social comraderie afterward at the 19th hole, can be priceless in your career.

As a female attorney, one is quickly able to distinguish herself if able to discuss what her handicap is, or the most challenging hole on the back nine of a particular course. In fact, according to the National Golf Foundation, only twenty percent of frequent golfers are female. When I began golfing as a teenager, I had no idea that I would be offered a college scholarship to golf, or that it would open the doors in my career that it has. When I began working as an attorney in Knoxville, I had a case with another young female attorney, Carolyn Levy Gilliam. At some point during the litigation, we began making small talk and learned that we both played golf, and had both played in college. This shared interest helped us not only get to know one another as professionals, but we now each had a female colleague whom we could call upon should the other find herself one person short in a four man (or woman) scramble.

Macon, Georgia where she lettered for the women’s golf team.

Following college, Carolyn returned to the Knoxville area and began law school at the University of Tennessee College of Law. While law school doesn’t necessarily allow much time for golf, she did manage to work in a few rounds, and also met her future husband, Eric. “I knew we were soulmates because he was late for our first date due to a tee time that had been delayed,” laughs Carolyn. During the first year of marriage, Carolyn and her husband lived in Niota, Tennessee, and were members at Springbrook Golf & Country Club. When the couple moved to Knoxville, Carolyn also returned to her “home course” of Fox Den, and is now continuing the tradition by taking her daughter Macey on golf outings. In fact, in the last two years, Carolyn and her husband have won the couple’s championship at Fox Den and Carolyn has claimed the title of the individual women’s club championship.

Knoxville is also fortunate enough to have a chapter of the Executive Women’s Golf Association. The Greater Knoxville Chapter of EWGA offers evening nine-hole golf leagues and an 18-hole league, with most league play at River Islands Golf Course. In the next “Lawyer Hobbies” column, the men will have their turn, as we’ll be profiling male KBA members who are also avid golfers. If you’d like to be featured, please contact the author at katie@mltlaw.com. As a professional courtesy, no handicaps will be revealed, unless otherwise instructed to include this information as part of one’s profile.

Carolyn began golfing at a very young age, as her father, attorney Farrell Levy is also an avid golfer. As the story goes at McDonald, Levy & Taylor, PLLC, Farrell and his law partner, Marty McDonald took Carolyn’s elder sister, Rachel, on a golf outing with them when she was a mere six-weeks old. Their theory was that if they loved golf after several years of playing, exposing a baby to the game would only predispose her to a love of the game, as well. After some chastising from women who were also on the course, the two attorneys remained committed to their idea, and continued bringing their young daughters with them on golf outings.

Carolyn grew up on the course at Fox Den, and prior to developing an interest in the game, she and her sister have fond memories of building sandcastles on the golf course, much to the chagrin of some members. When she was in sixth grade, Carolyn found herself as one of the lone females on the boys’ golf team at Farragut Intermediate School. By the time the next year rolled around, she and the other young women at her school had their own team and played against other girls’ teams in the Knoxville area. Carolyn continued her golf career through high school and then received a golf scholarship to Mercer University in

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April 2017

THANKWORTHY By: Melissa B. Carrasco Egerton, McAfee, Armistead & Davis, P.C.

A JURY FOR HIS PEERS

The word “jury” is an interesting one. When used as a noun, it comes from the Medieval Latin word iurata which is a combination of two words “iuare” (“to swear”) and ius (“law, an oath”) as in a group of people sworn to render a verdict under the law.1 When used as an adjective, its roots are nautical coming from the Old French word ajurie meaning a temporary help or relief.2 It is used to describe a temporary mast that sailors would cobble together (i.e. “jury-rig”) to get them to shore after the main mast was broken or blown away.3

Today, the word is primarily used as a noun in the legal context.4 Our literature, televisions, and movies are full of juries: 12 Angry Men, (“These are facts. You can’t refute facts”)5 The Runaway Jury,6 (“Trials are too important to be left up to juries”) to name just a few. And the lawyers who could bend them to their will were magnificent: Gregory Peck, Henry Fonda, Paul Newman, Joe Pesci.

Most new lawyers know that they aren’t Gregory Peck or the great Joe Pesci. The ones who think they are have spent too much time on NetFlix. That jury is downright scary. As Robert Frost famously said, “A jury consists of twelve persons chosen to decide who has the better lawyer,” and with your client’s money, business, injury, freedom, or life on the line, are you really willing to bet that the jury is going to find you the better lawyer?

There is a whole industry of consultants, CLEs and article on

juries: how to voir dire a jury; how to make eye contact with them, dress to impress them, and how to not make them hate you (or your prickly client). My favorite is the article that instructs Step 1: “Choose a compelling, succinct, common-sense theme” Step 2: “Draft your complaint so it is consistent with your theme” Step 3: “Conduct discovery to get admissions and streamline for trial . . . .”7 By the time you get to Step 3, there is no point in reading any further because you filed your complaint two years ago, discovery has been done for six months, and you had no idea you were supposed to have done all of this with a “compelling, succinct, common-sense theme” in mind.

There are procedural rules and unwritten local customs that must be obeyed, all of which make for very interesting reading and stories around the coffee pot. They also induce insomnia, nausea, and stress headaches.

The real question in every new lawyer’s mind is, “what does it look like in real life?” The only person who can answer that question is someone who has been there.

The attorney who nominated this month’s “thankworthy” person asked to remain anonymous. But what this person did made such an impact that the story had to be told.

Not so very long ago, one of our colleagues of the Knoxville Bar was getting ready to face the jury for the first time. Trial prep had started months before. Articles had been read and rules had been reviewed.

The evidence was organized. The opening and closing were drafted, and the directs and crosses of every witness (or potential witness) had been prepared before the witness lists had even been exchanged. Somewhere, a law school professor should have been feeling very proud.

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But, there was still the problem of how this looks in real life, and the trial date was coming. The jury was going to be there. Twelve good people from East Tennessee were going to decide if she was the better lawyer.

Enter Glenn R. Walter of Lewis Thomason (then Lewis King). He wasn’t a relative. They had never worked together. They didn’t work in the same firm. They had never even met. He literally had nothing to do with the case and no relation to this attorney.

But, he had done a jury trial before – lots of them in fact – and he heard through the grapevine that there was a new lawyer who might have a couple of questions about jury trials. So, he picked up the phone and asked if he could help. The answer was a resounding (and as she described it, semi-desperate) “Yes.”

It took about an hour, but by the end of that hour, the new attorney knew what a jury information sheet was, who to call to get the jury sheets, how that particular judge liked to seat the jury, how that judge preferred to do voir dire and strikes, how to keep track of the jurors as they move from seat to seat so you don’t forget which ones had answers that you found interesting, and a couple of thoughts on connecting with a jury.

I can’t share them because this attorney wouldn’t share them with me. After all, these are some of the only “trade secrets” our profession might be able to claim. You won’t find this information on Google. But, Glenn was willing to share it with a new attorney he had never met and who might be his adversary at some point in the future.

In doing so, he illustrated the adjective form of the word “jury”: a temporary help to get you safely through a stormy sea. A lawyer who is a jury for his peers is truly thankworthy.

1 Online Etymology Dictionary, Jury, http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=jury, last visited Mar. 9, 2017.

2 Id. 3 Id. 4 Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary, Jury, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ jury, last visited Mar. 9, 2017 (a body of persons sworn to give a verdict on some matter submitted to them; especially: a body of persons legally selected and sworn to inquire into any matter of fact and to give a verdict according to the evidence).

5 Reginald Rose, 12 ANGRY MEN (1955), with a movie adaptation by Director Sidney Lumet in 1957.

6 John Grisham, THE RUNAWAY JURY (Doubleday Books 1996), with a movie adaptation

by Director Gary Fleder in 2003.

7 David Dohn, Preparing for your First Trial (Jan. 13, 2014), http://apps.americanbar.org/ litigation/committees/youngadvocate/articles/glen-0114-preparing-your-first-trial.html.

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IS PRESIDENT TRUMP AN “OLD HICKORY” FOR THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY?

The unexpected electoral success of our forty-fifth president, Donald J. Trump, has left many observers searching for historical analogies. Because Trump ran as a political outsider, challenging the established political order and promising to “drain the swamp” of Washington elites, his populist campaign has been compared to that of Andrew Jackson, the first of three Tennesseans to serve as president.1

President Trump and his advisors have encouraged comparisons to Jackson.

Trump’s Chief Strategist, Steve Bannon, stated triumphantly after the election that “[l]like Jackson’s populism, we’re going to build an entirely new political movement.”2 Furthermore, in his first few days as president, President Trump chose a portrait of President Jackson to hang prominently in the Oval Office.3 The portrait, painted by Jackson’s official White House artist Ralph E.W. Earl, “is hung so that Jackson, looking to the right, appears to be starting at whomever is behind” the President’s desk.4 Of course, another portrait of Jackson, who served as a Tennessee Superior Court judge from 1798 to 1804,5 hangs in our own Supreme Court Building here in Knoxville.

Are the comparisons between Jackson and Trump apt, or are they ill-suited for a different man governing in a very different age? To the extent there are similarities between the two men and the political movements they harnessed, what lessons might Jackson’s presidency teach us about the next four (or eight) years of the Trump Administration?

And most significantly for us as lawyers, might Jackson’s relationship with the U.S. Supreme Court in the 1830s inform us about the role of the judicial branch in the 2010s?

Similarities

There undoubtedly are similarities between the two men beyond their handsomely coiffed hairstyles. Both were touted as selfmade men and ran as Washington outsiders against the established political order.

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Jackson was the first President from outside the Virginia and Massachusetts aristocracy to serve;6 born in the South Carolina and orphaned during the Civil War, he compared his mission to clean up Washington “to the herculean task of mucking out a ‘giant Augean stable.’”7 Jackson sought to return power to ordinary Americans – “the planter, the farmer, the mechanic, and the laborer.”8 Trump, although born into relative wealth, grew his business and moved it from the outer boroughs of New York City into Manhattan through aggressive business tactics and the sheer force of his personality. Trump too ran against political legacies on both the left (the Clintons) and the right (the Bushes), and promised to “Make America Great Again” by returning power to the people. Moreover, both presidents were criticized for filling their cabinets with a new set of elites, including old friends, family members, and wealthy supporters, which seemingly was at odds with their campaign rhetoric.9

Both men also rose to power during a time of great social and economic upheaval.

Jackson’s presidency corresponded with the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in the United States, which brought the creation of a manufacturing sector and transition from a primarily agrarian society, particularly in the North. Trump’s election occurred as free trade, the digital revolution, and significant advances in automation have sent manufacturing jobs out of the country or eliminated the jobs entirely. Both movements created economic “winners,” leaving behind other Americans who were struggling and receptive to messages of reform.10

Both men had a media savvy. Trump was a reality television star and infamously uses Twitter to communicate directly with the public, while Jackson subscribed to as many as seventeen newspapers and, upon taking office, ensured a pro-Jackson newspaper was established in Washington.11 However, both men also could be thin-skinned and prone to anger.12

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Differences

As might be expected for two presidents serving nearly two centuries apart, President Jackson and President Trump have their differences. In fact, Dan Feller, the Director of the Papers of Andrew Jackson project at UTKnoxville, has opined that there is “virtually no resemblance between Jackson and Trump.”13

Although he was an outsider to Washington, Jackson had a long career in public service before being elevated to the presidency. Jackson’s distinguished military career left him as the second-most famous American general at the time, behind only George Washington. He also served Tennessee as a delegate to the 1796 state constitutional convention, a judge, and a member of both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. Trump’s experience is exclusively in the private sector.14

Jackson also exercised restraint with regard to foreign policy matters, which stands in contrast to Trump’s saber-rattling and threats to upend established trade agreements.15 Finally, although he was a frontiersman, Jackson had smoothed out many of his rough edges by the time he became president.16 Trump’s outbursts and fits of temper have led one observer to compare him to another, less-distinguished Andrew from Tennessee who served as president: Andrew Johnson, the first president to be impeached.17

Historian Jon Meachem, whose 2008 book American Lion is essential reading on President Jackson, put the view of many historians succinctly: “The [political] moment is Jacksonian, but Trump is not Jackson.”18 Relationship with the Courts

One of the most widely quoted statements

by President Trump during his first few weeks in office, and one that was particularly concerning to many lawyers, was his characterization of U.S. District Court Judge James A. Robart, a George W. Bush appointee, April 2017

COVER STORY By: Matthew R. Lyon LMU Duncan School of Law

as a “so-called judge.”19 This statement occurred in response to Judge Robart’s decision to issue a temporary injunction blocking the enforcement of President Trump’s initial travel ban on refugees and citizens of several predominantly Muslim countries. Likewise, during the campaign, candidate Trump saw his poll numbers dip when he opined that a federal judge in Indiana, Gonzalo Curiel, could not be impartial in the class action suit filed against Trump’s for-profit university because the judge was of Mexican heritage. These statements have created concerns that Trump does not fully appreciate the separation of powers doctrine.

President Jackson’s disputes with Congress – most notably his veto of the Second Bank of the United States – are welldocumented. But Jackson’s greatest conflict with the judicial branch came not from one of his actions, but rather from a failure to act.

National Public Radio host Steve Inskeep detailed President Jackson’s treatment of Native Americans, and specifically his conflict with Cherokee Chief John Ross, in his 2015 book Jacksonland. That book describes a series of U.S. Supreme Court cases involving a white missionary, Samuel Worcester, who was convicted under a Georgia law that prohibited whites from living on Cherokee land without a state permit.20 In Worcester v. Georgia,21 Chief Justice John Marshall reviewed the full history of the relationship between the European settlers and the Native Americans, and ultimately concluded that the Native American tribes were “distinct, independent political communities, retaining their original natural rights, as the undisputed possessors of the soil, from time immemorial.”22 Only Congress had the ability to make treaties and regulate commerce with the Indian tribes. Because the Georgia law under which Worcester was convicted was “repugnant to the Constitution, laws, and treaties of the United States,” the Court vacated his conviction.23

The Cherokee were thrilled with Justice Marshall’s opinion, and hoped that it would portend the end of state laws, like Georgia’s, which refused to recognize the tribe’s sovereignty. However, that was not to be. Shortly after the Worcester decision, Justice John McLean, a recent Jackson appointee who had concurred with the majority, informed the Cherokee that while it was “the duty of the court to have done what they did, . . . the executive would not sustain them.”24 In other words, Jackson did not intend to enforce the April 2017

Court’s decision. Without Jackson employing the resources of the federal government to put pressure on the state, the Georgians could (and did) simply ignore the Court’s order.25

Years later, Horace Greeley reported that President Jackson stated: “Justice Marshall has made his decision; now let him enforce it.” Jon Meachem characterizes the quote as “historically questionable but philosophically true.”26 We do know that Jackson wrote to a friend that “[t]he decision of the Supreme Court has fell still born, and they find that it cannot coerce Georgia to yield to its mandate.”

27 Our country’s recent history with the Civil Rights Movement taught us that enforcement by the executive branch becomes essential when resistant state authorities refuse to follow an order of the Supreme Court.28

In summary, Jackson’s purposeful inaction had the effect of reinforcing state anti-Cherokee laws. Trump’s rhetoric seems to 1 See, e.g., Steve Inskeep, Donald Trump’s Secret?

Channeling Andrew Jackson, N.Y. TIMES (Feb. 17, 2016), available at https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/17/ opinion/campaign-stops/donald-trumps-secretchannelling-andrew-jackson.html.

2 Michael Wolff, Ringside with Steve Bannon at Trump Tower as the President-Elect’s Strategist Plots “An Entirely New Political Movement, HOLLYWOOD REPORTER (Nov. 18, 2016), available at http://www. hollywoodreporter.com/news/steve-bannon-trumptower-interview-trumps-strategist-plots-new-politicalmovement-948747.

3 Maggie Haberman, A Homebody Finds the Ultimate Home Office, N.Y. TIMES (Jan. 25, 2017), available at https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/25/us/politics/ president-trump-white-house.html.

4 Peter Grier, The (Semi) Secret History of Trump’s Andrew Jackson Portrait, CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR (Feb. 9, 2017), available at http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/ Politics/Decoder/2017/0209/The-semi-secret-history-ofTrump-s-Andrew-Jackson-portrait.

5 JON MEACHEM, AMERICAN LION: ANDREW JACKSON IN THE WHITE HOUSE 26 (Random House 2008).

6 H.W. Brands, Trump as the New Andrew Jackson? Not on Old Hickory’s Life, POLITICO (Jan. 29, 2017), available at http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/01/ andrew-jackson-donald-trump-populist-presidenthistory-214705.

7 Jonah Engel Bromwich, The Wild Inauguration of Andrew Jackson, Trump’s Populist Predecessor, N.Y. TIMES (Jan. 20, 2017), available at https://www.nytimes. com/2017/01/20/us/politics/donald-trump-andrewjackson.html.

8 Jon Meachem, Andrew Jackson’s Lessons for Donald Trump, TIME (Dec. 7, 2016), available at http://time. com/4591408/time-poy-donald-trump-andrew-jacksonjon-meacham/.

9 Steve Inskeep, Donald Trump and the Legacy of Andrew Jackson, THE ATLANTIC (Nov. 30, 2016), available at https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/11/ trump-and-andrew-jackson/508973/; Linda J. Killian, The New Old Hickory, U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT (Feb. 13, 2017), available at https://www.usnews.com/opinion/

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indicate he would follow his predecessor if he also were faced with an opinion of the Court with which he disagreed.

Conclusion

Senator Thomas Hart Benton of Missouri said of Jackson’s presidency: “Great is the confidence which he has always reposed in the discernment and equity of the American people. . . . He always said the people would stand by those who stand by them.”29 After a tumultuous first two months in which he has nevertheless hewed closely to the campaign promises that earned him an Electoral College majority, it remains to be seen whether the American people will stand by President Trump.

op-ed/articles/2017-02-13/beware-the-similaritiesbetween-donald-trump-and-andrew-jackson.

10 Killian, supra note 9.

11 Inskeep, supra note 9.

12 Meachem, supra note 8; Killian, supra note 9.

13 Michael Collins, Historians Throw Water on Comparisons of Trump to Andrew Jackson, USA TODAY (Feb. 5, 2017), available at http://www.usatoday.com/ story/news/politics/2017/02/05/historians-throw-watercomparisons-trump-andrew-jackson/97462252/.

14 Brands, supra note 6; Collins, supra note 13.

15 Collins, supra note 13.

16 Id. 17 Charles Lane, Trump is Trying to Compare Himself to Andrew Jackson. Wrong Jackson, WASHINGTON POST (Feb. 8, 2015), available at https://www.washingtonpost. com/opinions/trump-is-trying-to-compare-himself-toandrew-jackson-wrong-andrew/2017/02/08/483d77a8ee1f-11e6-b4ff-ac2cf509efe5_story.html?utm_ term=.346932821be7.

18 Albert R. Hunt, Mr. President, I’d Like to Introduce You to Andrew Jackson, BLOOMBERG VIEW (Feb. 13, 2017), available at https://www.bloomberg.com/view/ articles/2017-02-12/mr-president-i-d-like-to-introduceyou-to-andrew-jackson.

19 Amy B. Wang, Trump Lashes Out at ‘So-Called Judge’ Who Temporarily Blocked Travel Ban, WASHINGTON POST (Feb. 4, 2015), available at https://www.washingtonpost. com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/02/04/trump-lashes-outat-federal-judge-who-temporarily-blocked-travelban/?utm_term=.16f63f8a60b9.

20 STEVE INSKEEP, JACKSONLAND 242-54 (Penguin Press 2015).

21 31 U.S. 515 (1832).

22 Id. at 559; INSKEEP, supra note 20, at 252-54.

23 Worcester, 31 U.S. at 562-63; MEACHEM, supra note 5, at 203.

24 INSKEEP, supra note 20, at 256.

25 Id. at 257.

26 MEACHEM, supra note 5, at 204.

27 Id.; INSKEEP, supra note 20, at 258.

28 INSKEEP, supra note 20, at 259.

29 Meachem, supra note 8.

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OPEN SERVICE By: Elizabeth Carroll, JD Executive Director Harmony Family Center, Inc.

YEAR THREE: THE IMPORTANCE OF COMMUNITY

The Open Service Task Force has entered its third year of providing Knoxville lawyers the opportunity to participate in local service projects.

It is well documented that for communities to thrive and grow, work across professional, cultural, religious and other lines is necessary. The Open Service Task Force embodies this important tenant of building successful communities by serving local organizations.

In 2017, the Task Force will be revisiting some familiar locations, while also expanding our involvement to new community organizations.

Organizations have stated that they look forward to us returning again this year. The Task Force is enthusiastic about serving again this year and hopes you will join in!

On Wednesday, May 3, 2017, the Open Service Task Force is returning for a third year to serve the clients of the YWCA in downtown Knoxville. YWCA Executive Director, Alle Lilly, recently shared the following in response to being asked about the impact and meaning of the Open Service annual service project:

“The YWCA looks forward to this event as an opportunity for positive engagement for our clients in the community. So often, our clients feel disconnected and alone because of life circumstances. The chance to share a meal, interact with members of the community and be noticed is significant as many of the clients we serve have not had the opportunity to engage in a positive way in the community. The YWCA is grateful for the volunteers and contributions who lift our clients’ sense of belonging and community through the annual dinner.”

The project with the YWCA will be held on Wednesday, May 3, 2017, beginning at 6:00 p.m. This project includes preparing and serving supper to approximately 50 residents. We need volunteers to prepare supper, decorate the dining room, serve supper, and to help clean up afterwards. Visiting with those who attend the dinner is also an element of this project. Immediately following supper—and before clean-up— representatives from the YWCA will be on hand to offer tours of the facility to interested folks. It truly is a meaningful experience for all who attend.

The Open Service Task Force is building strong community with local organizations. We welcome, invite and encourage anyone who has not been a part of an Open Service project before to make 2017 the year!

It will be rewarding not only to the organization but to you as well.

For 2017, the Task Force committee is comprised of Charme Allen, Katrina Arbogast, Maha Ayesh, Debra House and Farrell Levy. The committee leadership is shared between Troy Weston and Elizabeth Carroll.

Please consider volunteering at the May 3rd YWCA event. Your time will have a lasting impact on those served! Please contact Troy Weston at tweston@eblaw.us – 865.544.2010 or Elizabeth Carroll at elizabeth@harmonyfamilycenter.org – 865.300.8777 to register for the May 3rd event.

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April 2017

WELL READ By: Campbell D. Cox Student, University of Tennessee College of Law

GO SET A WATCHMAN

BY HARPER LEE

Twenty years after the events of To Kill a Mockingbird, Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, now a twenty-six year old woman and only called Scout by her closest family friends, returns to Maycomb, Alabama, from New York City for her yearly visit. Her father, the iconic Atticus Finch, is still Maycomb’s most prominent attorney and has since taken on one of Jean Louise’s childhood friends, now turned love interest, Henry “Hank” Clinton, as an associate after the death of her brother, Jem Finch. Go Set a Watchman follows Jean Louise’s eye-opening reunion with Maycomb and its residents in a way that reflects the reader’s same return to the emblematic town many years after experiencing To Kill a Mockingbird.

Split into seven parts and filled with several childhood flashbacks, Go Set a Watchman explores Jean Louise’s growth into a woman and homecoming to Atticus and Maycomb.

Upon its release, Go Set a Watchman faced interesting accusations and criticism because the late Harper Lee had routinely stated that To Kill a Mockingbird was the only novel she ever intended to publish. Many literary circles found it curious that the almost ninety year-old Lee had a sudden change of heart after the novel’s manuscript was found. The manuscript itself was found in Lee’s archives attached to an older draft of To Kill a Mockingbird. Because of this, the story of Go Set a Watchman is commonly thought to be a first draft of To Kill a Mockingbird, and was never intended to be published. However strange the circumstances surrounding the novel, they only add to the experience of reading this final, secret work of Harper Lee.

Taking its name from the Bible verse in Isaiah 21:6, “Go, set a watchman; let him announce what he sees,” Go Set a Watchman’s title reflects how Jean Louise Finch sees her own father as the watchman of Maycomb. The main story of Go Set a Watchman is Jean Louise reconciling the image she has of her father Atticus in her mind, the statuesque paragon of morality and justice from To Kill a Mockingbird, and the real Atticus Finch, a man who has flaws and makes mistakes just like everyone else. This is where the novel draws most of its value and develops its commentary. Go Set a Watchman asks a very important question about the law, and the attorneys who practice it: Can a lawyer truly separate his beliefs and biases in order to mete out true justice and do what is right in the eyes of the law? Jean Louise and the legal-minded reader will both struggle to answer this question as the novel progresses.

Like its predecessor, Go Set a Watchman presents a strong social commentary on racism and racial tension in the small, fictional, but reflective town of Maycomb, Alabama. Also like its predecessor there is a controversial trial, but this time it involves the Finch’s old chef, Calpurnia, and her son, Zeebo. The novel focuses on how the town of Maycomb, its residents, and Jean Louise’s family react to the accident, the arrival of the NAACP in town, and the changing times. Most importantly, the novel explores Jean Louise’s perception of Atticus’s choices and actions in dealing with these changes.

Go Set a Watchman’s significance lies mainly in this exact social commentary and its relation to the characters and the choices they

April 2017

make. The commentary allows the reader, like Jean Louise, to decide if he thinks the town of Maycomb is irredeemable, but more importantly if Atticus Finch, the epitome of justice that we saw in To Kill a Mockingbird, is. The way this novel explores differences between generations in the rural-town South, particularly in the relationship between Jean Louise and her father Atticus, is central to many important conversations happening now in the United States.

In the end, Jean Louise and the reader must both answer these questions for themselves and make their own determinations of what they think is right and wrong. Go Set a Watchman functions as a reunion and a coming-of-age story for Jean Louise, but also as a reunion of the reader with To Kill a Mockingbird and Maycomb that allows him to see if anything has really changed after Atticus’s legendary case.

Go Set a Watchman is a shorter work, and I was unable to put it down, reading the entire book in one day. This novel is a must-read for all lawyers who have read To Kill a Mockingbird, or any who are familiar with the legendary fictional attorney, Atticus Finch.

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barrister bullets MONTHLY MEETINGS Everyone is invited to attend the Barristers’ monthly meetings, which are held on the second Wednesday of every month beginning at 5:00 p.m. at the Bistro by the Bijou (807 South Gay Street). The next meeting will be held on April 12, 2017. There are many opportunities to get involved, so please contact Barristers President Samantha Parris (samantha@ sparrislaw.com) or Vice President Mitchell Panter (tmp@painebickers.com) for more information.

ACCESS TO JUSTICE The next Veterans Legal Clinic is scheduled for noon on April 12, 2017, at the Knox County Public Defenders’ Community Law Office. If you are interested in signing up for the Veterans Clinic, you can do so on the KBA’s website: https://www.knoxbar.org/Event/507-default/513networking/2017/02/08/72874-veterans-legal-clinic.

LAET will be hosting the next Blount County Saturday Bar on April 22, 2017, at LAET’s Blount County office, 307 Ellis Avenue, Maryville, TN 37801. If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Kathryn Ellis at kellis@laet.org.

ATHLETICS The Barristers 8th Annual Corn Hole Tournament to benefit Big Brother Big Sisters will be held on Thursday, May 4, 2017 at Bearden Beer Market, located at 4524 Old Kingston Pike. Check-In starts at 6 p.m. This event is sponsored by CrestPoint Wealth Management.

Register online by clicking May 4 on the Event Calendar at www. knoxbar.org. If you have any question please contact Athletics Committee co-chairs, Jeremey Goolsby (jgoolsby@londonamburn.com) or Luke P. Ihnen (lihnen@londonamburn.com).

HUNGER & POVERTY Spring Cleaning? Make room in your closet and help others at the same time! Barristers Hunger & Poverty Relief Committee is collecting Professional clothes through April 10-24. Items needed are slacks & skirts, suits, blouses & shirts, dresses, ties, dress shoes. Multiple donation locations will be available including Gay Street, Main Street, law schools, and West Knoxville. Please do not donate clothes with holes, stains or rips. Women’s clothing will be donated to the YWCA and Connect Ministries Career Closet. Men’s Clothing will be donated to Knox Area Rescue Ministries. For more information please contact Courtney Houpt (crhoupt@gmail.com) or Meagan Collver (mdaviscollver@ londonamburn.com).

LAW SCHOOL MENTOR The Law School Mentor Committee, with the assistance of numerous volunteers from the KBA, conducted 33 mock interviews at UT Law. We received great feedback from the law school, and the students certainly appreciated everyone’s time and efforts. The Committee gives a special thank you to all those who volunteered.

The Committee also began a new initiative, A Day in the Life Luncheons, with UT Law students. The plan is to pair small groups of law students interested in a specific area of law or type of practice, with one or two attorneys practicing in that field, and allow them the opportunity to have a casual and candid conversation over lunch. The Committee hosted their first luncheon in February at UT Law and hopes to keep the initiative going. If you have any interest in speaking with law students about a day in your life as a [insert type of law] attorney, please contact Caitlyn Elam (celam@lewisthomason.com) or Stanton Fears (sfears@kramer-rayson.com).

LAW WEEK The Law Week and School Outreach Committee is seeking volunteers for the Annual Junior Judges Program during the month of April.

Volunteers spend one hour with third graders at a school in Knox County. If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Ashley Morgan (amorgan@lewisthomason.com) for information regarding the program. The Law Week and School Outreach Committee is also seeking nominations for the Law & Liberty Award. The recipient should be visible to the legal profession and local bar association. The recipient should strive to foster and to maintain good relationships between the

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legal profession and the community, work to advance the understanding of the law and legal processes in the non‐legal community, set an example of good citizenship, give time for volunteer work, both within the legal profession and otherwise, evidence high professional standards in his or her occupation, express concern for the safeguard of personal, political, civil, and religious liberties and should be someone whose work is not normally recognized. Nominees do not have to be attorneys to qualify for the Law and Liberty Award. Please submit nominations to Ashley Morgan (amorgan@lewisthomason.com) by April 14, 2017.

MEMBERSHIP The Barristers will be cohosting a Happy Hour on April 20, 2017, with the Tennessee Defense Lawyers Association, a local division of DRI. The location is TBD, so stay tuned for more updates.

MOCK TRIAL The Mock Trial Committee would like to thank the following volunteer attorneys, Nicholas Ames, Jenae Anderson, John Barnes, Sarah Booher, LaToyia Carpenter, Stephen Cobb, Meagan Collver, Jason Collver, Daniel Ellis, Kathryn Ellis, Stanton Fears, Kati Goodner, Jeremey Goolsby, Michelle Greer, Molly Hardin, Courtney Houpt, Rachel Hurt, Katie Jones, Matthew Knable, William Ladnier, Ashley Morgan, Amanda Morse, Nathaniel Ogle, Mitchell Panter, James Parker, Samantha Parris, Brandi Price, John Rice, Eliza Scott, Meredith Slemp, Andrew St. Pierre, Michael Stanuszek, Amanda Tonkin, Kevin Tonkin, Elizabeth Towe, Mikel Towe, Sarah Watson, and Troy Weston and law students, who made this year’s competition possible. The Committee owes a special thanks to Judge Stevens for presiding over the final round of the competition. Farragut High School won first place, and Jefferson County High School won second. Each team and student who participated is owed sincere congratulations for a job well done!

VOLUNTEER BREAKFAST The Volunteer Breakfast Committee would like to thank London & Amburn, P.C., for sponsoring the February 2017 breakfast at Volunteer Ministry Center. The Committee also appreciates Luke Ihnen of London & Amburn for preparing and serving the breakfast to individuals in need with the members of the Committee. The Volunteer Breakfast is a Barristers’ project. On the fourth Thursday each month at 6:15 a.m., the Barristers’ and their volunteers serve breakfast to individuals participating in the services of the Volunteer Ministry Center. If you are interested in sponsoring a breakfast or volunteering to prepare and serve breakfast, please contact Paul E. Wehmeier at pwehmeier@adhknox.com, Matthew Knable at knablelaw@gmail.com, or sign up on the Knoxville Bar Association’s website at http://www.knoxbar.org/KBA-News/helpvolunteer-ministries.

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April 2017

SCHOOLED IN ETHICS By: Paula Schaefer Professor, U.T. College of Law

ETHICALLY AVOIDING CLIENT FEE DISPUTES

You have been representing Mike Smith in a divorce for the past eighteen months. You originally collected a $7,000 retainer, but you used that months ago. Now, you have a final judgment and you are ready to send the final bill.

You are somewhat surprised to realize that your time since the last bill amounts to another $4,900. You know the client is stressed about money. You remember telling Mike when you took his case that you expected that $7,000 would cover everything. Your engagement letter clearly spells out that your hourly rate is $350 per hour and that if fees exceed $7,000, you may request an additional retainer.

You hope Mike pays the bill, but you are concerned. You have been in this situation before. When the retainer is gone and the matter is complete, some clients have no interest in paying the final bill.

At first glance, it may seem there is no professional misconduct in this scenario. The attorney has not entered into a forbidden fee arrangement (such as a contingent fee payable upon securing a divorce, as prohibited by Tennessee RPC 1.5(d)(1)). And the attorney entered a written a fee agreement with the client, as encouraged by the same rule. (“[T]he basis or rate of the fee and expenses for which the client will be responsible shall be communicated to the client, preferably in writing. . . .”

Tennessee RPC 1.5(b)).

But there are additional professional conduct duties implicated in the scenario. The following discussion considers some changes our attorney could institute in the future to comply with those professional conduct obligations and (hopefully) avoid fee disputes.

Provide Realistic Estimates of Fees (and Update Your Estimates)

One problematic aspect of the hypothetical scenario is that the attorney’s initial estimate was low. The attorney gave a $7,000 estimate for a case with billed fees that ultimately approached $12,000. The initial estimate may have been reasonable, but unforeseen circumstances caused the fees to increase. In that situation, an attorney should have kept the client informed of the changed circumstances. See Sallee v. Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility, 469 S.W.3d 18, 40 (Tenn. 2015) (“[O]nce it becomes reasonably clear to the lawyer that the [fee] estimate is inaccurate, this fact should be communicated to the client. . . . .”).

It would be inconsistent with the interests of both attorney and client for the attorney to provide an unrealistically low estimate at the outset. The client is better equipped to decide whether to hire the attorney (and to make a plan for paying the attorney) if the client has a realistic idea of what the matter will cost. In turn, the lawyer is more likely to be paid if the client knows what to expect at the outset.

Communicate (and Bill) Regularly

Attorneys are obligated to communicate with their clients throughout the representation. This is consistent with our duty to provide competent representation. This duty is also embodied in Tennessee RPC 1.4.

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Part of how attorneys communicate with clients is through regular bills. Rather than waiting several months to send a bill, a monthly bill allows the client to understand how the matter is progressing. This is a method of fulfilling the obligation to “keep the client reasonably informed about the status of the matter.” Tennessee RPC 1.4(a)(3). These regular bills also prevent big surprises at the end of a representation (like the $4,900 bill in our hypothetical) that may increase the risk of the bill being unpaid.

Billing Entries Should Accurately Detail the Work Performed

In addition to sending bills regularly, the bills should contain detailed (and accurate) entries about the work that was completed.

Such detailed records can help establish that the amount charged was reasonable, as required by Tennessee RPC 1.5.

It is easier to provide regular, detailed, and accurate bills when an attorney keeps records of her time simultaneously with completing the work. Failing to do this results in mistakes (at best) and fraud (at worst).

Care in this area can lessen the risk of attorney discipline. See, e.g., Sallee, 469 S.W.3d at 38-41 (attorney was disciplined for billing practices found to be in violation of Tennessee RPCs 1.4 and 1.5).

Promptly Respond to Client Questions About the Bill

When clients call or email with questions about a bill, an attorney should address those questions promptly. An anxious client only becomes more anxious – and unhappy – when she is unable to reach her attorney.

In the book Blink, Malcolm Gladwell discusses research concerning which doctors are most likely to be sued for medical malpractice. It is not the less skilled doctors, but the doctors who are not liked by their patients who are sued. A medical malpractice attorney is quoted in the book as saying, “People just don’t sue doctors they like. In all the years I’ve been in this business, I’ve never had a potential client walk in and say, ‘I really like this doctor, and I feel terrible about doing it, but I want to sue him.’”

Not surprisingly, the research reflects the doctors who are liked are better communicators than those who are not. The lesson is equally applicable to lawyers. If you want a better relationship with your clients, you have to communicate, including responding to questions. Ignoring unpleasant questions about the bill does not make it more likely you will be paid. In fact, the result is probably the opposite.

Final Thoughts.

There are some clients who will not pay the fees they owe. But attorneys can increase their chances of being paid by providing realistic estimates of fees, communicating frequently with clients, regularly providing detailed bills, and promptly answering questions when they arise.

DICTA

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ASK MCLAWYER

Question:

I have a judgment that was entered in Iowa on February 15, 2010.

It was domesticated in Tennessee July 20, 2011. I know judgments in Tennessee expire after 10 years. Does the Iowa judgment expire ten years after it was entered or ten years after it was domesticated?

Answer & Analysis:

The judgment expires on February 15, 2020, ten years after it was originally entered, pursuant to T.C.A. Section 28-3-110(a)(2), which states that actions on judgments and decrees of courts of record of this or any other state or government shall be commenced 10 years after the cause of action accrues. A domesticated judgment has the same legal effect as one originating in Tennessee, assuming that the foreign judgment is valid. Frazier v. Frazier, 72 S.W.3d 333, 335 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2001). Domesticated judgments are governed by the same law as Tennessee judgments regarding the finality of judgments. Id.

Because a registered judgment is treated in the same manner as a judgment originating in this state and subject to the same defenses, enforcement of the registered judgment is subject to being barred by the ten-year statute of limitations found at T.C.A. Section 28-3-110. See Hart v. Tourte, 10 S.W.3d 263, 266-67 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1999). In Hart, a creditor failed to domesticate a California judgment in Tennessee properly during the original ten-year period. Id. at 265. However, the creditor properly renewed the judgment in California for an additional ten years pursuant to California law and then properly moved to domesticate the judgment in Tennessee. Id. at 266. The Tennessee Court of Appeals concluded that under California law, the renewed judgment was treated as a new judgment as of the date of filing of the application for renewal, and thus, the date of accrual for the purpose of the statute of limitations under Tennessee law was the date of filing of the renewal application as provided by California law. Because the creditor had timely renewed the valid judgment in California, the creditor was well within the ten-year period of limitations to domesticate the judgment in Tennessee. Id. at 266-67.

“Ask McLawyer” is dedicated to answering questions on procedure, evidence and trial tactics in a variety of venues and subject matter. Should you have a question for McLawyer, please address the question to Ask McLawyer, c/o Marsha Watson, KBA, 505 Main Street, Suite 50, Knoxville, TN 37902 or mwatson@knoxbar.org. Your question will then be submitted to McLawyer for potential response in this column. McLawyer is an anonymous neutral counsel dedicated to answering questions of procedure from members of the Knoxville Bar Association.

Knoxville Bar Association Annual Memorial Service Friday, May 12, 2017 3:00 p.m.

Tennessee Supreme Court Courtroom 505 Main Street, 2nd Floor

W O R D P L AY By: Peter D. Van de Vate Finkelstein, Kern, Steinberg & Cunningham

“Carnival”

OK, it’s Lent already, but what is up with Carnival and Fat Tuesday?

Well, they are closely related. Carnival comes from the Latin carne vale or the Italian carne levare. The former means “farewell to meat” and the latter “to remove meat.” So, why Fat Tuesday and for that matter why do we Episcopalians have a pancake supper at the beginning of Lent?

Well, the tradition is that one should clear one’s larder of extravagant items before the Lenten period of introspection and, to some, denial. So, a pancake supper is supposed to remove eggs and butter and milk from the larder. To trim the fat, as it were. Fat Tuesday gets its name from this tradition. It is a day to get all the fat into yourself in preparation for Lent, and, I suppose, to get all the partying out of your system.

Mardi gras, is, of course, Spanish for “Fat Tuesday,” and Carnival is very energetically celebrated in Latin America!

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We gather, not for the purpose of grieving, but rather to celebrate the careers of, and to honor, applaud, and express our gratitude to, those members of the Knoxville Bar who passed away in the last year.

Joining KBA President Amanda Busby in the reflection and celebration of the lives of these individuals will be Rev. Charles Fels and Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Sharon Lee.

DICTA

In Memoriam: W. Mitchell Cramer Joey R. Feagins B. Joe Guess Mary Jo Hoover E. H. Rayson David Edwards Smith Otis H. Stephens Jr. Hon. Robert Thomas Stinnett John Albert Walker Jr. April 2017

LONG WINDED By: Jason H. Long Lowe, Yeager & Brown

GIVE HAMILTON A CHANCE

I have to admit a bit of an obsession here. For the past two months, the entire Long family has been consumed by the hit Broadway musical, Hamilton, An American Musical. I recognize that last sentence may well raise a number of questions. First, you are probably thinking to yourself “Jason, it’s really a little surprising that such a rugged, alpha-male, like yourself, is obsessed with a musical.” Yes I agree, to all the world, I project abject masculinity not normally associated with love of musical theater. I am breaking down barriers here. Second, you may be thinking “The whole family, really? Aren’t some of the lyrics a little ‘adult’ for your younger children?” The Long family firmly believes that art transcends the limited expectations of society regarding child rearing. We will not censor art simply because others believe some ears are too young to hear the message. Rather, we will use it as an opportunity to educate our children and let them grow in appreciation of all art forms. That being said, I won’t be terribly surprised if Janie drops an f-bomb in class someday and blames her parents for letting her listen to the Hamilton soundtrack. We try to shield her from it when we can. Finally, the obvious question is “Why?” That requires a bit more explanation.

About four months ago, Carol Anne and I were discussing our upcoming trip to New York in August. We both thought it odd that we had never been to see a Broadway play together. She grew up in the theater and, at one time, harbored a child’s dream of performing on stage there. (As a side note, anyone who has heard her sing will, I am sure, agree with me that her childhood dream was not farfetched. At least it was more realistic than my dream of being the first professional golfer to fly in outer space and write a bestselling novel about his experiences.)

Given my previously mentioned appreciation for musical theater, it is surprising we have not shared that experience together. We resolved to go see a show at our upcoming trip. There was really only one option as you would have to be an astronaut golfer stuck in outer space to not know that Hamilton continues to be the hottest ticket in the country. We advised our mortgage lender that we would be skipping the next payment on our home and purchased two tickets.

With the purchase confirmed, we thought it would be helpful to listen to the soundtrack in advance of the show and do a little reading, to better appreciate the performance we had just mortgaged our futures on.

Carol Anne got a head start on me. She quickly involved our son who is an American history nut and the two of them spent most of their time at home singing the lyrics. She began telling me about how amazing the songs were and she even likened the creator of the show, Lin-Manuel Miranda, to a modern day Shakespeare. Now, you have to understand that when my wife becomes invested in something she pours her whole being into it. I was not terribly surprised by her comments and chalked them up to hyperbole. After a couple of months, I finally broke down and started listening to the songs ( Janie came later, really as a result of forced osmosis because for some time it was the only thing playing in our home). In fairness to my wife, her hyperbole is not that far off.

For those unaware, Hamilton is a hip hop version of the life of founding father and first Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton.

I know, most of you are thinking “Why, of course. Actually, I am kind of surprised no one has performed a rap about the life of Alexander Hamilton before. It seems like such a natural fit.” Here’s the thing though . . . it really works. And it makes our founders come to life in a completely original and powerful way. The music conveys the truly revolutionary nature of what Hamilton and his contemporaries were trying to accomplish. It emphasizes Hamilton’s background as an immigrant who made astonishing contributions to our country. It encapsulates what the American experience was meant to be. In short, April 2017

after a month of listening to the songs and reading the background of the production, I am fairly blow away by what Miranda has achieved and I think it is absolutely groundbreaking art. Despite the giant hole in our bank account, I do not regret for a second the decision to buy tickets.

Moreover, blue language aside, the music has both of my children interested in history, constitutional government, and the law. O.K., J.R. is a little more interested than Janie, but she is buying in and I don’t know too many seven year olds who can tell you the difference between Jefferson and Hamilton’s political philosophies.

For me, it has reignited an interest in the founding fathers and what they accomplished. I felt like I plowed that ground pretty thoroughly in my college political science classes, but I admit that I never paid much attention to Hamilton. John Adams was always my favorite. He was a lawyer’s lawyer and a chief architect of the independence movement. He was not liked because he was so forceful in his opinions and inflexible on the core objectives he wanted to accomplish. I always admired that in him. I am learning that Hamilton shared many of the same characteristics and I admire him for that as well.

I applaud Miranda. He has created a wholly unique piece of art that is raising level of debate concerning immigration, diversity, the rule of law, and the American experience. These are issues we should be discussing now, more than ever. Moreover, he is doing it in a way that is accessible to younger generations. If you have the opportunity, give Hamilton a chance. You will be entertained and enlightened. A rare combination.

DICTA

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LIFE HACKS By: Angelia Nystrom University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture

HACKING STRESS BEFORE IT HACKS YOU

Attorneys are, as we are often told, stressed. We are engaged in a juggling act: trying to manage the needs of our clients and manage our practices, all while shouldering family and other obligations. Stress is, at times, imminent. It is one of those things that we, as human beings, face on a daily basis. And it is one of those things we have to deal with on a daily basis.

It seems there are countless articles and websites that talk about ways to deal with stress. Pinterest even has an entire section of “life hacks” to cope with stress. It suggests meditation, exercise, and many other things. Unfortunately, none of those things really work for me.

If you read this column in last month’s DICTA, you will recall that my “life hack” for dealing with stress is housecleaning. I love to clean house. A couple of years ago, find it strangely someone asked Trace what his relaxing, and my stress mother did for fun. His response, level is greatly reduced “Clean house.” And when asked what makes his mom happy, he when my personal space is said, “When Dad and I clean in order. house, too.” It is no secret. I do love a clean and organized house.

I find it strangely relaxing, and my stress level is greatly reduced when my personal space is in order.

(Note: this does not always apply to my office.)

Every morning before work, I clean my house… do the dishes, do any laundry that has accumulated, make the beds, and pick up Trace’s toys. It relaxes me and really sets the tone for my day. I can feel my blood pressure going down, the stress being lifted, and it gives me time to think about all the things I need to do during the work day.

When I confessed this last month, I had some interesting responses to the column. A couple of people asked if I was available for hire. A couple more said I must be more than a little bit crazy. Still another said that Hugh must be a saint to put up with me and my neuroses.

It may not be the conventional way to deal with stress, but it works for me. I was curious, though, as to how other people deal with stress. I wondered if other attorneys had such unconventional stress management techniques, so I asked a few friends to tell me how they cope with the stresses that face us every day.

Adrienne Anderson has several coping mechanisms to deal with stress. “I really enjoy long distance flatwater kayaking and hiking. Both are relaxing and are the perfect way to deal with stress,” says Adrienne.

She also enjoys yoga to relieve stress. Her most interesting response was a bit more….unexpected, though. “Kickboxing/MMA training is a fantastic way to deal with stress. It is as fake as televised wrestling when I do it, but boy does it relieve stress!” says Adrienne. She continues, “I don’t know why all these very different things work well to relieve my stress, but they do.”

Kyle Baisley also enjoys a good workout to relieve stress. “I either go before daybreak to CrossFit Ktown and do a hero workout such as ‘Murph’ while blasting AC/DC’s ‘Live 1992’ album (and hope to finish before the album finishes!), or I go late afternoon to a client’s private

I

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range with one of my full autos and about 30 pre-loaded mags. Either one tends to clear my head fairly quickly!” says Kyle.

LeAnn Mynatt says that there is only one real way to relieve stress.

“One word: running.” LeAnn doesn’t run in solitude though. “I need ear buds playing good music (sometimes Lady Gaga, sometimes Aretha singing spirituals) and a good, steady pace, enough to sweat.” She doesn’t take running for granted, though. “When I was sick in 2013, the one thing I needed to destress was what I couldn’t do. Now, I do not take it for granted and dread the day when or if my joints take it away from me.”

She says, “You can tell from looking at me that I’m not fast, but I am avid.”

Hanson Tipton prefers to find a little quiet – and a place away from middle school drama – to relieve stress. “I have a 14-year-old daughter, so when life gets stressful I go to the office,” says Hanson.

Annette Winston had the best response when I asked how she copes with stress. “Usually just send him to the golf course.

(Bahahahahaha!)”

DICTA

April 2017

B I L L & P H I L’ S G A D G E T O F T H E M O N T H By:

Bill Ramsey Neal & Harwell

Phil Hampton

Founder and CEO, LogicForce Consulting

SUNNYCAM

You can travel all over the world and experience amazing sights and sounds, but the real joy of those experiences is in sharing what you have seen with family, friends, or even the world (via YouTube). We love to capture life experiences on camera, and, as such, we probably use our smartphones more for photos and videos than phone calls.

The problem with the smartphone cam, however, is that it is sometimes difficult to capture an activity in the moment as we are experiencing it. The desire to capture active scenes such as a run along the beach, a bicycle ride on an autumn day, or parasailing adventure has given rise to a plethora of active cams, with GoPro being one of the more popular ones. These cams are popular with outdoor enthusiasts who wear them conspicuously mounted on top of their bicycle helmet.

We love the quality of the video these cameras capture and the hands-free mode of recording, but we don’t particularly like being seen wearing a video cam perched on top of our head and we also don’t care for some of the high price tags these cams carry.

So, we have abstained from purchasing an active cam, until now. We saw the SunnyCam product at the Consumer Electronics Show and immediately signed up to purchase once they started shipping to the U.S. SunnyCam is a pair of glasses with a 1080p video camera nestled inconspicuously in the frame between the eyes. What we like about the design is that the glasses (with either tinted lenses for sunglasses or clear lenses for indoors) look like real glasses, not the nerdy half-glasses / half-cyclops design of Google’s failed Google Glass experiment. The SunnyCam frames are very sturdy and substantial without looking nerdy (at least we don’t think we look nerdy when we wear them).

Once these SunnyCam glasses passed the fashion test, the more important determination was whether the process of video recording would be effortless and the resulting video would be of good quality.

We tested a little around the office and were pleased with the results but decided to send SunnyCam on a rugged test. It just so happened that Phil was getting ready to embark on an early spring ski vacation in the Utah mountains, so he took SunnyCam on a more rigorous test drive down the ski slopes and along some rough mountain terrain in a

April 2017

snowmobile. The results were fantastic. The glasses held up quite well despite getting inadvertently buried in some snow drifts occasionally (no knock on Phil’s skiing ability, of course).

It is very easy to begin recording by simply pressing a button on the glass frame. The camera located between the eyes begins capturing whatever you are looking at. To stop recording you simply press the same button. The captured video is stored on the built-in 16GB memory card which can hold up to 3 hours of footage. You can also capture still photos while video recording by simply pressing the button on the frame.

The battery life on the SunnyCam was a little disappointing for our taste, giving only one hour of recording time on a single charge. It is easy, however, to re-charge the battery with the included USB cable; and you could also elect to bring along a backup power source to plug in via the USB cable once the battery starts to drain.

It is easy to view and download the videos from the glasses once you get back to your computer.

And the quality of those videos was actually quite stunning. While the skiing action was fast (sometimes), the snowmobiling action was fast and very bumpy. Surprisingly the recorded videos even from the snowmobile runs were not excessively jumpy or unwatchable.

What was really nice was being able to enjoy an activity with no encumbrance (other than a pair of sunglasses which we would have worn anyway) and to capture that active experience on a 1080p video camera.

Of course, devices like SunnyCam raise all sorts of privacy issues as it is virtually impossible for someone to notice that you are recording a video while wearing them. There is a small red light on the face side of the glasses that illuminates when the camera is recording, but this light is unseen from the onlooker’s perspective. One can imagine that there will be all sorts of litigation interest in videos captured from these types of gadgets as they become more popular.

SunnyCam is made by a company in the U.K. and can be purchased directly online starting at €120. There will be distribution through some U.S. retailers according to the company website.

Whether you want to take this device on vacation to capture the moment while living the moment or whether you want to use this camera to capture a home improvement project, a child’s soccer game, or simply a fun day in the park, we think SunnyCam is up to the task.

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LIFE AND LAW IN HARMONY By: Leslie L. Beale, Success Coach Profusion Strategies

JD

FOUR WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR RESILIENCY

The law is a tough business. As lawyers, we have many demands on our time and attention. No matter how we try to juggle them, once in a while, we will fail in some way. We’ll fall short of the lofty goals we set for ourselves. We’ll zig when we should zag. We’ll flat out miss things and fall on our faces. Failure is one of life’s great certainties.

Have you ever wondered, however, why some people seem to glide through adversity with grace and ease, while others of us struggle?

Why do some of us dwell on a setback while others are on to the next challenge without ever looking back?

The secret is resiliency. Resiliency is a key skill for managing the many obstacles we encounter in our lives and careers. Practicing resiliency can leave us feeling more in control, and help us move beyond our failures with grace. Here are four ways to get started: 1. Frame setbacks as a challenge instead of a problem.

How you respond to a setback has a lot to do with how you think about it. If you allow yourself to see every bump in the road as an obstacle that can’t be overcome, you’re likely to feel frustrated and defeated. Making small failures into catastrophes only serves to rob you of your energy and keep you from moving forward.

On the other hand, if you frame a difficulty as a new puzzle to be solved, your brain will begin to work on finding a solution. New and creative possibilities will present themselves, and you’ll be able to operate in a way that seemed impossible before. Adopting the attitude of an investigator, being curious as to what happened and how it could have gone differently, can also help keep your mindset flexible and open to new solutions.

2. Commit to your vision of success.

Your vision of success is especially important when you’re faced with failures. If you don’t have a clear idea of where you’re going and what it will take to get there, a misstep can be devastating. You can end up feeling lost and rudderless, and waste time casting about for the next opportunity.

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If you’re clear on your vision of success, however, you will be able to keep going in the face of adversity. You’ll know the next step you need to take. If a setback leads you to decide that step needs to be modified, you’ll be in a better position to fine tune your approach.

3. Take action toward your goals.

One of the best ways to strengthen resiliency is to take action toward your goals continually, even in the face of failures. Imagine an athlete who, after losing a game, decided to give up on practice and training. We would be shocked. Yet, too often, this is exactly what we do in our own lives. We suffer a loss, and decide to give up on everything we previously believed would lead to our success.

The best athletes, and most successful people, take the opposite approach in the face of failure. They double down. They go back to what they know works, and they focus and recommit. They consistently work on the basics they believe will help them achieve their goal.

The next time you stumble, don’t give up. Redouble your efforts. Focus on the few things you know will help you achieve your goals and keep moving.

4. Focus on what you can control.

When we’re dealt a losing hand, it can be tempting to wallow in self-pity or anger. Resilient people, however, know this is a waste of time. We will never be able to control the circumstances around us, no matter how hard we may try.

We can change the impact of those circumstances, however, by focusing on what we can control – our responses. We can spend our time determining how we could have approached the situation differently. We can improve our understanding of the people around us. We can reassess our approach to a project. These things are within our control, and focusing on them in the midst of adversity can help us regain our confidence and get back on track.

DICTA

April 2017

LEGAL MYTHBREAKERS By: David E. Long Leitner, Williams, Dooley & Napolitan, PLLC

LAWYERPALOOZA 2.0 IS A MYTH AND THE VERDICTS WILL NEVER PERFORM AGAIN: AN INTERVIEW WITH THE VERDICTS Interviewer: So, I’m sitting with Rick Carl (Miles), Doug Weinstein (Hammer) and Dave Long (Master). You played your last show 9 years ago…why now and why Lawyerpalooza 2.0?

Master: I want another scarf from Greg Coleman. I hugged the last one so much the sweat came off.

Miles: Coleman is Elvis. Elvis is not even Elvis anymore. Who is Elvis? Coleman’s the King.

Hammer: Yeah and we needed to get back together, so I could duck McCartney and Chicago. They won’t leave me alone, wanting me to go on tour with them.

Miles: Yeah, they’re really needy. And McCartney hogs the stage.

Interviewer: How do you anticipate Lawyerpalooza 2.0 going?

Master: Total rock out music extravaganza. Dude, awesome acts, like Roman Reese and the Cardinal Sins. I always wanted to see a Cardinal sin…they act so uptight most of the time in those weird hats and red robes….

Hammer: And don’t forget Dor L’Dor. I’m going to get my Klezmer going baby….Stooksbury, Carol Anne Long. Kourtney Hennard…rockin’ night….

Don’t’ miss it baby, 6:30pm-9:30pm, April 27, 2017 at Scruffy City Hall.

Interviewer: So, The Verdicts are reuniting to be a part of this KBA rock festival?

Miles: Well, Rachel Hurt and Marsha Watson offered each of us a free beer….

Master: And we can buy a second beer if we want.

Interviewer: Guys, everyone gets a free drink with their tickets.

Hammer: Yeah, but do they all get to drink it on stage? Huh? Answer that one smarty pants interviewer person.

Interviewer: Master, why do they call you Master?

Miles: It happened during his spiritual phase when he was walking around in flowing robes and calling all of us “Grasshopper.”

Hammer: Miles, I thought it was when we all got caught up with that hippy love commune following the Grateful Dead around.

Master: The craziness of youth….

Hammer: Yeah….

Miles: Sigh…yeah….

Interviewer: So, what can we expect at Lawyerpalooza 2.0?

Miles: Expect melting guitar solos, tight knit vocals, driving percussion and sizzling horn work.

Hammer: Yeah, and the Verdicts will play a few songs as well.

Miles: We will lay down the law of rock and the soul of roll.

Interviewer: Anything else you want the KBA to know?

Miles: Show up for the amazing talent, a great time and a rockin’ blast of a night.

Master: Yeah, and we’ll be there too…do you guys think there will be a fight over Coleman’s scarves this time? I got punched the last time by Marsha Watson when I crowd dove for one……….

April 2017

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DICTA

April 2017

BENCH AND BAR IN THE NEWS This “members only” column is published each month to share news and information among KBA members. Submissions should be limited to 75 words and will be edited for space and other considerations. Email submissions to mwatson@knoxbar.org by the 10th of each month.

AFTER HOURS FILING BOX After Hours Filing Box for Knox County Circuit Court Divisions I, II & III has been reinstated as a self-help stamp and deposit box for attorneys and litigants. Please do not stamp or deposit documents that require a filing fee or issuance by a Deputy Clerk (i.e. no Complaints, Summons, etc.). The box is emptied once daily by a Deputy Clerk in the morning of ordinary business days.

NEED GUIDANCE IN A SPECIFIC PRACTICE AREA? One of the best kept secrets of the Knoxville Bar Association is our Mentor for the Moment program. We want to let the secret out and make sure that our members use this wonderful resource. It’s really simple to ask a question of our helpful volunteer mentors. Log in to the members’ only section of www.knoxbar.org or check out the list in the KBA Attorneys’ Directory and begin your search! Our easy-touse website allows you to search by last name or by subject area experience.

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PARALEGAL ASSOCIATION MEETING The Smoky Mountain Paralegal Association will hold its monthly meeting on Thursday, April 13, 2017, at 12:00 pm. in the Blount Mansion Visitors Center. Attorney Edward H. Trent of Wimberly Lawson Wright Daves & Jones will be presenting an Update on Overtime Exemption Rules. A lunch buffet is available at the cost of $12/person with reservations. Please contact Kati Wheatley, ACP at president@ smparalegal.org or (865) 546-7190 for additional information and/or lunch reservations.

WILL SEARCH

The family of Ronald J. Potts is looking for the attorney who prepared his will.

Name: Ronald J. Potts Date of Birth: 1-23-41 Date of Death: 2-25-17 Address: 303 Cruze Road Powell, TN 37849 Time Will was Prepared: Family believes the will was prepared within the last couple of years.

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Furnished office space available in West Knoxville. Convenient to I-40 and Downtown. Quiet atmosphere perfect for sole practitioner or mediator. Contact Dana Holloway at Holloway Law & Mediation Center. (865) 719-1644 or (865) 643-8725 Office space for sub-lease at 618 S Gay St, Suite 100. High visibility with full window on Gay St. Wi-fi available at no additional cost. Private office, 11’ x 10’ with large private conference room available. Great for sole practitioner or satellite office.

Rent $500 per month for office space only.

Additional $250 per month for any signs or advertising placed in window. Contact Arning Insurance Agency at 865-6371403.

Corner of Westland Drive and Pellissippi Parkway. Former legal office. Excellent condition. 3,456 Sq.Ft. Highly visible with easy access to interchange. Phone system installed. Lease or Purchase opportunity available. For further information, contact Oliver Smith Realty (865) 584-2000.

A perfect office space available with signage on Peters Road. The office has just been renovated and ready for new occupants.

Space offers room for two private offices and reception area and other area for a work station. The location is visible from Kingston Pike and would make a great office for an accountant, insurance agent, attorney or mortgage broker, engineering firm or anyone who would like high visibility. Offers a carport for your parking along with a paved parking lot. Carport also has a storage closet. Rent: $900.00 per month. Contact Karen Emmert at 356-5049.

Office Space for Lease at 5344 N. Broadway, Knoxville. Across from Fountain City Park. Approximately 2,000 sq ft.

Present floor plan accommodates four offices plus a conference room and a reception area. Would consider dividing space. One Level. Offices on either side occupied by long-term law firms. Two (2) Year minimum lease required; great for satellite office. Qualified prospects call: (865) 805-1911.

WELCOME NEW MEMBERS THE KNOXVILLE BAR ASSOCIATION IS PLEASED TO WELCOME THE FOLLOWING NEW MEMBERS:

Daniel E. Kidd Law Office of Daniel Kidd Sally A. Lighter Pellissippi State Elizabeth K. Psar Elizabeth Psar Law Firm Jarrod B. Casteel Butler, Vines and Babb, P.L.L.C. Adam Arnold Pitts & Lake, P.C. Brittney M. Crass Stewart L. Harris Lincoln Memorial University - Duncan School of Law

New Law Student Members Jordan T. Cooper Tami L. Schack Landon M. Hickey Brittany Sims

Address Changes Please note the following changes in your KBA Attorneys’ Directory and other office records: Lauren R. Biloski BPR # 025269 1710 Oak Ridge Hwy. Clinton, TN 37716 Ph. (865) 264-4887 Fax: (865) 264-4890 lrbiloski@gmail.com

Relation to Deceased: Daughter Melanie Sharpe - 865-898-3482

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Serving the Legal Community in Assisting Low-Income Persons To Navigate the Justice System

PRO BONO PROJECT By: Kathryn Ellis Pro Bono Director Legal Aid of East Tennessee

On April 1, low income Tennesseans will have the opportunity to receive pro bono legal assistance at clinics across the state or online.

The Tennessee Supreme Court Access to Justice Commission, the Administrative Office of the Courts, the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services, and the Tennessee Bar Association have designated that date “Help4TN Day.” Volunteer attorneys will have the opportunity to volunteer their time and offer pro bono assistance to clients through the events of the day, as well as at additional events scheduled during the two weeks before and after April 1. While Legal Aid of East Tennessee will be sponsoring or co-sponsoring several events during that period, I thought this would be a perfect time to give you all the opportunity to volunteer to assist an LAET client through our Pro Bono Project.

Although I try to include both veteran PBP volunteers as well as newer attorneys who have not had the opportunity to help one of our clients with a case, I have no doubt that many of you would love to help out but just haven’t “gotten the call” from me yet.

So, here is your opportunity to contact me and let me know which case you want to help out with!! Below are basic details about a wide selection of cases I currently have ready to be placed with a wonderful attorney in the Knoxville Bar. All you have to do is contact me (kellis@ laet.org) and let me know which case you are interested in handling!

I know everyone will be eager to help, so contact me quickly and maybe even give me a couple of case numbers just in case someone else has already claimed one you are interested in!

Conservatorship: Knox; Client seeking conservatorships over two adult children. #16-0230012 and #16-0230563.

Contract/Real Property: Blount; Client seeks assistance with matter involving possible fraud or misrepresentation on the sale of a home. #160231343.

Death Certificate Correction: Knox; Client seeks correction of spouse’s death certificate. #16-0228710.

Insurance: Knox; Client wants assistance getting short-term disability extended; initial request was denied and needs assistance with appealing. #16-0232149.

Medicaid: Knox; Client is seeking a care-giver/taker exemption; cares for his mother. #16-0231753.

Name Change: Loudon; Client wants to change daughter’s last name; Client has safety concerns for daughter. #16-0229152.

Name Change: Knox; Client wants to complete name changes for two children; father’s specific location is not known; notice by publication may be needed. #14-0211143 and #14-0211140.

Probate: Knox; Client seeks assistance with estate/probate issue following death of boyfriend. #16-0231696.

Real Property: Sevier; Client seeking assistance with establishing ownership of property in order to get a mortgage modification; there appear to be several estate/probate issues. #15-0224672.

Adoption: Knox; Client wants to adopt her nephew; Mother is in agreement, father is unknown. # 16-0232633 Adoption: Knox; Client has had custody of 3 year old since born; Mother is in agreement, father is unknown; filing fee ready. #160229232.

Real Property: Knox; Client seeks assistance in matter regarding neighbor trespassing on property. #16-0232775.

Restoration of Rights: Loudon; Client seeks assistance in restoration of citizenship rights; client lives outside Tennessee. #16-0232632.

Child Support: Knox; Client seeks assistance getting child support modification; client has custody of grandchildren. #15-0220277.

Conservatorship: Loudon; Client seeking conservatorship over her mother; no one is expected to contest the conservatorship. #16-0230070.

Tort Defense/Easement Issue: Blount; Client seeks assistance in defending against lawsuit related to an easement; matter has a May hearing date scheduled. #16-0231101.

Conservatorship: Knox; Client seeking conservatorship over disabled adult daughter. #16-0232377.

Conservatorship: Knox; Client seeking conservatorship over disabled son. #16-0230060.

Conservatorship: Knox; Client seeking conservatorship over sister; other family members may oppose conservatorship. #16-0231424.

Conservatorship: Cocke; Client seeking conservatorship over disabled son. #16-0232810.

The Pro Bono Project • Legal Aid of East Tennessee, Inc. • 607 W. Summit Hill Drive • Knoxville, TN 37902

phone (865) 637-0484 e-mail:kellis@laet.org fax (865) 525-1162

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DICTA

April 2017

Q: A:

THE LAST WORD By:

Jack H. (Nick) McCall

Marjorie, would you tell DICTA’s readers about Justice Knox, what it stands for, and how it came about?

MARJORIE THIGPEN-CARTER organizer for Justice Knox

We don’t always know what changes our life’s direction, but it seems to be some strange mix of our own seeking, our own sense of calling, and some serendipitous event. One night I was somewhat casually searching job postings. I hadn’t really been actively pursuing a new job, but I came across a posting for the job of “lead organizer” for a non-profit forming in Knoxville, dedicated to working for justice in the local community. The posting stated that “community organizing” experience was preferred, and I did not have this experience.

I decided to take the risk and to package my background as public interest lawyer, former community center director, mother of three, and church staff person as “community organizing experience.” Before I could think twice about it, I was hired.

I am a lawyer who has practiced special education law, representing clients with simultaneous delinquency and school cases at The Legal Aid Society in Brooklyn and through the Public Defender’s Community Law Office here in Knoxville. As such, I have seen myself as a worker for justice. Nonetheless, as lawyers, we often work client to client, and systemic justice or systemic injustice, if it crosses our minds, can often seem beyond our power to address. Yet, our code of professional responsibility does call us to have our eyes not just on individuals but on a greater good: a lawyer, says the code, pursues “a learned art…as part of a common calling to promote justice and public good.”

I, though, am not just a lawyer. I am also a person of faith, and, as a person of faith, I am called in a different way to the work of justice: “He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” Micah 6:8

Led by local clergy frustrated by overwhelming community problems, Justice Knox formed in response to this biblical mandate to “do justice” – to hold the kings, nobles and officials of our day (i.e. the mayors, the school superintendent, the police chief, etc. . .) accountable for the fair treatment of all people, especially the poor.

Uniting congregations of diverse faith backgrounds and community organizations with a common purpose, Justice Knox seeks to change structures in our community that breed injustice. We believe that change is possible through the power of organized people. While as individuals and even as individual congregations we can feel dwarfed by powerful and entrenched institutions and interests, together we can demand reform and hold officials accountable for that reform.

Justice Knox is a local non-profit organization identifying and addressing problems in our own local community. While in a typical nonprofit, priorities are set by the Board of Directors and staff, Justice Knox is set up in a democratic, bottom-up, grassroots model. Congregations and community organizations join Justice Knox, and their members identify community problems through an annual listening process.

Last fall in our inaugural listening process, people gathered in 40 house meetings throughout Knoxville to talk about what worries them most and what makes them angry in their communities. On Nov. 14, 2016, 230 people from 14 congregations gathered to form Justice Knox. At that same Assembly, the people voted, after sharing stories from the house meetings, to address problems of mental health care and education in our city. On April 24, 2017, we will gather an assembly of 1200 people at Central United Methodist Church, and we will demand that public officials make changes in these broken systems.

Justice Knox continues to seek member congregations in order to build our power, and we have grown to include 17 participating groups. We have begun research in the areas of mental health and education so that we can understand the problems in our local community and so that we can identify best practices and effective models of change from other communities. Every year we will engage in research toward action. We will always work toward specific solutions that our annual action assembly will press upon public officials to adopt and implement.

Justice Knox is following a national model of organizing put forth by the DART Center. We have affiliated with DART because this model has been successful in other cities like ours in getting powerful systems to make effective changes. Just up the road in Lexington, Kentucky, twenty-seven congregations got the City of Lexington to invest $2 million a year to set up an Affordable Housing Trust Fund. In Jacksonville, Florida, thirty-seven congregations got the Duval County School system to assign more than 8,000 students to a proven diversion program called restorative justice instead of suspending them out of school. Across the country, congregations through justice organizations have successfully tackled housing, payday lending, drug treatment, mental health treatment, public transportation and many other community problems.

It is hard to believe that it has been only 8 months since I viewed the job posting that led me into this work. In this short time, Justice Knox has already united people from different backgrounds and walks of life from all different parts of the city. It has been exciting to witness connections between people who would have never known their commonalities but for our listening process. I am filled with hope as I see people working diligently together to understand community problems and to find solutions in order to make Knoxville a better place. Justice Knox gathers us as neighbors, as concerned citizens, as people of faith, offering a unique opportunity for us to live out both our democratic principles and important tenets of our varying faith traditions.

Editor’s note: You may contact Marjorie and Justice Knox via telephone at 865-382-6622 and via email at justiceknox@thedartcenter.org.

“The Last Word” column is coordinated by KBA Member Nick McCall. If you have an idea for a future column, please contact Nick at nick.mccall@gmail.com.

April 2017

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