Slatery drops opposition to opioid lawsuits by DAs; says no TN lawsuit in federal court
Attorney General Herbert Slatery has abandoned a legal effort to block district attorneys general from filing lawsuits against opioid manufacturers in a “ceremonial surrender” Thursday before Campbell County Circuit Court Judge John McAfee, reports the News Sentinel. And Slatery has decided against filing an opioid lawsuit on behalf of the state in federal court.
Slatery moves to block local government lawsuits against opioid manufacturers
State Attorney General Herbert Slatery has moved to block a lawsuit filed against opioid manufacturers by three Northeast Tennessee counties, contending they don’t have legal authority to do so. A group of 14 district attorneys general say he’s wrong.
Judge dismisses legislature-mandated lawsuit over refugees
U.S. District Court Judge S. Thomas Anders on Monday dismissed the state of Tennessee’s lawsuit against the federal government over the refugee resettlement program — mandated by the state’s Republican-controlled legislature after the state attorney general refused to file it, reports the Associated Press.
TN attorney general joins new Republican-led lawsuit seeking to end Obamacare
Republican attorneys general in 20 states, including Tennessee, have filed a new lawsuit asking the courts to overturn the Affordable Care Act, reports WPLN. The lawsuit filed in Texas on Monday contends that without the individual mandate, Obamacare is unconstitutional.
Judge issues temporary injunction in Confederate statues lawsuit
An injunction issued by a judge Monday was “a partial, if unsurprising, win for the Sons of Confederate Veterans” in a lawsuit filed against Memphis Greenspace Inc., the nonprofit that recently removed Confederate statues from two former city parks, reports the Commercial Appeal.
Davidson County Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle barred the nonprofit from selling, gifting or moving the statues of Confederate Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest, President Jefferson Davis, and Capt. J. Harvey Mathes pending a “contested case hearing” before the Tennessee Historical Commission sometime within the next 60 days.
U.S. Supreme Court takes up state sales tax dispute; Haslam and Slatery hopeful
Gov. Bill Haslam and state Attorney General Herbert Slatery are both hailing the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to hear arguments in a case they hope will authorize states to require retailers to collect sales taxes even if they have no physical presence within the state, reports the Times Free Press.
Legal actions launched against removal of Confederate statutes in Memphis
The Sons of Confederate Veterans and descendants of Confederate Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest have filed two legal actions against the City of Memphis over removal of Confederate statutes from two former city parks last month, reports the Commercial Appeal.
Appeals court upholds TN constitutional amendment on abortion
By a 3-0 vote, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals today rejected a legal challenge to the 2014 vote that added an amendment to the Tennessee Constitution dealing with abortion, overturning a lower federal court ruling that called for a recount. The 6th Circuit decision, on the other hand, is in line with a state court ruling.
Wrongfully convicted man seeks $1M damages from state
A Wilson County man wrongfully convicted of rape and robbery nearly 40 years ago is officially asking the state for $1 million in damages, reports WPLN. The move comes just days after Lawrence McKinney was exonerated by Gov. Bill Haslam.
On the ‘Hush Fund Elimination Act” and an age discrimination lawsuit against Duncan
While co-sponsoring the “Congressional Accountability and Hush Fund Elimination Act” and enthusiastically supporting its provisions dealing with sexual harassment, the Nashville Post reports that U.S. Reps. Diane Black and Marsha Blackburn are vague on whether it should apply to settlements of other legal claims – such as a payment settling an age discrimination lawsuit brought by one of Rep. John J. “Jimmy” Duncan’s staffers.
