A.M. ATL: Hey, you can’t do that

Morning, y’all! Are you ready for the last few days of the year? I’m already dreaming about the completely different, improved version of myself I’ll be when I wake up Jan. 1. That’s how it works, right? Like a snake shedding its skin. New year, new me who moisturizes more and is better at doing laundry.

Let’s get to it.

THE LAWYERS ARE FIGHTING

The world of personal injury law is notably full of hustlers, and some Georgia attorneys are accusing each other of using unfair, and possibly unlawful, methods to bring in new clients.

• A personal injury lawyer, backed by the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association, wants the Georgia Supreme Court to accept a lawsuit that, by precedent, would allow legal professionals to sue competitors accused of illegally soliciting clients.
• The lawyers say prosecutors and industry regulators seem unable or unwilling to address the widespread issue.

Here are some ways the group claims bad-faith lawyers stretch professional ethics and the law:

• Soliciting an injured person to be a litigant is illegal in Georgia and a violation of professional conduct rules for lawyers. It’s also a common practice, they say.
• One lawyer claims dozens of attorneys and firms use so-called “runners” to gather information about and pressure potential clients.
• Bad actors may allegedly fake affiliations with hospitals and police departments, or offer cash and gifts.

🔎 READ MORE: Critics say unethical practices net lawyers millions

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OTHER STORIES YOU MAY HAVE MISSED

💰 Georgians for Integrity, the anonymous group spending millions on attack ads against Lt. Gov. Burt Jones ahead of his 2026 bid for governor, is still at it. They’ve spent about $5 million on TV spots, mailers and the like. The ads are still circulating, despite threats from Jones’ camp.

📊 2025 was the year of the tariff. Here’s a recap of President Donald Trump’s tariff announcements, threats, reversals, re-reversals, executive orders and other roller coaster moments.

🪖 The National Defense Authorization Act is one of the few pieces of legislation that consistently has bipartisan support and actually gets passed on time. Trump signed the 2026 bill into law Dec. 26. What can Georgia expect from the new $900 billion package?

🩺 Georgia requested $1.4 billion in federal grants to support rural health care. The Trump administration is due to hand out one-time rural health care grants by Jan. 1. Gov. Brian Kemp submitted an application with a long list of proposed pilot projects, including drop-in telehealth pods, health transportation networks and funds for recruiting nurses.

JIMMY CARTER, YOU’LL ALWAYS BE FAMOUS

Various photos of former president Jimmy Carter lie on his desk in his office at The Carter Center in Atlanta.

Today is the one-year anniversary of Jimmy Carter’s death. The 39th president of the United States and Georgia’s beloved native son passed away Dec. 29, 2024 at 100 years old.

In remembrance of their late boss, longtime Carter aides shared their favorite Jimmy Carter stories with AJC reporter Thomas Lake. I’ll let his beautiful writing set the stage:

“They sat in the president’s old office at the Carter Center, surrounded by artifacts of their departed boss. His light blue armchair. His compact disc of Bob Dylan’s ‘Blood on the Tracks.’ His jar of water from the North Pole, a gift to Carter from the crew of the USS Jimmy Carter submarine. As the afternoon light slanted in through the windows, the stories poured out.”

🥜 C’mon, now you gotta read the whole thing

NEWS BITES

Report: Falcons considering Matt Ryan for front-office role

We just can’t quit you, Matt.

New artwork made from security mirrors installed in Piedmont Park

Mirror mirror mirror mirror mirror mirror mirror on the ... lawn?

Songs inspired by the late Brigitte Bardot

RIP to a legendary actress, activist and leading reason women in emotional crises convince themselves they’d look great with bangs.

The moon, sun and planets have big plans for 2026

Whether or not you see this as a threat says a lot about you.

WHERE ARE THE TREES?

Piles of cut trees are piled along the side of Ga. 400 near Exit 7 in Roswell.

Hundreds of trees along Ga. 400 have been cleared for months to make way for next year’s $4.6 billion express lane project on the north metro corridor.

The Georgia Department of Transportation says clearing is focused on a 16-mile stretch near the Chattahoochee River — from Exit 6 to Exit 8 — where construction is set to begin next summer.

Tree clearing is on hold while crews remove remaining debris, but work will resume in spring.

GDOT says clearing is needed to create space for new express lanes, set up safe work zones, relocate utilities and prepare for drainage and grading.

🌳 READ MORE: Project updates and concerns from an Atlanta-based conservationist

ON THIS DATE

Dec. 29, 1924

Traffic boulevard violators snared; 135 to face court. Continuing the crusade against motorists who run across traffic boulevards from intersecting streets without coming to a full stop, members of the traffic squad of the police department made 135 cases Sunday.

My mom was in town for Christmas. Though she’s lived in Miami and D.C., she lives in Simpsonville, South Carolina, now and her Terrifying City Traffic Instincts have gone soft. The next time she covers her eyes in the passenger’s seat on 285 and says, “Why does everyone in Atlanta drive like this?!” I’ll bring up this article and say it’s a long, long tradition.

ONE MORE THING

Georgia Tech lost a heartbreaker to BYU in the Pop-Tarts Bowl in Orlando, but that was only half the spectacle. Do you know what goes on after the Pop-Tarts bowl? Ritual sacrifice. Cannibalism. Pastries begging for their lives. It is grim!

Woe to the hand that sheds this costly blood!