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THE BULLETIN BOARD
Tennessee Bar Association members may send information about job changes, awards and work-related news. Send it to The Bulletin Board, c/o The Journal at 221 Fourth Ave. N., Suite 400, Nashville, TN 37219-2198, or email to sballinger@tnbar.org. Submissions are subject to editing. Pictures are used on a space-available basis and cannot be returned. Anne Fritz assumed the office of president of the National Association of Bar Executives in August, during its annual meeting in Atlanta. NABE is the oldest and largest organization for executives who work with general purpose bars and has been in existence since 1941, when it was created to serve the staff of bar associations and law-related organizations. Fritz is the executive director of the Memphis Bar Association. ••• Bone McAllester Norton PLLC recently announced that Anne C. Martin has joined the firm. A graduate of Vanderbilt University School of Law, Martin has practiced in Nashville for 12 years concentrating in the areas of labor and employment law. She also has published extensively in the area of employment law. In addition to working in Nashville, Martin is an active supporter of the local community, serving as a member of the Foster Care Review Board and the Davidson County Juvenile Court. She has volunteered for the Early Truancy Program in Juvenile Court and has served on the board of the American Red Cross Tennessee Valley Chapter. ••• Husband and wife duo John L. Norris and Christina “Chris” Norris announced the formation of a new Nashville law firm, Norris & Norris PLC, in July. It is in the SunTrust Center in downtown Nashville. John Norris, previously a member at the law firm of Hollins, Wagster & Yarbrough, is certified in civil trial advocacy by the National Board of Trial Advocacy and recognized as a civil trial specialist by the Tennessee Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization. Chris Norris, who has been a legal writing instructor at Vanderbilt University Law School since 1999, maintained a solo law practice before joining her husband in this new venture. Her career highlights include serving as the first female clerk and master in the Davidson County Chancery Court, serving as counsel for the state in the Criminal Division of the Office of the Attorney General, and working as an associate at the law firm of Parker, Lawrence, Cantrell & Dean. Norris is a founding member of the Lawyers’ Association for Women (LAW) and was LAW’s nominee for the 2000 Athena Award. Both attorneys graduated from the University of Tennessee College of Law where they served on the Tennessee Law Review. The practice of Norris & Norris will focus on civil trials including personal injury, nursing home neglect, employment, environmental and commercial disputes and elder law. ••• The Nashville law firm of Hollins, Wagster & Yarbrough announced that it has added two named partners to its practice: James Weatherly and David Raybin and that it has changed its name to Hollins, Wagster, Yarbrough, Weatherly & Raybin. Weatherly, who has been with the firm since 1986, formerly served as the Nashville Metropolitan public defender, president of the Nashville Bar Association and president of the Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. Listed in Best Lawyers in America, his areas of practice include criminal defense, domestic relations, personal injury and insurance law. Raybin, who has been with the firm since 1984, is a former assistant district attorney general in Davidson County. He also authored Tennessee Criminal Practice and Procedure and is listed in Best Lawyers in America and the Nashville Post’s “Best 100 Lawyers in Tennessee.” His areas of practice includes the trial and appeal of criminal cases. ••• William T. Wray was installed as the new president of the Kingsport Bar Association on July 13. A partner in the Johnson City law firm of Hunter, Smith & Davis LLP, Wray is a civil mediator in federal and state court. He holds the highest ranking from Martindale Hubbell, is a certified civil trial specialist and is a member of the Defense Research Institute, Tennessee Defense Lawyers Association and the American Counsel Association. Wray received his law degree from the University of Tennessee College of Law. ••• The law firm of Hunter, Smith & Davis recently won three awards from the Tri-Cities Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America. The firm won for its All Things Legal, a quarterly newsletter to clients and friends of the firm; its annual employment law seminar, which captured the special events award; and its holiday gift, which won in the specialty item category. Hunter, Smith & Davis, which has offices in Kingsport, Johnson City and Greeneville, was the only law firm honored by the local Public Relations Society chapter. Hunter, Smith & Davis welcomed Lilian R. Abboud as the firm’s newest associate in July. A native of Minnesota, Abboud practiced law with a Vermont firm and worked as mediator for a county public defender in Minneapolis prior to joining the firm. As a student, Abboud clerked for Justice Jeffrey L. Amestoy of the Vermont Supreme Court and interned for the Hon. James P. Jones of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia. She received her law degree from the Vermont Law School where she was an editor of the Vermont Law Review. At Hunter, Smith & Davis, Abboud will work in the corporate/business practice group. ••• Ralph Levy Jr. has joined the Editorial Advisory Board of the medical journal Dialysis & Transplantation. Levy serves as counsel in the Nashville office of Frost Brown Todd LLC and practices in the corporate, health and personal financial planning departments. Prior to joining the firm, he served as general counsel and executive vice president for Gambro Healthcare Inc., a national provider of dialysis services. Levy also was recently awarded a certificate of merit by the Tennessee Historical Commission for his preservation and restoration work at the Temple Cemetery, which has been nominated for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places. ••• Pat Murphy has become a partner in the Chattanooga office of Miller & Martin PLLC where he practices in the commercial, corporate, mezzanine finance and venture capital areas. Murphy previously was a partner in the Chattanooga firm of Chambliss, Bahner & Stophel and prior to joining Chambliss practiced at Bass, Berry & Sims in Nashville. Murphy received his law degree from the University of Tennessee. Before attending law school, he worked as a certified public accountant with the Chattanooga accounting firm of Ernst & Whinney. Murphy is a member of the Rotary Club of Chattanooga and serves on the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Dean’s Advisory Committee for School of Business. ••• The Memphis office of Leitner, Williams, Dooley & Napolitan recently welcomed R. Scott Vincent to an associate position with the firm. Vincent, who received his law degree from the University of Memphis, will practice in the areas of federal and state civil litigation, employee benefits litigation, ERISA, insurance defense and workers’ compensation. ••• London & Amburn PC in Knoxville has announced that Jennifer Pearson has become a member of the firm. Pearson received her law degree from the University of Tennessee in 2001 and will focus her practice on general civil litigation in both federal and state court. She is licensed to practice in Illinois and Tennessee. Thomas G. Roady III, chief operating officer with 2nd Generation Capital LLC, has completed the National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts’ certification process for designation as an Accredited Valuation Analyst. A Nashville native, Roady received his law degree from the Nashville School of Law and has held a number of positions in the banking industry. In 1995, Roady became a principal at 2nd Generation Capital — a private merchant banking firm specializing in principal investments, placements of debt and equity, mergers, acquisitions and valuations. Certification as an Accredited Valuation Analyst requires demonstrating the ability to apply accounting principles to business valuation theory and practice, as well as completion of a comprehensive examination. ••• The Tennessee Lawyers’ Assistance Program has moved from the Tennessee Bar Center but is just halfway down the block. The new address is 200 4th Ave., North, Suite 810, Nashville, TN 37219. The telephone numbers and email address remain the same: (615) 741-3238; (877) 424-8527; tnlap@aol.com. ••• Wimberly Lawson Seale Wright & Daves PLLC, a full service labor, employment and immigration law firm representing management, has opened a Nashville office. Fredrick J. Bissinger is the managing member of the new office. His law practice includes an emphasis in workers’ compensation defense, employment discrimination and wrongful discharge litigation, ADA and FMLA compliance and general liability. He received his law degree from the Seton Hall University School of Law. Prior to entering private practice, he served in the United States Navy Judge Advocate General Corps from 1993-1997. Associates in the office are Michael Ward Jones, Kenneth D. Veit, Emil L. “Chip” Storey Jr. and Michele L. Castagna. Jones received his law degree from the University of Kansas and is currently a Rule 31 mediator. His practice includes an emphasis in workers’ compensation defense, insurance law and general litigation. Veit graduated from University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law and practices in the areas of workers’ compensation defense and general liability. Storey received his law degree from the Nashville School of Law and focuses on workers’ compensation defense and general liability. Castagna earned her law degree from Seton Hall University School of Law and practices primarily in the area of workers’ compensation defense. ••• Murfreesboro attorney J. Mark Rogers will fill the Circuit Court vacancy in the 16th Judicial District, Part I, created by the retirement of Judge Steve Daniel, Gov. Phil Bredesen has announced. The 16th Judicial District covers Rutherford and Cannon counties. Rogers holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Middle Tennessee State University and a law degree from the University of Tennessee College of Law, Knoxville. Since 2001, he has been a member of the Tennessee Bar Association’s Lawyers Professional Liability Committee. Daniel retired Aug. 31 after 24 years on the bench to assume a senior judge position with the Tennessee judiciary. Rogers will be sworn into office after Judge Daniel’s retirement and will stand for election to a full eight-year term in 2006. ••• Larry Rice, of the Memphis law firm Rice, Amundsen & Caperton, PLLC recently spoke at the University of Tennessee’s Health and Science College of Medicine. In June, Rice also was the keynote speaker at a seminar of the Institute for Continuing Legal Education in Dearborn, Mich. In August, Rice spoke to the Missouri Bar Association’s Family Law Convention and will set sail with the Nevada Bar Association for a CLE cruise in September. MOVING UP & MOVING OUT TBA Financial Administrator Monica Mackie soon will leave the association after six years. “Besides always being right on the numbers, Monica always made a great contribution to the spirit, professionalism, good grace and enthusiasm of the office,” says TBA Executive Director Allan F. Ramsaur. Mackie will take a new career direction, moving to a management position in the music publishing business. Pam Johnson, the TBA’s customer service and receivables coordinator for the last two and a half years, has assumed the duties of finance administrator. Her career began in operations at Bank of America and its predecessors.
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