NASHVILLE, June 9, 2025 — Each year the Tennessee Bar Association recognizes outstanding service by attorneys, law students and legal advocates who have demonstrated an exceptional commitment to increasing access to justice for underserved individuals and communities in Tennessee. This year, TBA will honor public service award recipients at the Public Service Breakfast set for Thursday as part of the TBA’s Annual Convention in Franklin.

Harris Gilbert Pro Bono Attorneys of the Year Award

This award is presented in recognition of attorneys in private or corporate practice who have contributed significant amounts of pro bono work, either in terms of numbers of cases handled or significance of the work, as well as a demonstrated dedication to the development and delivery of legal services to indigent clients. In 1995, the award name was changed to honor Harris A. Gilbert, a Nashville attorney and past president of the Tennessee Bar Association, who was consistently dedicated to the development and delivery of legal services throughout his career. Gilbert died in February 2023.

This year, TBA is honoring a group of private attorneys who are serving as the legal team representing families from Nashville’s Covenant School related to writings left behind by a former student who shot and killed three students and three adults before being accosted and killed by the police. Many of the parents did not want the shooter’s writings to become public for fear those writings might negatively impact their children, inspire copycat shooters and have a negative impact on school security.

In his nomination of the group, Nashville lawyer Dewey C. Branstetter Jr. wrote, "The Covenant Families wanted to do what they could to try to stop the publication of the writings so that other families might be spared what they had been just experienced. They didn’t know what they could do, if anything, and they needed help with a legal process that was already well underway."

Among the honorees are five Sherrard Roe lawyers have contributed more than 50 hours each, including Eric Osborne, Chris Sabis, Bill Harbison, Dewey Branstetter and Francis Perkins. Other lawyers who contributed their time include Alex Carver, Hunter Branstetter, Amy Mohan, Carla Lovell, Chris Whitson, Jack Weber, Micah Bradley, Mark Ison, Mark Smith, Ryan Holt and Will Pugh. Osborne’s assistant, Jayme Hartness, also spent an extraordinary amount of time assisting throughout the proceedings. Osborne also recruited expertise outside of Sherrard Roe, including Ed Yarbrough and Sara Naylor from Spencer Fane, Hal Hardin of the Hal Hardin Law Office and Mark Patterson of Patterson Intellectual Property Law.

Since the start of the case in May 2023, the team assembled by Osborne has contributed over 1,350 hours with a value in excess of $700,000, and their representation continues. Every lawyer associated with the work on behalf of the Covenant families serves as an example of the power of collaboration in pro bono work. As Bransetter wrote in the nomination, "We are at our best when we are helping others, whether compensated or not, and lawyers can join forces with other lawyers to do what no individual lawyer or a law firm could do on their own."

Ashley T. Wiltshire Public Service Attorneys of the Year

This award is presented in recognition of representation above and beyond the call of duty of indigent clients, in either criminal or civil defense, by attorneys who are or were employed by an organization primarily involved in providing legal representation to the indigent. In 2008, the award name was changed to honor Ashley T. Wiltshire upon his retirement from the Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands. Wiltshire faithfully served the agency in various roles for 37 years, including 31 years as executive director.

This year, TBA is honoring the executive directors of the state's three Legal Services Corporation (LSC) funded organizations: Ashley Holliday with West Tennessee Legal Services, DarKenya W. Waller with Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands and Deb House with Legal Aid of East Tennessee. All three executive directors have long and consistent records of service to the bar and the access to justice community. Their strategic planning, tireless advocacy and brave leadership are essential elements for their organizations, and the larger legal services community, to continue to serve Tennesseans in need.

Legal service organizations in Tennessee are navigating unprecedented challenges, amid an always-growing need for their work. While LSC-funded organizations are facing the possibility of losing all federal funding, legal aid staff are continuing their crucial work, serving clients and strategizing for growing hardships. Holliday, Waller and House are leading their organizations and the access to justice community through unanticipated resource shifts, an increase in service needs and confrontations from previously supportive funders and organizations. These leaders, along with their dedicated staff and volunteers, are on the front lines of the civil legal crisis that impacts low-income and other vulnerable clients

Law Student Volunteer Award

This award recognizes the efforts of a student enrolled at or recently graduated from a Tennessee law school who provided dedicated and outstanding pro bono service while working with an organization primarily engaged in providing legal representation to indigent clients.

This year, TBA is honoring 2025 graduate of Belmont University College of Law David "Lee" Myers, who has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to access to justice through his extensive pro bono service and dedication to housing justice. In her nomination of Myers, Belmont Law’s Pro Bono Director Alix Rogers said that, "Every experience he pursued —from his pro bono work with Legal Aid Society and the Tennessee Fair Housing Council to his leadership in Belmont’s Legal Aid Society — has been a deliberate step toward" housing justice.

While enrolled at Belmont, Myers accumulated an extraordinary 350 pro bono hours. These hours are in addition to the 300 hours required for his for-credit internships with Legal Aid Society and the Tennessee Fair Housing Council. His work has directly impacted indigent and marginalized communities, particularly in the area of housing rights. Myers’ contributions include interning with the Legal Aid Society's Eviction Right to Counsel unit and the Tennessee Fair Housing Council, where he provided legal assistance to tenants facing eviction and advocated for fair housing policies.

Myers also serves on the leadership team for Belmont Legal Aid Society where he works to foster a culture of service within the law school community. Following graduation, Myers has accepted a housing justice fellowship in California, where he will continue his impactful work in advocating for equitable housing policies and tenant rights.

CASA Volunteer of the Year

The TBA Young Lawyers Division (YLD) has selected Amy Dorman as the 2025 CASA Volunteer of the Year. A retired engineer, Dorman has served CASA Works Inc. in Tullahoma for the past 10 years. She has worked tirelessly with 55 families and advocated for over 113 children. In the nomination process, retired Davidson County Circuit Court Judge Walter Kurtz wrote that Dorman is "simply the best," "the epitome of what a CASA should be," and "deserves recognition for her total commitment and what she does and has done for the betterment of the children caught up in the neglect and dependent court systems." CASA’s mission is to train and support court-appointed volunteers who then advocate for abused and neglected children who have come to the attention of the courts.

Watch a video of the awards breakfast.

The Tennessee Bar Association (TBA) is the largest professional association in Tennessee with nearly 14,000 members. Founded in 1881, the TBA represents the entire spectrum of the legal profession in Tennessee and beyond, and is dedicated to enhancing fellowship and professionalism among the members of Tennessee’s legal community.