NASHVILLE, June 17, 2026 — Knoxville lawyer Mary Beth Maddox took office as vice president of the Tennessee Bar Association (TBA) last week during the group’s Annual Convention in Knoxville. She will advance to the position of president-elect in June 2027 and to the presidency in June 2028.

Maddox, a partner with Frantz McConnell & Seymour LLP,  has practiced law for more than 30 years, focusing on civil litigation, including labor and employment, workers’ compensation and tort matters. She litigates throughout Tennessee in accident cases, malpractice claims, contract and construction matters. She also is a Rule 31 certified civil and family law mediator. She joined the firm in 1998 and became a partner in 2003. She earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia in 1991 and her law degree from the University of Tennessee (now Winston) College of Law in 1994.

Maddox has long been active in the TBA, previously serving on its Board of Governors as treasurer, associate general counsel and as an East Tennessee governor. She also served two terms as co-chair of the TBA’s Leadership Law (TBALL) program, where she served several years as a Steering Committee member. She received the President’s Award in 2015 for her testimony on workers’ compensation legislation on behalf of the TBA before the General Assembly. She received the President's Award this year for her service on the TBA's Legal Access and Regulatory Reform Task Force, which reviewed lawyers' feedback on possible regulatory changes to the practice of law in Tennessee and helped create the TBA's official comment on possible changes, which was submitted to the Tennessee Supreme Court in April.

Maddox also is active in several Knoxville-area legal organizations. She previously served on the Knoxville Bar Association (KBA) Board of Governors and was founder and chair of its Work/Life Balance Committee. She also was president of the KBA's group for young lawyers, the Barristers. Maddox was named as a fellow of the Knoxville Bar Foundation in 2017 and of the Tennessee Bar Foundation in 2018. She also is a member of the Hamilton Burnett Inn of Court in Knoxville.

Taking office along with Maddox were President Charlotte Knight Griffin of Eads and President-elect John Farringer with the Nashville law firm of Sherrard Roe Voigt Harbison. Lawyers from across the state gathered in Knoxville last week for the TBA’s Annual Convention, which provides opportunities for continuing legal education, networking and recognition of attorneys who have performed outstanding legal work and community service.

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.