Meet TBA Assistant Executive Director Barry Kolar! Barry is the glue that holds the TBA’s Communications Team together, and he also assists in the management of all TBA staff. Additionally, Barry oversees the TBA’s website, the TBA Today daily newsletter and SO much more! He spent much of his career working in journalism and has a master’s in political science from the University of Tennessee. Barry is a world traveler and loves working with Sister Cities of Nashville, where he enjoys making one-on-one connections with people in other countries. He says that experience “really lets you see how much we all have in common.”

The #TeamTBA series offers members a behind-the-scenes look at the inner workings of the TBA and how each staff members makes the association run. Check back every Wednesday for a new staff profile in TBA Today and on the TBA's Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts. 

The Tennessee Bar Foundation recently installed Knoxville attorney Angelia Nystrom as its 41st chair during its annual membership meeting. Nystrom was first elected to the board in 2015 as East Tennessee trustee. She has also served as secretary and was a member of the committee responsible for creating the “Tennessee Legal Initiatives Fund,” which has granted $3,300,000 to law-related, new initiatives across the state. Nystrom is the executive director of Specialty Programs for Institutional Advancement for the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture. She will chair the foundation through June 2023. Read the release from the Tennessee Bar Foundation.

Attorney Amber Griffin Shaw has been appointed to serve as attorney for the Town of Atoka – a Tipton County city of more than 10,000 residents. Shaw is managing partner of the Covington office of Harris Shelton Hanover Walsh. “I am looking forward to assisting Atoka as it continues to plan for more people to relocate, a variety of new improvements, and the development of standards that will provide a desirable place to live and work for many years to come,” Shaw said. Shaw has previously been named Tipton County Chamber of Commerce Outstanding Woman of the Year and Memphis Area Legal Services Pro Bono Attorney of the Year. She is a TBA member and a 2015 graduate of the TBA Leadership Law program. Read more from Harris Shelton.

State Rep. Torrey Harris, D-Memphis, was arrested in Nashville on Sunday for alleged theft and assault, the Daily Memphian reports. According to a police report, Harris had an argument with ex-boyfriend Terence Nealy and scratched Nealy’s arm while trying to prevent the man from leaving a Nashville apartment. The report then states that Harris left with a dog, a video game console, a MacBook Air and other items. Harris was charged with felony theft between $1,000 and $2,500 and misdemeanor assault and is scheduled to appear in court Oct. 10. In a Twitter statement, Harris maintained his innocence and expressed confidence the issue would be resolved easily. He encouraged people with mental illness to get help. Harris is running in the Aug. 4 Democratic primary for the District 91 House seat after the District 90 seat was eliminated in redistricting.

Memphis attorney Muriel Malone Nolen has been selected as the next executive director of the Tennessee Human Rights Commission (THRC), the Commercial Appeal reports. Nolen is a former Shelby County assistant district attorney general and joined THRC in April 2021 as the agency’s deputy director before taking on the role of interim executive director in February. Additionally, Nolen has worked for Memphis Area Legal Services, Hamilton County District Attorney’s Office and Southwest Tennessee Community College. She currently serves on the Board of Crime Stoppers of Memphis and Shelby County and the executive board of the Ben F. Jones-National Bar Association and is the immediate past regional director of The National Black Prosecutors Association.

Attorneys from Memphis law firm Petkoff and Feigelson PLLC have joined Evans Petree PC. Attorneys James L. Cresswell Jr., David I. Feigelson and Logan A. Klauss joined the firm on July 1 and will continue to represent their clients in the areas of aviation, trucking and general casualty. Evans Petree President Joe Getz said Petkoff and Feigelson are “national leaders in aviation law and commercial transportation and are a great addition to our litigation team.” Petkoff and Feigelson was founded in 1976 by George Petkoff, who died in 2020. Read the press release from Evans Petree.

According to a recent Vanderbilt study, more than 99% of Nashville landlords have legal representation in civil cases, compared to less than 1% of renters. “And so, unless you get to Legal Aid … you have to navigate those waters alone,” Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands Executive Director Darkenya Waller says. The Nashville office of LAS currently has only two attorneys representing all of its housing cases, but a new pilot program is hoping to triple that number. Metro recently passed a $2.6 million grant to help fund LAS’ Right to Counsel program, which will allow the nonprofit to take on more cases and give more attention to the ones they already have. The two-year pilot program will also include an education program for tenants and landlords, as well as a partnership with Conexion Americas to better serve Nashville’s immigrant communities. WPLN has more on the story.  

Williamson County Juvenile Court Judge Sharon Guffee was recently honored by the Williamson County Republican Career Women with the group’s Charles M. Sargent Leadership Award. The award is named for the late District 61 state representative who served from 1997 until his death in 2018. The club recognizes a community leader each year who exemplifies Sargent’s contributions to the county. Guffee spoke of her friendship with Sargent when accepting the award, calling the recognition the “greatest honor that I’ve received because of who he was and the impact that he had.” Former Williamson County Mayor Rogers Anderson and Franklin Vice Mayor Brandy Blanton are former recipients of the award. The Administrative Office of the Courts has more on the story.

Longtime Paris attorney Bill Neese will be remembered later this week during visitation and memorial services. Visitation will take place Thursday from 4-7 p.m. CDT at McEvoy Funeral Home in Paris. Visitation will continue Friday at the First United Methodist Church in Paris from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. and will be immediately followed by funeral services and burial at Hillcrest Memorial Park Cemetery. Read more from McEvoy Funeral Home. Memorial donations may be made to The Little Pantries of Henry County, C/O First United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 25, Paris, TN 38242; Henry County No Fly Zone, Holly Fork Shooting Complex, Attn: Treasurer Mark Watkins, 6133 Hwy. 79 N., Paris, TN 38242; or Pastor’s Benevolent Fund, First United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 25, Paris, TN 38242.

Visitation and memorial services will take place this week for Paris attorney Fred McLean who died on Saturday. Memorial visitation will take place tomorrow 4-7 p.m. CDT at Ridgeway Funeral Home. Visitation will continue Thursday from 11 to noon at Bridge of Hope Church, 1575 Highway 641 S, Paris, TN 38242 and will be immediately followed by a memorial service. Read more from Ridgeway Funeral Home.