Plan now to join us in the Smoky Mountains when the Tennessee Bar Association meets for the 133rd time on June 11-14 in Gatlinburg at the newly renovated Park Vista Doubletree.

PROGRAMMING starts with the Bench Bar Program on June 12 when author and political insider Keel Hunt and journalist John Seigenthaler take you behind the scenes to bring to life the dramatic transition of power from Gov. Ray Blanton to Gov. Lamar Alexander, and continues through Friday with 12 hours of CLE programming that is included in your registration. Among the programs will be Oliver Diaz’s account of his time under fire as a Mississippi Supreme Court justice, Brian Faughnan’s lively look at ethics issues facing lawyers, an examination of how new laws are changing the “wine and shine” industries, and a return of the popular Better Next Year program.

SOCIAL EVENTS include meeting with your colleagues at the Bench Bar and Lawyers Luncheons, a welcome reception on Wednesday, and an exciting journey through the Titanic Museum, where you will experience what it was like to walk the hallways, parlors and cabins of the Titanic while surrounded by more than 400 artifacts directly from the ship and its passengers. Your journey ends with a reception, dinner and dance.

CONVENTION CENTRAL, the newly renovated Park Vista Doubletree Hotel provides unparalleled views of the Great Smoky Mountains, and a convenient location near an endless supply of shopping, adventure and outdoor recreation. Make your reservations now to get the special TBA room rate of $117 per night. The deadline to reserve you room is May 23, so either visit www.parkvista.com or call 800-421-7275 today.

FAMILY FRIENDLY GATLINBURG offers a wealth of activities for visitors of all ages. As gateway to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park — the most visited national park in the United States — Gatlinburg is a perfect starting place for exploring the natural wonder and breathing sights that await. You can also explore Appalachian Art at the Great Smoky Mountains Arts and Crafts Community. Just three miles from downtown, it hosts the largest group of independent artisans in North America. There are plenty more attractions and shopping venues throughout the downtown area, including Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies, the Dollywood theme park, and the Gatlinburg Aerial Tram.

For more information or to register for the 2014 TBA Annual Convention

Sign up online at:  www.tba.org/info/2014-tba-annual-convention.

Last Fall, the Tennessee Bar Association Appellate Practice Section produced an all-day CLE program on appellate practice in the Tennessee Courts of Appeals. 

The “Tennessee Court of Appeals Boot Camp” was modeled after the Section’s successful “Tennessee Supreme Court Boot Camp” CLE, which has been an annual event for several years.  In 2013, the Section determined that a Court of Appeals Boot Camp would have wider appeal and would serve to assist practitioners across the State in successfully litigating in Tennessee’s intermediate courts. 

There were 48 attorneys in attendance at the CLE, which was held in Nashville.  The attendees observed the Middle Section’s docket in the morning, and had the opportunity to ask questions of several of the lawyers appearing before the Court of Appeals that day in a debriefing session following oral argument. 

After lunch, the attendees were treated to an afternoon of informative CLE presentations, which included presentations by four current Tennessee Court of Appeals Judges. 

First, the Honorable John Westley McClarty, of the Eastern Section Court of Appeals, spoke on “Common Mistakes Made and How to Avoid Them.” 

Appellate Practitioner Amy Farrar of Hagan & Farrar, PLLC in Murfreesboro spoke next on “Brief Writing in the Tennessee Court of Appeals: Increasing the Appeal of Your Appeal,” followed by Donald Capparella of Dodson, Parker, Behm & Capparella, P.C. in Nashville, who spoke about “Tips for Becoming a Better Appellate Advocate in Oral Argument.”

The day ended with an illuminating panel discussion, “Appellate Practice: A View from the Bench,” touching on various topics relating to appellate practice in Tennessee.  The Honorable J. Steven Stafford, of the Western Section Court of Appeals, the Honorable Holly M. Kirby, of the Western Section Court of Appeals, and the Honorable Thomas R. Frierson, II, of the Eastern Section Court of Appeals joined forces for the lively discussion on all things appellate.  

Thanks to the members of the 2013 - 2014 TBA Bankruptcy Law Section Executive Council for their service to the Section.   In addition to meeting regularly throughout the year to produce news to the members, the executive council reviewed the proposed amendments to the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy and spent months writing the hypotheticals for the annual Bankruptcy Forum.  Thanks to everyone for their hard work and dedication to the work of this Section.

Margaret Fugate, Chair
Anderson & Fugate (Johnson City)
mfugate@afglaw.com
 

Erika Barnes, Vice-Chair
Stites & Harbison (Nashville)
ebarnes@stites.com
 

Jeb Bailey, Immediate Past Chair
Butler Snow LLP  (Memphis)
jeb.bailey@butlersnow.com
 

David Canas, Middle TN Delegate
Harwell Howard Hyne Gabbert & Manner  (Nashville)
dpc@h3gm.com
 

Susan Parkes, Middle TN Delegate
Attorney at Law (Lebanon)
s_parkes@bellsouth.net
 

Joe Kelly, Middle TN Delegate
Frost Brown Todd (Nashville)
jak@mglaw.net
 

Maurice Guinn, East TN Delegate
Gentry, Tipton & McLemore, PC (Knoxville)
mkg@tennlaw.com
 

Greg Logue, East TN Delegate
Woolf, McClane, Bright, Allen & Carpenter, PLLC (Knoxville)
logueg@wmbac.com
 

Laura Ketcham, East TN Delegate
Husch Blackwell LLP (Chattanooga) 
laura.ketcham@huschblackwell.com
 

David Fulton, East TN Delegate
Scarborough, Fulton & Glass (Chattanooga)
djf@sfglegal.com
 

Joel Giddens, West TN Delegate
Wilson & Associates (Memphis)
jgiddens@wilson-assoc.com
 

Jerry Spore, West TN Delegate
Spragins, Barnett & Cobb (Jackson)
jpspore@spraginslaw.com
 

Amber Floyd, West TN Delegate
Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs (Memphis)
afloyd@wyattfirm.com
 

Ruthie Hagan, West TN Delegate
Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz (Memphis)
rhagan@bakerdonelson.com
 

Mike McCormick, At Large Delegate
McCalla Raymer, LLC (Roswell, GA)
mjm@mccallaraymer.com

Plan now to join us in the Smoky Mountains when the Tennessee Bar Association meets for the 133rd time on June 11-14 in Gatlinburg at the newly renovated Park Vista Doubletree.

PROGRAMMING starts with the Bench Bar Program on June 12 when author and political insider Keel Hunt and journalist John Seigenthaler take you behind the scenes to bring to life the dramatic transition of power from Gov. Ray Blanton to Gov. Lamar Alexander, and continues through Friday with 12 hours of CLE programming that is included in your registration. Among the programs will be Oliver Diaz’s account of his time under fire as a Mississippi Supreme Court justice, Brian Faughnan’s lively look at ethics issues facing lawyers, an examination of how new laws are changing the “wine and shine” industries, and a return of the popular Better Next Year program.

SOCIAL EVENTS include meeting with your colleagues at the Bench Bar and Lawyers Luncheons, a welcome reception on Wednesday, and an exciting journey through the Titanic Museum, where you will experience what it was like to walk the hallways, parlors and cabins of the Titanic while surrounded by more than 400 artifacts directly from the ship and its passengers. Your journey ends with a reception, dinner and dance.

CONVENTION CENTRAL, the newly renovated Park Vista Doubletree Hotel provides unparalleled views of the Great Smoky Mountains, and a convenient location near an endless supply of shopping, adventure and outdoor recreation. Make your reservations now to get the special TBA room rate of $117 per night. The deadline to reserve you room is May 23, so either visit www.parkvista.com or call 800-421-7275 today.

FAMILY FRIENDLY GATLINBURG offers a wealth of activities for visitors of all ages. As gateway to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park — the most visited national park in the United States — Gatlinburg is a perfect starting place for exploring the natural wonder and breathing sights that await. You can also explore Appalachian Art at the Great Smoky Mountains Arts and Crafts Community. Just three miles from downtown, it hosts the largest group of independent artisans in North America. There are plenty more attractions and shopping venues throughout the downtown area, including Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies, the Dollywood theme park, and the Gatlinburg Aerial Tram.

For more information or to register for the 2014 TBA Annual Convention

Sign up online at: www.tba.org/info/2014-tba-annual-convention.

The weather was largely cooperative for the Section's Bankruptcy Forum held at the beautiful Buckberry Lodge in Gatlinburg April 4 - 6.  On Friday afternoon, the team of Lawrence Ahern, Retired Bankruptcy Judge, William Brown and Kathy Allen brought us Case Updates, UCC Revisions and Applications and Representing Your Client in Bankruptcy Mediations.  On Saturday morning we divided into three small groups and rotated between exploring bankruptcy problems with the direction of four bankruptcy judges, Marcia Parsons, Paul Bonapfel, Shelley Rucker and James Croom and a mediation role play session with Lawrence Ahern.

The small group environment is unique to this seminar as well as the problem solving interaction.  Everyone was able to enjoy a beautiful afternoon in the Smoky Mountains.  On Sunday morning we concluded our program with a three hour ethics presentation.  The panel of judges led the discussion and exploration of ethics problems.

I am deeply appreciative of each of our panel participants and the members of the TBA Bankruptcy Section Executive Council who attended, wrote problems and are always ready to support the bankruptcy membership of the Tennessee Bar Association.

The next twelve months will see two new bankruptcy judges in the Eastern District as Judge Richard Stair and Judge John C. Cook retire from respected tenures on the bench.   We hope to approach their successors to participate in future bankruptcy forums as we have with Judges Rucker and Croom.

It has been a pleasure to serve as chair of the TBA Bankruptcy Section this past year.  We have an excellent group of members serving on the Section's Executive Council.  I would like to encourage each of you to become more involved and to plan to attend next year’s forum.  A date has not yet been set but should be in April, 2015.

Margaret B. Fugate, Chair
mfugate@afglaw.com

Plan now to join us in the Smoky Mountains when the Tennessee Bar Association meets for the 133rd time on June 11-14 in Gatlinburg at the newly renovated Park Vista Doubletree.

PROGRAMMING starts with the Bench Bar Program on June 12 when author and political insider Keel Hunt and journalist John Seigenthaler take you behind the scenes to bring to life the dramatic transition of power from Gov. Ray Blanton to Gov. Lamar Alexander, and continues through Friday with 12 hours of CLE programming that is included in your registration. Among the programs will be Oliver Diaz’s account of his time under fire as a Mississippi Supreme Court justice, Brian Faughnan’s lively look at ethics issues facing lawyers, an examination of how new laws are changing the “wine and shine” industries, and a return of the popular Better Next Year program.

SOCIAL EVENTS include meeting with your colleagues at the Bench Bar and Lawyers Luncheons, a welcome reception on Wednesday, and an exciting journey through the Titanic Museum, where you will experience what it was like to walk the hallways, parlors and cabins of the Titanic while surrounded by more than 400 artifacts directly from the ship and its passengers. Your journey ends with a reception, dinner and dance.

CONVENTION CENTRAL, the newly renovated Park Vista Doubletree Hotel provides unparalleled views of the Great Smoky Mountains, and a convenient location near an endless supply of shopping, adventure and outdoor recreation. Make your reservations now to get the special TBA room rate of $117 per night. The deadline to reserve you room is May 23, so either visit www.parkvista.com or call 800-421-7275 today.

FAMILY FRIENDLY GATLINBURG offers a wealth of activities for visitors of all ages. As gateway to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park — the most visited national park in the United States — Gatlinburg is a perfect starting place for exploring the natural wonder and breathing sights that await. You can also explore Appalachian Art at the Great Smoky Mountains Arts and Crafts Community. Just three miles from downtown, it hosts the largest group of independent artisans in North America. There are plenty more attractions and shopping venues throughout the downtown area, including Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies, the Dollywood theme park, and the Gatlinburg Aerial Tram.

For more information or to register for the 2014 TBA Annual Convention

Sign up online at:  www.tba.org/info/2014-tba-annual-convention.

Thanks to the members of the 2013 - 2014 TBA Elder Law Section Executive Council for their service to the Section.  In addition to planning and producing the Section's annual CLE, the executive council met regularly throughout the year working to produce news to the members, providing helpful information on the Section's active electronic forum, and discussing strategies for dealing with the recent changes to TennCare.  Thanks to everyone for their hard work and dedication to the work of this Section.

King Self, Chair
Apperson Crump PLC (Memphis)
kself@appersoncrump.com
 

Amelia Crotwell, Vice Chair
Elder Law of East Tennessee (Knoxville)
Amelia@elderlawetn.com
 

Mark Addison, Immediate Past Chair
Attorney at Law (Chattanooga)
mark.addison@suntrust.com
 

Monica Franklin, East TN Delegate
Elder Law Practice of Monica Franklin, LLC (Knoxville)
monica@monicafranklin.com
 

Deborah Herzel, East TN Delegate
Legal Aid of East Tennessee (Knoxville)
dherzel@laet.org
 

Cindy Troyer, East TN Delegate
East TN Human Resource Agency (Knoxville)
ctroyer@ethra.org
 

Tim Takacs, Middle TN Delegate
Elder Law Practice of Timothy L. Takacs (Hendersonville)
ttakacs@tn-elderlaw.com
 

Travenia Holden, Middle TN Delegate
Holden Law Office (Lebanon)
Tholden@holdenlawoffice.com
 

Harold Parker, Middle TN Delegate
Parker, Toy & Associates, PLLC (Murfreesboro)
harold.parker@comcast.net
 

Deborah Brooks, West TN Delegate
The Law Office of Deborah K. Brooks (Memphis)
brookselderlaw@aol.com
 

Pam Wright, West TN Delegate
West Tennessee Legal Services (Jackson)
pam@wtls.org

Please make plans to join the TBA Elder Law Section at their annual Forum July 17 - 18, 2014 at the AT&T Building in Nashville. This year's program features a day and a half of CLE programming for the new and seasoned elder law practitioner.  Topics covered in this CLE include:

·The Elder Care Continuum

·Paying for Health Care and Acute Long Term Care

·Financial Eligibility for CHOICES, Part 1 & Part 2

·Managed Care under CHOICES - Medical Eligibility, PAEs and the PAE Appeal Process

·Crafting the Robust Elder Law Financial POA and Ethics

·Health Care Directives and Ethics

·Using Pooled Trusts in Your Practice

·Spend Down Strategies

·Estate Recovery Basics and Recent Cases

Watch for further details and registration information as plans develop through the TennBarU CLE Center course catalog at:  www.tnbaru.com/CLE/catalog_by_date.php.

Don't forget that you can save money when you register for this program by using your three hours of prepaid CLE credits that come with your TBA Complete Membership!

We hope to see you there!

This has been a busy time for the TBA Elder Law Section.  We recently finalized hot topics and confirmed well-respected speakers for our annual CLE that is set for July 17 - 18 at the AT&T Building in Nashville.  This year's event expands to add a half-day of learning on July 17 to cover elder law basics for practitioners new to elder law or for the practitioner who wants a refresher.  On July 18, we offer a full day of programming from leading experts in the field covering topics appropriate for both the new and experienced elder law practitioner.  The Section will also host a lunch Section meeting open to the members of the Section.  Mark your calendar now to attend this exciting and informative CLE.  We hope to see you there. Being an active member in the section helps you get more out of your membership and helps other members benefit from what you have to contribute to the conversation about elder law.

I also wanted to remind members if you are not already signed up and participating in the Section's listserv, you should join this electronic forum right away.  Members that subscribe to this forum are able to ask about and respond to a variety of practice questions in a collaborative atmosphere.  If you are facing a complicated elder law issue for the first time, rest assured someone on the listserv has insights to share with you, but you have to join the conversation.   Please contact Jenny Jones at jjones@tnbar.org if you would like to subscribe to our popular and active TBA Elder Law Section listserv.

A word of thanks to King Self for leading the Section this past bar year as chair.  King stepped up last year to serve as our section leader and he brought lively discussions and issues to the fore with humor and his usual good nature.  King has done an outstanding job in leading us and I am honored to follow in his footsteps.  As your Chair for next year, I welcome your suggestions for ways this Section might better serve you in your practice, welcome your involvement if you would like to find a way to participate in the Section, and thank you for being a member of the TBA Elder Law Section.

Best wishes,

Amelia Crotwell, Chair
amelia@elderlawetn.com

Thanks to the members of the 2013 - 2014 TBA General Practice Section Executive Council for their service to the Section.   In addition to planning the annual CLE programs, the Executive Council also reviewed proposed legislation and assisted the TBA in reviewing content for the Solo In A Box Toolkit.  Thanks to everyone for their hard work and dedication to the work of this Section.

Abi Salu, Chair
Salu & Salu (Southaven, MS)
abisalu@yahoo.com
 

Sam Gowin, Vice-Chair
Law Office of Samuel J. Gowin (Chattanooga)
sgowin@gowinlaw.com
 

Sharon Frankenberg, Immediate Past Chair
Law Office of Sharon Frankenberg (Knoxville)
lawdawgy@aol.com
 

Ashley Boyer, East TN Delegate
Law Office of Ashley Boyer (Jonesborough)
ashley@firsttownlaw.com
 

John Buhrman, East TN Delegate
Buhrman Law Firm (Chattanooga)
jrb@buhrmanlaw.com
 

Matthew Evans, East TN Delegate
Paine, Tarwater and Bickers LLP (Knoxville)
mje@painetar.com
 

Frank Johnstone, East TN Delegate
Wilson Worley PC (Kingsport)
fjohnstone@wilsonworley.com
 

Brian Smith, East TN Delegate
Law Office of Brian C. Smith (Chattanooga)
briancsmith5@gmail.com
 

Curtis Bowe, East TN Delegate
Bowe & Associates, PLLC
curtisbowe@boweandassociates.com
 

Jacqueline Strong Moss, East TN Delegate
Attorney at Law (Chattanooga)
jacqueline.strong.moss@tn.gov
 

Carmen Ware, East TN Delegate
The Ware Law Firm (Chattanooga)
cyware@thewarelawfirm.com
 

A.J. Bahou, Middle TN Delegate
Prism Technologies, LLC (Brentwood)
aj.bahou@prsmip.com
 

Rebecca Blair, Middle TN Delegate
The Blair Law Firm (Brentwood)
rblair@blair-law.com
 

Trisha Bohlen, Middle TN Delegate
Attorney at Law (Daphne, AL)
trishabohlen@gmail.com
 

Andrew Caple-Shaw, Middle TN Delegate
Law Office of Andrew Caple-Shaw (Nashville)
acs@andrewcapleshaw.com
 

Chuck Doerflinger, Middle TN Delegate
Attorney at Law (Lawrenceburg)
doerflingerc@bellsouth.net
 

Aaron Hall, Middle TN Delegate
Aaron C. Hall, Attorney at Law (Murfreesboro)
aaron.c.hall@comcast.net
 

Alison Malone, Middle TN Delegate
Attorney at Law (Fayetteville)
alison.malone@malonegroup.com
 

Jola Moore, Middle TN Delegate
Jola Moore Law Firm (Nashville)
moorejola@yahoo.com
 

Katerina Moore, Middle TN Delegate
The Moore Firm (Linden)
moorelawfirm@tds.net
 

Mo Syed, Middle TN Delegate
Syed Law Firm, PLLC (Nashville)
msyed@syedfirm.com
 

John Philip, West TN Delegate
Crislip Philip & Associates (Memphis)
jbp@crislipphilip.com
 

Kate Rhodes, West TN Delegate
Law Office of Kate Rhodes (Paris)
krhodes@katerhodesattorney.com
 

Estelle Winsett, West TN Delegate
University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law (Memphis)
estelle.winsett@memphis.edu