Nashville lawyer Lorne Hiller has been selected as the recipient of this year’s Larry Dean Wilks Leadership Award. Hiller was chosen for the award by fellow members of the Tennessee Bar Association’s 2024 Leadership Law class and was honored during the group’s graduation ceremonies in Memphis last week. He is the 12th recipient of the award. Hiller and his Leadership Law classmates have spent the last six months learning about leadership in the legal profession, issues in the courts, policymaking in state government and the importance of community service. The class of 35 attorneys completed the program this month. Read more about Hiller and the Wilks Award in this press release.

Eads attorney Charlotte Knight Griffin took office as vice president of the Tennessee Bar Association (TBA) last week during the group’s Annual Convention in Memphis. She will advance to the presidency in June 2026. Knight Griffin began her career in private practice in Memphis after earning her law degree from the University of Tennessee College of Law. She joined Memphis Light, Gas and Water as a staff attorney in 1978 and retired in April 2023 after 45 years of service. Knight Griffin has been active in the TBA for many years, most recently serving as speaker of the House of Delegates and a member of the Board of Governors. She is a past chair of the Local Government Practice and Litigation sections, a charter fellow of the Young Lawyers Division (YLD), a past executive officer of the YLD and president of the TBA YLD Fellows. Read more about her career in this press release.

Knoxville attorney Heidi Barcus took office as president-elect of the Tennessee Bar Association (TBA) during the group’s Annual Convention in Memphis last week. Barcus will advance to the presidency in June 2025. Barcus has been active in the TBA and other legal and community organizations for many years, serving most recently as TBA vice president, Second District representative on the TBA Board of Governors and as a member of the TBA’s Law Office Technology & Management Section and its Tort and Insurance Practice Section. She handles health care, litigation, product liability and professional liability matters as a shareholder with Lewis Thomason. Read more about her career in this press release.

Nashville attorney Edward D. Lanquist Jr. took office as president of the TBA last week during the group’s Annual Convention in Memphis. Lanquist has been active in the TBA and other legal and community organizations for many years. For the TBA, he most recently served as president-elect, after being elected vice president in 2022. He also served as general counsel for the association from 2016-2022. He is a shareholder in the Nashville office of Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz PC. Prior to joining Baker Donelson, Lanquist co-founded a full-service intellectual property and technology law firm where he practiced for 30 years. Read more about his career in this press release.

Nashville Public Radio reporter and producer Meribah Knight will receive the TBA’s Fourth Estate Award for her podcast series “The Kids of Rutherford County,” which brought to light abuses in the juvenile court system in Rutherford County. The award, which was established to recognize and encourage journalists who promote public understanding of the rule of law and improvements in our system of justice through their vigorous exercise of their First Amendment rights, will be presented at the TBA Annual Convention in Memphis on June 14 during the Lawyers Luncheon. Read the TBA's full press release.

The TBA Young Lawyers Division (YLD) has selected Kandiss Brown as its 2024 CASA Volunteer of the Year. During the four years that Brown has volunteered with CASA of Juvenile Court of Memphis and Shelby County, she has won praise as a dedicated volunteer who never hesitates to take on a new case, regardless of its level of complexity. "Mrs. Brown conducts each investigation in a professional manner without letting emotions overcome her judgement," CASA Executive Director Michelle Childs said in her nomination of Brown. The CASA Volunteer of the Year Award will be presented at the YLD Board’s annual dinner on June 14 in Memphis as part of the TBA’s Annual Convention. Read more in the TBA's press release.

Memphis lawyer Miles Mason will receive the TBA’s prestigious Justice Joseph W. Henry Award for Outstanding Legal Writing on June 14 during the group's Annual Convention in Memphis. The award, which will be presented at the Lawyers Luncheon, was established more than 40 years ago and is given each year to the lawyer who writes the most outstanding article published in the Tennessee Bar Journal for the preceding year. Mason will be recognized for his article “You Are the Father!: Untangling Custody Rights in Tennessee Between Unmarried Parents,” which appeared in the November/December 2023 issue of the Journal. Mason is the founder of Miles Mason Law Group PLC and a certified public accountant. He is a nationally recognized speaker who presents continuing education seminars across the country. His father-in-law, the late Judge Joe B. Jones, was the first recipient of the Joe Henry Award in 1981. Read the TBA's press release for more information.

Tennessee Supreme Court Chief Justice Holly Kirby will be honored next month with the Tennessee Bar Association’s (TBA) prestigious Justice Frank F. Drowota III Award. The award will be presented at the Bench Bar Luncheon set for June 13 as part of the association’s Annual Convention in Memphis. TBA President Jim Barry said the association is honoring Kirby for her efforts spearheading an increase in the hourly rate of reimbursement for attorneys who accept appointed cases. Before this year, Tennessee’s court-appointed attorneys had not seen a rate increase in 27 years, while the costs of maintaining a legal practice have continued to rise, leaving fewer and fewer attorneys able to afford to take these types of cases. In October 2023, Kirby made the case for increasing compensation for attorneys representing the indigent and announced the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) was requesting additional funding from the legislature. With the support of the TBA and others, lawmakers did approve a portion of that funding request. The TBA remains committed to working with the Supreme Court and other stakeholders to secure additional resources to fairly compensate lawyers who do this important work. The Drowota Award is given to a judge or judicial branch official who has demonstrated extraordinary devotion and dedication to the improvement of the law, the legal system and the administration of justice. Read more about Kirby's selection in the TBA's press release.

University of Tennessee College of Law (UT Law) student Kim Riddett has been named the TBA’s 2024 Law Student Volunteer of the Year. The award recognizes a Tennessee law student who provides outstanding volunteer services while working with an organization that provides legal representation to the indigent. “Kim is a committed public interest law student who cares tremendously about helping those in need,” UT Law’s Director of Clinical Programs Joy Radice says. “She is a leader who is deeply committed to helping others and fighting injustice.” The award will be presented during a Public Service Breakfast June 13 in Memphis as part of the TBA Annual Convention. Read more about Riddett's service in the TBA’s press release.

Memphis attorney John Golwen has been named the 2024 Harris Gilbert Pro Bono Volunteer of the Year by the TBA for his work in combating generational poverty in Memphis and helping youth succeed. A Memphis native and litigation partner at Bass Berry & Sims, Golwen brought legal expertise together with his experience from volunteering with the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Memphis to help support the PURE Academy in Memphis. That organization, founded by former gang member Melvin Cole, is focused on training young boys to excel in academics and athletics, while exposing them to many opportunities that will prepare them to become productive men. The award will be presented during a Public Service Breakfast June 13 in Memphis as part of the TBA Annual Convention. Read more about Golwen’s work in the TBA’s press release.