TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Azya Thornton on Dec 3, 2025

The Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments will consider five applicants when it meets to select nominees for an upcoming vacancy on the Court of Appeals Eastern Section resulting from the retirement of Judge D. Michael Swiney on Jan. 12, 2026. The applicants are Jeffery Scott Griswold, Christopher Dunn Heagerty, Rachel Park Hurt, William Erwin Phillips II and Melissa Thomas Willis. Public interviews are scheduled for Jan. 7, 2026, at 10 a.m. EST in the courtroom of the Knoxville Supreme Court Building at 505 W. Main St., Knoxville, TN 37902. After the interviews, the council will vote to send up to three applicants to the governor. For questions, contact Council Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) Assistant General Counsel Laura Blount at 615-741-2687.