The Young Lawyers Division (YLD) of the Tennessee Bar Association is excited to formally announce the opening of the 2024-2025 leadership appointment process. We are pleased that you are considering an application for an appointed position as we seek to engage in an unprecedented number of public service and public education activities while delivering excellent programming to young lawyers across the state of Tennessee and beyond.

How to Apply:

1. Familiarize yourself with the 2024-2025 YLD programming initiatives and available appointed positions.  
2. Confirm your eligibility (information below) for an appointment.
3. Complete an online application by the Feb. 28, 2024, deadline.

Eligibility: 

You must be a TBA member to receive an appointment. Most TBA YLD appointments are reserved for “young lawyers,” meaning lawyers admitted to practice within the past 10 years or who will be younger than 36 years old as of June 2024 (whichever comes later).

Funding: 

If you are selected to serve in an appointed position, you will be reimbursed for your attendance at all YLD events/activities, subject to the TBA YLD Reimbursement Policy.
 

Available Appointed Positions

• Continuing Legal Education Chair — East Division
• Continuing Legal Education Chair — Middle Division
• Continuing Legal Education Chair — West Division
• Diversity Committee Chair
• Diversity Leadership Institute Coordinator (2 positions)
• Essential Documents for Essential Workers Coordinator
• Health & Wellness Coordinator
• Member Services Committee Chair
• Membership Retention and Recruitment Chair
• Mock Trial Chair
• Mock Trial Vice-Chair
• Mock Trial Long Range Planning Coordinator
• Past Initiatives Coordinator
• Public Service Chair
• Publications Committee Chair
• Social Media Coordinator

Appointed Position Descriptions

The following positions will be appointed to the 2024–2025 YLD Board. The accompanying descriptions are meant to acquaint applicants with the expectations of the jobs; however, each position contemplates that the individual appointed will develop their own agenda for the year, consistent with the articulated expectations. The appointee’s responsibilities may be modified by the president and more specifically described during the annual spring planning meeting. Throughout the year, appointees are expected to attend scheduled board meetings and collaborate with other board members to execute their responsibilities more effectively.

In addition to the descriptions, there are estimates about the time commitment of each position. These estimates were determined based on consultation with prior board members; however, they are merely estimates designed to give you an idea about the commitment required for the position for which you are applying. You should be prepared to invest whatever time is ultimately required to execute the job appropriately and completely. Moreover, each position comes with unique commitments, which may mean the time investment may vary throughout the year.

Anticipated meeting dates during this board year will include:

• April 19-20, 2024 — Spring Planning Meeting, Montgomery Bell State Park
• June 13-15, 2024 — TBA Annual Convention, Memphis
• Oct. 10-14, 2024 — Fall Meeting, Miami/Bahamas
• Jan. 2025 — Winter Meeting, TBD
• March 21-22, 2025 — Mock Trial Competition, Nashville
• June 2025 — TBA Convention, Nashville

You may wish to speak with the members of the current board regarding their experiences. The current board can be found here. Further, you may contact 2024–2025 president Sean Aiello with any questions.

Membership Committee

Member Services Committee Chair — (3 hours per month) The chair will oversee the division’s programs to serve and recruit members, including law school members. The chair will plan events throughout the state that are designed to educate young lawyers about the TBA and the benefits of membership. Further, the chair will coordinate events with Tennessee law schools to recruit law student members. An effective chair will plan a variety of membership events during the year that target a variety of groups and areas across Tennessee.

The chair will also oversee the membership retention and recruitment chair and their efforts to recruit, retain and provide resources to newly admitted members of the bar.

Membership Retention and Recruitment Chair — (5 hours per month) The membership retention and recruitment chair will be expected to work with the YLD meetings coordinator to develop an up to date membership roster for the YLD Division and analyze membership breakdown by district. The stated goal for the chair will be to further develop initiatives for increasing recruitment and retention of division members.

Additionally, new attorneys occasionally submit questions via an online portal. The chair will receive an email with contact information and the applicable question or resource the person wants more information about. The chair will be responsible for directing this individual to available resources or to other bar members who may be able to assist in response.

Continuing Legal Education Chair — Three positions available, one each for East, Middle and West division of the state (5 hours per month). The continuing legal education chairs will be responsible for planning the YLD’s CLE catalogue. This position will be responsible for planning and executing programs — both in person and internet-based — throughout the year and specifically within each region to benefit and serve all young lawyers with a specific focus on new attorneys. In their role in this position, it is anticipated that each chair will work with TBA staff and the TBA CLE Committee to coordinate CLE provision efforts to ensure that the TBA's CLE programming remains pertinent to young lawyers.

Health & Wellness Coordinator — (3 hours per month) The health and wellness coordinator is tasked with developing programs in collaboration with other relevant committees and the board that address lawyer mental and physical well-being. 

The coordinator should be prepared to review literature and other media addressing mental and physical health issues with an eye toward developing a year-long complement of programs and resources for Tennessee’s young lawyers. Further, the coordinator should work with the YLD meetings coordinator to plan beneficial programs and exercises for division meetings.

Past Initiatives Coordinator — (2 hours per month) During prior bar years, the YLD has developed initiatives such as the "Welcome to Tennessee Basket," Access to Justice programs and other wide-reaching projects. The coordinator will be tasked with maintaining and updating any outstanding databases related to these past initiatives.

Public Service Committee

Public Service Chair — (3 hours per month) The chair will oversee the work of the committee, including the public service projects of the district representatives. The committee will consist of the chair, the Essential Documents for Essential Workers coordinator and the elected district representatives.

The chair will work to standardize the division's clinics, including clinics offering powers of attorney and advanced healthcare directives, expungement services and domestic powers of attorney. The chair will also be responsible for providing district representatives and affiliate leaders with resources to produce current and former division public service events. 

The chair will also be responsible for developing evaluation mechanisms for all public service projects the division undertakes during the year.

Essential Documents for Essential Workers Coordinator — (3 hours per month) The Essential Documents program allows our organization to host and partner with others across the state to ensure essential workers have essential documents such as a will, power of attorney and advanced health directive. The coordinator is also responsible for assisting district representatives with local Essential Documents Clinics. The coordinator should be extremely knowledgeable about the essential documents software and should research best practices when running these types of clinics. Some estate planning experience is also preferred.

Publications Committee

Publications Committee Chair — (3 hours per month) The Publications Committee chair will oversee the work of the committee. The chair also will ensure that YLD content is being pushed up to the TBA and being shared on social media by working together with TBA staff, on a frequent basis. The chair will be expected to develop relationships with all board members in an effort to effectively advertise the division’s programs and public service initiatives. The chair should also endeavor to use the division’s social media and publications to bring attention to individual division members and their work.

Social Media Coordinator Committee Chair — (3 hours per month) The social media coordinator will be responsible for curating/creating content for the YLD's social media platforms consistent with the message and vision of the YLD. The coordinator shall also be expected to communicate with the board members to promote and document events and otherwise generate content.

Diversity Committee

Diversity Committee Chair — (3 hours per month) The Diversity Committee chair will be responsible for developing diversity initiatives to effectuate the division’s Long Range Plan as well as working with all existing committees. The chair will be responsible for preparing, disseminating and collecting the 2025 Diversity Survey and Statewide Lawyer Survey. The chair will also be expected to assist the Diversity Leadership Institute coordinators in their efforts.

Diversity Leadership Institute Coordinator — Two Positions (3-5 hours per month) The time commitment varies, particularly between December and June. The Diversity Leadership Institute (DLI) coordinators are in charge of planning and producing the Diversity Leadership Institute, a six-month leadership and mentoring program for Tennessee law students in their second, third or fourth years of study. DLI meets in January in conjunction with the YLD's winter meeting, March (during the High School Mock Trial Championship) and June (during the TBA Convention). The coordinators are in charge of planning, coordinating and leading the programming for each of the three in-person sessions. Committee members may assist in the planning.

Mock Trial Committee

In addition to the chair, vice-chair and long range planning coordinator, the Mock Trial committee will consist of approximately eight individuals who will assist with producing the competition. Committee members will have funding available to reimburse for costs associated with attending the competition. Unlike other committees, the Mock Trial chair and vice-chair will directly appoint the committee, likely in late summer.

Mock Trial Committee Chair — (3 hours per month) During the fall when competition materials are drafted, and in the spring, when the local and state competition occurs, the chair will have significant time commitments. 

The Tennessee Bar Association High School Mock Trial program is the division’s largest public service project. The chair will be responsible for overseeing the competition, which will occur in March 2025 in Nashville. Prior to the competition, the chair will be responsible for drafting — in conjunction with the other Mock Trial committee members — the competition materials. These materials are typically released in late November.

After the release of the problem, the chair assists with fielding inquiries related to the problem and logistics for the state competition. The bulk of the commitment for the position occurs in February and March leading up to the state competition, and the chair should plan on being in Nashville from Thursday evening through Sunday morning the weekend of the competition. For more information review the competition website.

The chair will be responsible for appointing a committee of volunteers (in conjunction with the vice-chair) to assist in producing the competition, as well as coordinating periodic meetings and conference calls. Additionally, the chair and vice-chair are responsible for appointing district mock trial coordinators to plan the various local competitions throughout the state. While the local district coordinators are responsible for producing the local competitions, the chair and vice-chair must remain ready to interpret rules and make decisions regarding eligibility.

The Mock Trial Committee chair is also expected to advance to the Mock Trial Long Range Planning coordinator after serving as chair for two years.

Mock Trial Committee Vice-Chair — (2 hours per month) During the fall when the competition materials are drafted and, in the spring, when the local and state competitions occur, the vice-chair will have significant time commitments. The vice-chair’s responsibilities are co-terminus with the chair’s. The vice-chair may be given direction from the chair regarding tasks; however, the vice-chair should be prepared to exercise independent judgment to assist in producing the competition. 

The Mock Trial vice-chair is generally expected to advance to the Mock Trial chair position after serving as vice-chair for two years.

Mock Trial Long Range Planning Coordinator — (2 hours per month) The coordinator works to develop the mock trial competition for long term sustainability and success. The coordinator works with the TBA to secure venues, including the competition hotels. The coordinator should review tournament rules and guidelines and consider — with direction from the chair and vice-chair — any modifications for future years. The coordinator should function as the competition’s historian to ensure the collection and use of historic competition information and data aimed at the improvement of subsequent competitions. The coordinator should also consider any multi-year initiatives to improve the TBA Mock Trial competition. By virtue of the position, the coordinator assists the chair and vice-chair as needed.

In previous years, the coordinator has worked to make the local competitions more efficient by implementing redistricting efforts that better suited the state by adhering to population shifts.

The Mock Trial Long Range Planning coordinator is generally expected to serve two years upon the completion of their four year commitment as chair and vice-chair.