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Press Releases

Lawyers Complete 2019 TBA Leadership Program

Posted by: Katharine Heriges on Jun 18, 2019

Class of 35 graduates, selects Memphis lawyer for service award

NASHVILLE, June 18, 2019 — Thirty-five attorneys from across the state graduated from the Tennessee Bar Association’s Leadership Law program during the association's annual convention in Nashville last week. The group 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.
 
At the graduation ceremony, Leadership Law co-chairs, Loretta Cravens and Trey Thacher, presented Memphis lawyer Tannera Gibson with the Larry Dean Wilks Leadership Award. The award, named for former TBA President Larry D. Wilks, recognizes a class member with exceptional leadership qualities. Gibson is an attorney at Burch, Porter & Johnson, PLLC in Memphis where she focuses on employment law, municipal law, healthcare liability and commercial and business litigation. She is the eighth recipient of the award. The recipient is selected by each year’s class based on the following leadership characteristics:
• Demonstrates exceptional leadership qualities that enhance the Leadership Law experience for all class members.
• Exhibits leadership-by-example qualities by fully engaging in all aspects of the Leadership Law program.
• Promotes the Leadership Law program goals through service-oriented actions and initiatives.
• Fosters consensus from differing opinions and ideas without regard to background or cultural status.
• Enhances the education of other class members through thoughtful and respectful debate.
 
Graduating class members are:
 
Constance Alexander, The Alexander Law Firm, Memphis
Sara Barnett, Spragins, Barnett & Cobb PLC, Jackson
Paige Bernick, Cornelius & Collins, LLP, Nashville
Ginny Bozeman, Shelby County Attorney's Office, Memphis
Amy Bryant, Office of Conservatorship Management, Nashville
Audrey Calkins, Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C., Memphis
Bill Clayton, Woolf, McClane, Bright, Allen & Carpenter, PLLC, Knoxville
Tannera Gibson, Burch, Porter & Johnson PLLC, Memphis
Zachary Greene, Miller & Martin PLLC, Chattanooga
Will Hicky, William B. Hicky, Attorney at Law, Nashville
Ryan Holt, Sherrard Roe Voigt & Harbison, Nashville
Tim Hughes, Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services, Nashville
Thomas Hutto, Lawwell, Dale, Graham & Hutto, Columbia
Allison Jackson, Egerton, McAfee, Armistead & Davis, P.C., Knoxville
Martesha Johnson, Metropolitan Nashville Public Defenders Office, Nashville
Brittani Kendrick, Tennessee State Board of Education, Nashville
Whitney Kimerling, Lewis, Thomason, King, Krieg & Waldrop, P.C., Nashville
Chambre Malone, Bridgestone Americas, Inc., Nashville
Alexander McVeagh, Hamilton County General Sessions Court, Chattanooga
Mitchell Panter, Paine | Bickers, LLP, Knoxville
Will Perry, Butler Snow LLP, Memphis
Lance Pope, Patrick, Beard, Schulman & Jacoway, PC, Chattanooga
Courtney Read, Watson Roach Batson Rowell & Lauderback, PLC, Knoxville
Melanie Reid, Lincoln Memorial University Duncan School of Law, Knoxville
Justin Reynolds, Reynolds & Reynolds, P.C. , Savannah
Gil Schuette, Sims | Funk, PLC, Nashville
Leslie South, Tennessee Department of Transportation, Nashville
Latisha Stubblefield, Pilot Travel Centers LLC, Knoxville
TaKeena Thompson Sandifer, Adams and Reese LLP, Nashville
Nathan Tilly, Pentecost, Glenn, Mauldin & York, PLLC, Jackson
Wells Trompeter, Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis, LLP, Nashville
Jennifer Wade, Metro Student Attendance Center Juvenile Court, Nashville
Susan Neal Williams, Morgan & Morgan, Nashville
Kirby Yost, Chambliss, Bahner & Stophel, P.C., Chattanooga
Carlos Yunsan, Tennessee Supreme Court, Knoxville
 
Now in its 16th year, Leadership Law is designed to equip Tennessee lawyers with the vision, knowledge and skills necessary to serve as leaders in their profession and local communities. Over the course of six months, class members learn about leadership in the legal profession, issues in the courts, policymaking in state government and the importance of community service.
 
Photographs and additional biographical information for class members are available on request.
 
The 2019 Tennessee Bar Association Annual Convention was held in conjunction with several other legal organizations, including the Tennessee Judicial Conference. This joint meeting allows legal groups in the state to address common issues and concerns and offers opportunities for additional education, long-range planning, and recognition of attorneys who have performed outstanding legal work and community service.
 
MORE INFORMATION
 
 
Past Recipients of the Wilks Award
 
 
 
 
 
 
2018 – Raquel Bellamy, Nashville