Supreme Court of Tennessee
Administrative Office of the Courts
Internet: www.tncourts.gov
Elizabeth Sykes, Director
Tim Townsend, Deputy Director
For Information, contact Sue Allison, (615) 532-6047
Nashville - Governor Bredesen today appointed Sharon Gail Lee of Madisonville to the Tennessee Supreme Court. Lee, who has served on the Tennessee Court of Appeals since 2004, fills a vacancy created by the recent retirement of Justice William M. "Mickey" Barker.
"Sharon has served with distinction on the Court of Appeals and I am confident she will bring the same level of honor and integrity to the Tennessee Supreme Court," said Bredesen. "I am very pleased she has agreed to accept this appointment."
Before her appointment to the bench, Lee developed a wide variety of experience in both civil and criminal litigation. She began the practice of law in 1978 with J.D. Lee and Associates in Madisonville. She subsequently worked in various partnerships and as a solo practitioner before her appointment by Bredesen to the Tennessee Court of Appeals, Eastern Section, in June 2004.
"I want to thank Governor Bredesen for this honor," said Lee. "My 26 years of experience as an attorney encompassed virtually all of the types of cases that the Tennessee Supreme Court is called upon to consider, so I understand very well the impact the Court has on the lives of those who come before it. I will approach this new role with the recognition of how important it is that decisions be well-reasoned, grounded in the law, legally correct and issued in a timely manner."
Lee, 54, holds a bachelor's degree in business administration with high honors from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and a doctor of jurisprudence from the University of Tennessee College of Law, where she graduated in the top 15 percent of her class. She is a member of the Tennessee Bar Association and has been a member of the House of Delegates of the Tennessee Bar Association since 2003. She is president of the East Tennessee Lawyers' Association for Women and a previous member of the board of the Tennessee Lawyer's Association for Women. She previously served as secretary and member of the executive board of the Knoxville Executive Women's Association and is a member of the board of directors of the Boys and Girls Club of Monroe County.
Students from 16 Davidson County public and private schools will hear oral arguments in three state Supreme Court cases Thursday, Oct. 2, as participants in a program designed to educate young Tennesseans about the judicial system.
The 450 high school students and their teachers will attend a special Tennessee Supreme Court session in the gymnasium at Davidson County Drug Court IV, 1406 County Hospital Road. Each of three groups of students will hear arguments in one actual case beginning at 8:45 a.m. followed by a question and answer session with the attorneys for both sides in the cases.
Chief Justice Janice M. Holder and Justices Cornelia A. Clark, Gary R. Wade and William C. Koch, Jr., will be joined by retired Justice E. Riley Anderson. The court has a vacant position, so Anderson agreed to sit for the SCALES session.
Schools participating in SCALES - an acronym for the Supreme Court Advancing Legal Education for Students - are McGavock High School, Pearl-Cohn Business Magnet High School, Whites Creek Comprehensive High School, East Literature Magnet School, Ezell Harding Christian School, Glencliff High School, Hunters Lane High School, Maplewood High School, Martin Luther King, Jr. Magnet High School, Donelson Christian Academy, Father Ryan High School, Franklin Road Academy, Goodpasture Christian School, Montgomery Bell Academy, Nashville Christian School and University School of Nashville.
Since the Supreme Court initiated SCALES in1995, 19,858 students from 420 schools have participated. The court conducts SCALES programs statewide at the request of local judges and members of the Bar.
“The students with whom we interact as we conduct SCALES programs across the state give us confidence that our nation's future is secure,” Holder said. “The SCALES program helps students understand the importance of maintaining an independent judicial system and gives them an opportunity to see first-hand how the Judicial Branch operates. Our luncheon program provides us with an opportunity to visit with some of the state's finest young people. We are impressed by the questions the students ask us and with their plans for the future.”
Participating students and teachers in Nashville will join the Supreme Court, local judges, attorneys and other guests for lunch and a brief program. The meal is being sponsored by trial judges and the Bar.
Teachers whose classes are involved in the project attended a three-hour professional development session Aug. 29 conducted by Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Jerry Smith and Criminal Court Judge Mark Fishburn. The session included a review of cases to be argued at SCALES. The teachers also were provided with notebooks of materials to use in their classrooms, including suggested activities, and SCALES Project handbooks for each student.
Local judges and attorneys met with teachers at the professional development session to schedule classroom visits to review the cases and issues to be considered by the Supreme Court. After justices rule in the cases, copies of the court's opinions will be provided to the classes and posted on the court system website at www.tncourts.gov.
Issues in the cases students will hear include whether court rules permit the plaintiff in a medical malpractice lawsuit to ask the defendant to disclose information about his liability insurance coverage; whether a trial court judge erred in excluding the testimony of a doctor who specializes in sleep disorders that a rape defendant may have committed his crimes while sleepwalking; and whether the owner of an apartment complex is liable for the death of a tenant caused by the criminal activity of another tenant.
Circuit Court Judge Don Ash of the 16th Judicial District has been elected to a second term as presiding judge of the Tennessee Court of the Judiciary. The 15-member panel receives complaints against judges and imposes sanctions for violations of the Code of Judicial Conduct.
Tennessee Supreme Court Chief Justice Janice M. Holder congratulated Ash on his reelection and thanked him for his service.
“I admire Judge Ash and other members of the Court of the Judiciary for contributing their time and expertise to provide this resource for all Tennesseans who use the judicial system,” the chief justice said. “The Court of the Judiciary provides the oversight to help ensure that all who enter our courthouses are treated fairly and with respect.”
Ash, whose judicial district includes Rutherford and Cannon counties, said he is “truly honored that the members of the Tennessee Court of the Judiciary continue to have faith in my work as presiding judge.”
“It is a difficult job, especially with my continuing responsibilities to the 16th Judicial District, but I have found it to be both challenging and rewarding,” he said.
Ash, of Murfreesboro, has been a Circuit Court judge since 1994. He previously served as city judge in LaVergne and was in the private practice of law. His a past-president of the Tennessee Judicial Conference, which includes all of the state’s appellate, trial and senior judges, and has been a member of the Court of the Judiciary since his 2003 appointment by the Tennessee Supreme Court.
He earned his Bachelor of Science degree from Middle Tennessee State University and a Doctor of Jurisprudence in 1980 from Memphis State School of Law. In 2000, he became the first Tennessee judge to obtain a Masters Degree in Judicial Studies from the University of Nevada in Reno.
He is married to Rita Ash and has four children.
Justice Janice M. Holder, the third woman in the state's history to serve on the Supreme Court of Tennessee, will become the first woman ever to serve as its chief justice when she is sworn into office at 2 p.m. Sept. 2 at the Supreme Court Building in Nashville.
"I am grateful to my colleagues on the court for their votes of confidence and look forward to working with them as we continue our efforts to bolster the public's trust and confidence in the judiciary," Holder said. "I have the highest respect for the court's intellectual integrity, enthusiasm, work ethic, and commitment to the law and public service."
Retiring Chief Justice William M. Barker, will administer the oath of office to Holder, who was elected by the Court to serve a two-year term. She was appointed to the Supreme Court in December 1996 and was elected in 1998 to a full eight-year term. In 2006, she was reelected to a second eight-year term.
Holder, 58, was elected as a Circuit Court judge in Shelby County in 1990 after having practiced law from 1977-90. She held this position until she was appointed to serve on the Supreme Court.
The incoming chief justice earned her B.S. degree summa cum laude in 1971 from the University of Pittsburgh and her J.D. in 1975 from Duquesne University School of Law, where she was a Law Review editor. After graduating, she was a law clerk for Chief Judge Herbert P. Sorg of the U.S. District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania.
In 1990, she was recipient of the Memphis Bar Association's Sam A. Myar award as outstanding young lawyer and in 1992 received the Charles O. Rond Outstanding Jurist Award. Also in 1992, she was the Divorce and Family Law Section Judge of the Year. Holder also was awarded the Marion Griffin-Frances Loring Award for Oustanding Achievements in and for the Legal Profession by the Association for Women Attorneys in 1999.
Holder, of Memphis, holds a black belt in karate and also enjoys other physical activities, including scuba diving, boating on the Mississippi and golf.
"Those are the things that keep me balanced," she said. "I believe in the value of hard work whether I am wearing my judicial robe or my karate gi."
She will become one of 20 women chief justices nationwide, according to the National Center for State Courts in Williamsburg, VA.
(07/18/2008)
State Court of Appeals Judge J. Steven Stafford of Dyersburg has been named chairman of the Tennessee Bar Foundation, a philanthropic organization that administers a fund supporting law-related public projects and also honors attorneys who have distinguished themselves professionally.
The Foundation oversees and administers IOLTA, an acronym for Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts, which was established by the Tennessee Supreme Court in 1984. With funds from IOLTA, the Foundation provides grants to organizations in Tennessee that offer direct legal services to the indigent and to organizations that improve the administration of justice. The funds also provide scholarships to students at state-supported law schools.
Since its inception, IOLTA has awarded more than $14.5 million to organizations promoting child advocacy and providing assistance to victims of domestic violence, dispute mediation, rehabilitation services to offenders and civil legal aid for the poor.
Stafford, who will serve a one-year term as chairman, was appointed to the appellate bench by Gov. Phil Bredesen in June. He served as chancellor for the 29th Judicial District, including Dyer and Lake counties, from 1993 until his appointment to the Court of Appeals.
He was presiding judge of the Tennessee Court of the Judiciary and also is a past president of the Tennessee Judicial Conference. He serves as dean of the Tennessee Judicial Academy for newly elected and appointed judges.
Stafford earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Tennessee at Martin and his Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from Cumberland School of Law.