(09/23/2003)
Memphis Judge Has Advice for California Governor
Shelby County Circuit Court Judge D’Army Bailey has a piece of experience-based advice for California Gov. Gray Davis, the target of an Oct. 7 recall election.
“He needs to do what I did on election day,” said Bailey, who was ousted by California voters three decades ago in another high-profile recall election. “I would encourage him to go for a long walk.”
Bailey, born and raised in predominantly Black South Memphis, was a young Yale Law School graduate living in the Bay Area of Northern California when he and a friend decided to run for the Berkeley City Council. For two years, he had been working for San Francisco Legal Services after passing the California Bar exam and getting his law license in 1969.
“I had a hard time finding property in San Francisco because of racial discrimination,” he recalled.
He wound up moving into Berkeley 90 days before a 1971 election for City Council – an election that gained national attention because Bailey was one of four young candidates who ran as a “radical” slate. Two, including Bailey, were Black. They won three of the four seats up for grabs on the nine-member council.
“The media said that radicals had taken over Berkeley, when in reality, we had four seats, including the mayor, on the nine-member council,” Bailey said. “The first year, we stalemated on most issues. They felt we were disregarding them and we felt they were trying to tell us what to do.”
Even the “radical” faction on the council began to bicker and fall apart, he said. Berkeley’s legendary radical community was, in fact, stratified and not functioning as a block during the tumultuous early 70s, said Bailey, who played starring roles in the city’s well-known political controversies.
“My first interests were those of the Black community and that wasn’t the politics of Berkeley. In reality, it had the same problems as Memphis or any city in the South at that time,” he said.
Plans to recall Bailey and the others who ran with him were “brewing since the day of the election.” Finally, the recall efforts focused only on Bailey.
“Once they chose a target, they knew they had a solid block of votes. All they had to do then was get 25 percent of voters’ signatures to get it on the ballot,” he said. “Once they forced the issue to the ballot, my goose was cooked. I knew what the score was going to be on election day.”
After he lost his council seat in the 1973 recall election, Bailey left California and returned to
Memphis where he opened a law office with his brother. The judge is grateful to the voters of California in at least one respect because he met his wife Adrienne shortly after coming back to his hometown. The couple has raised two sons, including one who is following in his father’s footsteps as a third year law school student.
Bailey credits his upbringing in South Memphis with motivating him to succeed since the community had a “rich heritage” and exposed him to “people who had ambition.” He attended segregated schools, but said he wasn’t bothered by it within his community.
“It only resonated when I left the Black community – only if I went downtown where there were separate restrooms and drinking fountains that I was aware of the racial divide,” he said. “After the civil rights movement of the 60s, that generation that came after me didn’t have the same privilege of seeing how bad it was or could be or had been and seeing what it took by example for people to work their way through that.”
After graduating from a segregated Memphis high school, Bailey attended Southern University in Baton Rouge, LA, where he became involved in civil rights demonstrations. Bailey said he and others involved in the civil unrest were expelled from the Black public university, which his brother, Walter, also attended on a football scholarship.
“Some students in Massachusetts raised money by having bake sales and car washes to give a scholarship to a student expelled in the South. They offered me the grant to attend Clark University in Worchester, Massachusetts,” he said. “I had to start my junior year over.”
In 1990, Bailey left the practice of law and was elected to the bench in the 30th Judicial District. He was reelected eight years later to a second eight-year term. And while he is proud to be part of the judicial system, Bailey said his greatest achievement since returning to Memphis may be his role in saving the Lorraine Motel, where Martin Luther King, Jr., was shot and killed. Since 1991, the Lorraine has housed a civil rights museum visited every year by thousands of people from throughout the world.
“I knew that the Lorraine was one of the most famous places in the world and here it was falling down,” he said.
After a 1982 foreclosure, Bailey and others formed a non-profit group to raise money for the civil rights museum. The $9 million project ultimately was financed with loans, gifts and appropriations from the state, city and county. Bailey’s name is on a plaque at the museum’s entrance.
Besides being a judge, he also has fulfilled another ambition – to be an actor. He has appeared in several movies, including “How Stella Got Her Groove Back” and “The People vs. Larry Flynt.” When he leaves the bench, Bailey said his next career choice is to “become a movie star.”
“Then I could be politically active too,” he said.
Paul Reeves Summers
The Memorial Celebration of Life for the late Judge Paul Reeves Summers will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 19, at the First United Methodist Church in Somerville.
Judge Summers of Somerville died unexpectedly on Sept. 17, 2003, in Phoenix, Ariz. Judge Summers, 80, is survived by two his wife of 56 years, Peggy, two sons, Paul Garvan Summers, Tennessee Attorney General, and Phillip Mark Summers, Director of Operations at Cardinal Healthcare in Ontario, CA.; and three grandchildren, Isaac, Julia and Jessica.
Judge Summers was born on May 31, 1923, in Somerville, Tennessee. He received his undergraduate degree from Lambuth College in Jackson and his law degree from Cumberland University in Lebanon, Tennessee. After graduation, he practiced law for many years in Somerville. Beginning in 1960, he served as a General Sessions Judge in Fayette County for twelve years and then as a Chancery Court Judge for the Ninth Division. In 1977, after serving for two years as the Executive Secretary for the Tennessee Supreme Court, he was appointed to the Western Section of the Tennessee Court of Appeals. Judge Summers retired from the Court of Appeals in 1982. He later served on the State Board of Education for three years under Governor Lamar Alexander.
Judge Summers’ military career spans 35 years. He was an instructor pilot at the Army Air Corp and served in the United States Air Force, the Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps, and in the Tennessee Army National Guard. He retired in 1978 from the Tennessee Army National Guard with the rank of Brigadier General. Judge Summers received numerous decorations and awards including the American Campaign Medal, the World War II Victory Medal, and the Legion of Merit.
Judge Summers was a Methodist, Scottish Rite Mason, and a member of the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars.
Bredesen Announces Judicial
Appointments
Clement, Bonnyman and Dinkins Selected to Fill
Positions
Nashville - Governor Phil Bredesen today announced that Davidson County Circuit Court Judge Frank Clement, Jr., will fill a position on the Tennessee Court of Appeals, Middle Section, and Nashville Chancery Court Clerk and Master Claudia Capps Bonnyman and Nashville attorney Richard Dinkins will fill Chancery Court positions in the 20th Judicial District.
Clement will fill a vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Ben Cantrell. Bonnyman will fill a vacancy created by the retirement of Chancellor Irvin Kilcrease, Jr., and Dinkins will fill the new Part IV Chancery Court position created by the General Assembly earlier this year.
"Each of these individuals brings great experience and skill to their appointments, and I'm confident they'll bring the highest degree of honor and integrity to the courts," Bredesen said.
Clement, appointed to the Court of Appeals, Middle Section, has practiced law for 24 years. He has served as Davidson County Division VII Circuit Court judge since 1995. Clement's experience prior to serving as Circuit Court judge include having been a partner with Clement, Gibson and Gregory from 1983 to 1995, and having worked as an associate with Howell and Fisher from 1979 to 1983.
"It is a privilege to be chosen to serve my community in this capacity," said Clement. "I will do all I can to bring the highest level of fairness, integrity and respect to my position on the Court of Appeals."
Clement, 54, holds a bachelor's degree in education from Memphis State University and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from Nashville School of Law. He is a member of the Nashville and Tennessee Bar Associations and the National College of Probate Judges. He served as president of the Nashville Bar Association in 1995 and on the board of directors from 1991 to 1995. He was treasurer and an executive committee member of the Tennessee Trial Judges Association from 1998 to 2002.
Dinkins, appointed to Part IV of the 20th Judicial District's Chancery Court, has practiced law for 26 years. He has worked as an attorney in the law firm Dodson, Parker, Dinkins and Behm since 1999. From 1981 to 1999, he was a partner with Williams and Dinkins, and prior to that, was an associate in the law firm of the Honorable Avon Williams, Jr. He is well-known throughout the legal community for his work in civil rights law, having specialized in claims including school desegregation, employment and voting rights.
"Throughout my career, I've always done my best to be prepared and knowledgeable of the facts, applicable law and procedure required to represent my clients in the most fair manner possible," Dinkins said. "I intend to bring this same level of respect and integrity of the law to my position with the Chancery Court."
Dinkins, 51, holds a bachelor's degree in English from Denison University, Granville, Ohio, and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from Vanderbilt University School of Law, Nashville. He has been a member of the Tennessee and National Bar Associations, the Napier-Looby Bar Association, and is a former barrister with Harry Phillips American Inns of Court. He has received numerous awards throughout the course of his career, including the Liberty Bell Award in 2001 from the Nashville Bar Association, the Z. Alexander Looby Community Service Award from the Napier-Looby Bar Association in 2001, a Civil Rights Leadership Award from the Nashville chapter of the NAACP in 1991, and a Distinguished Service Award from the Tennessee Black Caucus of State Legislators in 1989.
Bonnyman, appointed to Part I of the 20th Judicial District's Chancery Court, has practiced law for 29 years. She has served as clerk and master for the Chancery Court of the 20th Judicial District since 1989, and was re-appointed to successive six-year terms in 1995 and 2001. Bonnyman's experience prior to working for the Chancery Court includes having worked as associate and partner with the law firm of Ortale, Kelley, Herbert and Crawford from 1987 to 1989. She worked in solo practice from 1986 to 1987, and worked as an associate and partner with Waddey and Jennings from 1981 to 1985.
"I am honored to have been chosen to serve in the Chancery Court," said Bonnyman. "I am fully prepared to fill the duties of the Davidson County Chancery Court with competency and integrity, and am humbled to be chosen for this important position."
Bonnyman, 54, holds a bachelor's degree in education from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from Vanderbilt University School of Law, Nashville. She is a co-founding member of the Middle Tennessee organization Lawyer's Association for Women (L.A.W.), and served as the association's first president. She is also a long-standing member of the Tennessee Lawyer's Association for Women (T.L.A.W.). She is a Tennessee Bar Foundation Fellow and is a member of the Nashville and Tennessee Bar Associations, and the National Association for Court Managers. Bonnyman received the Women's Equity at Vanderbilt Award in 1995 for her pro bono work in private practice, was elected to the boards of directors of the Nashville Bar Association and L.A.W. in 1996 and 2000, respectively. In a recent poll completed by the Nashville Bar Association, Bonnyman received the highest evaluation among the 21 applicants for this position.
Judge Clement will stand for election in August 2004 and then for election to a full 8-year term in 2006. The Part IV position in the 20th Judicial District Chancery Court appointment was created Sept. 1. Chancellor Kilcrease's retirement from Part 1 is effective Oct. 1. Both Chancery Court appointees will stand for election in 2004 and then for election to a full 8-year term in 2006.
(09/08/2003)
Justices Tighten Indigent Defense Payment Rule, Add Interpreters
A rule detailing how attorneys and experts, such as psychiatrists and investigators, are paid by the state in cases involving indigent criminal defendants would be tightened under a proposal filed Monday by the Tennessee Supreme Court. The court’s proposal also sets out payment guidelines for foreign language interpreters and translators.
The state’s indigent defense budget for the current fiscal year is $16.9 million, including $1 million appropriated by the legislature for court-appointed interpreters and translators. The Administrative Office of the Courts receives and reviews indigent defense claims and disburses the payments. In fiscal year 2002, more than 58,000 claims were processed for payment.
The court’s new proposal dealing with how court-appointed attorneys, experts and foreign language interpreters and translators are paid is the result of a months-long effort by the court to ensure that state funds are used efficiently.
The court set a Nov. 14 deadline for public comments on the proposed amendment, which rewrites Supreme Court Rule 13. Written comments should be addressed to Appellate Court Clerk Cecil Crowson, 100 Supreme Court Building, 401 Seventh Ave. No., Nashville 37219-1407.
If the court’s amendment is adopted to replace the existing rule, judges hearing criminal cases will be required to enter a court order after finding that a defendant is indigent. The change also would clarify the court’s role when an indigent party waives the right to an attorney.
The rule makes it clear that only one state-paid attorney is allowed in non-capital cases and spells out that a higher in-court hourly rate will not be paid for time spent waiting for a case to be called or for time spent driving to and from a clerk’s office to file documents. Attorneys in non-capital cases are paid $40 for out-of-court preparation and $50 an hour for time spent in court. In capital cases, lead attorneys are paid $100 for in-court time and $75 for out-of-court work. For co-counsel and post-conviction counsel, the rates are $80 and $60 per hour.
Changes proposed by the court also list expenses for which court-appointed attorneys could be reimbursed and requires documentation for the claims. Any expenses not listed in the rule would require prior authorization by the judge and the administrative director of the courts.
Indigent defense attorneys should make “every effort” to use experts from Tennessee, the court said in its amended rule. If no in-state expert is available, attorneys should seek the services in a neighboring state and, that failing, a motion would be filed explaining efforts made to comply.
For the first time, the rule also would set hourly maximum rates experts could charge the state, based on the type of service provided. For example, the maximum for medical doctors and psychiatrists would be $250 an hour and for investigators, $50 an hour.
The court’s proposed amendment sets out what information must be included in or attached to court orders authorizing funding for experts and reminds judges and attorneys that recent Supreme Court amendments require prior approval by the administrative director of the courts or the chief justice.
In an order filed with the amendment, the court adopted a portion of the proposal effective immediately to set hourly rates and guidelines for payment of foreign language interpreters and translators. The services may be authorized by judges in cases in which an indigent party has limited English proficiency and language may be a barrier to understanding and exercising legal rights.
The Supreme Court adopted rules last year requiring that foreign language court interpreters be tested, credentialed and required to follow an ethics code. Prospective interpreters are being trained, tested and credentialed through the Administrative Office of the Courts in conjunction with the Tennessee Foreign Language Institute.
(09/02/2003)
Supreme Court Hearing Cases in Historic Post Office Building for First Time
The Tennessee Supreme Court will convene at 1 p.m. Wednesday to hear cases for the first time in the newly renovated historic Post Office Building in Knoxville.
Justices will hear four cases Wednesday and will reconvene at 9 a.m. Thursday to hear oral arguments in four additional appeals. Chief Justice Frank F. Drowota, III, will begin Wednesday’s session with remarks about the court’s new facilities.
The five-member Supreme Court, eastern sections of the Court of Appeals and Court of Criminal Appeals and the Appellate Court Clerk’s Office moved from from the Supreme Court Building on Locust Street, which was cramped and in disrepair, to the Post Office Building on Main Street. The State Building Commission approved the move after nearly a decade of discussion and debate about possible sites to house the courts, clerk’s office and legal library. The Supreme Court is mandated by the state Constitution to sit in Knoxville, Nashville and Jackson. The other appellate courts sit in panels of three to hear cases in the three locations.
The judicial branch is leasing 46,000 square feet of the building which was renovated using a $500,000 historic preservation grant. The space includes a large courtroom on the second floor.
(08/29/2003)
600 Area Students Participating in Supreme Court Program 600 Area Students Participating in Supreme Court Program
High school students from Rutherford, Cannon and Bedford counties will hear three actual Supreme Court cases, including a death penalty appeal, as participants in a program designed to educate young Tennesseans about the judicial branch of government.
The 600 students and their teachers from 12 public and private schools will attend a special Supreme Court session Oct. 3 at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro. Students will be divided into three groups, with each hearing oral arguments before the Supreme Court in one case. Each group will then meet for question and answer sessions with the prosecuting and defense attorneys who argued the case the students heard.
All SCALES participants and their teachers will join the court for lunch and a brief program. Supreme Court justices, local judges, attorneys, city, county and school officials also will be seated at tables with the students.
Schools participating in SCALES - an acronym for the Supreme Court Advancing Legal Education for Students – are Riverdale, Oakland, Eagleville, Siegal, Holloway, Smyrna, Cannon County, LaVergne and Blackman high schools; Middle Tennessee Christian and Franklin Road academies; and The Webb School.
Cases students will hear include State v. Daryl Keith Holton, an appeal in a Bedford County death penalty case. Holton, a Shelbyville man, received four death sentences for murdering his children. Issues being considered by the court include whether the evidence was sufficient to support the convictions for first-degree murder; whether the state’s insanity defense violates due process in a premeditated murder case; whether there was sufficient “residual doubt” to warrant a lesser sentence; whether the sentence of death in his case was appropriate; and whether capital punishment violates the Constitution.
Issues in Ronald G. Moore v. Averitt Express, Inc., also to be heard by students, are whether it is illegal to fire someone because they have uncovered illegal activity and whether the firing was illegal because he disclosed an illegal activity before he was hired. Students also will hear arguments in Sally Qualls Mercer v. Vanderbilt University, Inc., in which issues are whether the permanent brain injury suffered by Larry Qualls was separate from injuries he sustained in an accident; whether the law allows a witness to testify about the cost of an annuity that would cover future medical expenses; whether the trial judge was correct in keeping two witnesses from testifying; and whether the trial court should have allowed evidence about Mr. Quall’s prior alcohol-related problems.
Including SCALES in the 16th Judicial District, more than 11,000 Tennessee students across the state have taken part in the project since the Supreme Court initiated it in 1995. The first 0f 21 SCALES projects was conducted in Murfreesboro.
Teachers whose classes are involved in SCALES will attend a three-hour professional development session Sept. 4 at the Rutherford County School Board Teacher Learning Center. Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Joe Riley will discuss the state and federal court systems, answer questions and present an overview of the cases to be argued at SCALES. Teachers will be provided with notebooks of materials to use in their classrooms, including suggested activities, and SCALES Project handbooks for each student. Circuit Court Judge Steve Daniel is coordinating the project in the 16th Judicial District.
"The Tennessee Supreme Court believes that knowledge and understanding of the judicial branch of government are essential to good citizenship,” Chief Justice Frank Drowota said. “The SCALES Project is designed to educate young participants about the system they will inherit. The interaction we have with the students at lunch and throughout the day also renews our faith that our nation’s future is in good hands.”
Local judges and attorneys will meet with participating 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.tsc.state.tn.us.
"The SCALES Project is important because it creates a partnership between the judiciary, the Bar and schools to promote a better understanding of the judicial branch of government," the chief justice said. "We hope that teachers will use the materials to make judicial education a continuing part of their curriculum."
(08/27/2003)
Bredesen Announces Appointments to 20th Judicial District
Governor Phil Bredesen today announced that Nashville attorney Monte Watkins and Davidson County General Sessions Court Judge Mark Fishburn will fill two newly created criminal court positions in the 20th Judicial District. The General Assembly created these two new criminal court positions earlier this year. "I am confident that Mr. Watkins and Judge Fishburn will serve with distinction as they fill these important positions in Davidson County," Bredesen said. "These Tennesseans each bring tremendous experience and skill to their positions, and are greatly admired in the Davidson County legal community. I am pleased they have agreed to serve."
This marks Bredesen's third and fourth judicial appointments since taking office January 18. Watkins is the first African American to serve on the Davidson County Criminal Court bench since 1987. Watkins, appointed to Division V, has practiced law as a solo practitioner in Nashville for 19 years. He specializes mainly in criminal defense, and also works in probate and real estate law. He has served as a guardian for veterans who are either physically or mentally incapable of managing their finances since 1985. "I can think of no better way to serve my community than by serving in the Davidson County Criminal Court," Watkins said. "I intend to bring dignity, respect and fairness to my position, and am pleased to have been chosen to serve."
Watkins, 56, holds bachelor's and master's degrees in psychology from Tennessee State University, Nashville, and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from North Carolina Central University School of Law, Durham. He is a member of the Napier Looby Bar Association, a local African American Bar Association, and the National Bar Association. He currently chairs the District V Character and Fitness Committee of the Tennessee Board of Law Examiners. Previously, he served on the board of directors for the Tennessee Student Assistance Corporation (TSAC), and served as co-chair of the Committee to Implement Recommendations of the Racial, Gender and Ethnic Fairness Commissions from 1998 to 2000. He received the Past President's Award and a service award from the Napier Looby Bar Association, and an Outstanding Service Award from TSAC.
Fishburn, appointed to Division VI, has practiced law for 19 years. He has served as a Davidson County General Sessions Court judge since 1998, and served as presiding judge over Davidson County's General Sessions Courts from 1999 to 2000. He established and has presided over the Davidson County Mental Health Court since 2000, the fifth such court to be created in the United States.
"I am honored that Governor Bredesen has asked me to fill the Division VI position," said Fishburn. "I am prepared to fill the duties of the Davidson County Criminal Court with competency and integrity, and am humbled to be chosen for this position." Fishburn, 53, holds a bachelor's degree in science business from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from Nashville School of Law. He is a member of the Tennessee and Nashville Bar Associations and was formerly a member of the Tennessee Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. In 2003, Fishburn received the Mental Health Professional of the Year award from the Mental Health Association of Middle Tennessee, and in 2001, received the award for the Outstanding Mental Health Advocate in the Criminal Justice System from the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill. In 1994, he received the Assistance of Counsel Award from the Nashville Bar Association for his efforts to assure indigent defendants the right to counsel.
The Division V and VI 20th Judicial District criminal court appointments become effective September 1, 2003, and appointments will serve until September 2004. There will be a special election to fill these appointments for a two-year term in 2004, and an election for a full eight-year term in 2006.
(08/05/2003)
Susano Named Appellate Judge of the Year
The Tennessee chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) has selected state Court of Appeals Judge Charles D. Susano, Jr., of Knoxville, as 2003 Appellate Judge of the Year. Also being honored at an Aug. 9 ceremony in Knoxville is U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Gray Hull, who has been named Trial Judge of the Year.
ABOTA, a national organization with an invitation-only membership of 6,000 trial lawyers and judges, has 90 chapers in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Since its inception in 1958, ABOTA’s primary mission has been to preserve the civil jury trial right guaranteed by the 7th Amendment to the United States Constitution. Morristown attorney Denise Terry Stapleton is president of the Tennessee ABOTA chapter.
Susano graduated magna cum laude from the University of Notre Dame in 1958 with a degree in accounting. Following two years of active duty military service, he attended the University of Tennessee College of Law, graduating with a JD degree in 1963. While at UT, he was a member of the Tennessee Law Review and was admitted to the Order of the Coif.
He practiced law in Knoxville for 30 years and in 1994 was appointed by Gov. Ned McWherter to the Tennessee Court of Appeals. He was elected to the appellate court in August 1994 and re-elected to an eight year term in August 1998.
Susano is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation and the Tennessee Bar Foundation. He also is a member of the Tennessee Judicial Conference and served on its Executive Committee from 1995-99. He was founder and first president of the Notre Dame Alumni Club of Knoxville-East Tennessee and has served on the boards of the Knoxville Bar Association, the Knoxville Legal Aid Society, the InterFaith Health Clinic, the Knoxville Area Urban League, Catholic Charities, Project First Offender, Knoxville Catholic High School and Sacred Heart Catholic Church.
Susano and his wife, Carolyn are the parents of three children and one grandchild.
Hull, of Greeneville, assumed Senior Judge status this year. He was United States District Court Judge in Greeneville for 20 years and was Circuit Court Judge for Greene, Hamblen and Hawkins counties from 1972-79. From 1979 to 1981, he was legal counsel to Gov. Lamar Alexander.
(08/04/2003)
Judge John S. McLellan to Lead Statewide Judicial Organization
Circuit Court Judge John McLellan, III, of Kingsport has been chosen as president-elect of the Tennessee Judicial Conference, which includes all of the state's 178 trial and appellate court judges. He will become president of the organization in June 2004 for a one-year term.
“To have my judicial colleagues from across the state elect me to assume the highest office in the conference is an incredible honor,” McLellan, 57, said. “I feel particularly humbled by my election since the last conference president from the Second Judicial District was in 1989-90 when Chancellor Richard Ladd served. He is, without question, one of the finest judges in this state and it is humbling to follow him more than a decade later.”
The July issue of the Kingsport Bar Association Newsletter describes McLellan’s election to the Tennessee Judicial Conference office as “a great honor” demonstrating “the respect Judge McLellan holds among his peers.”
McLellan has been on the bench since 1994 when he was appointed to the Circuit Court for Sullivan County, Division I. He was elected in 1996 and again in 1998 to an 8-year term. He previously served as Sullivan County attorney from 1978-1994.
Since 1999, he has been a member of the Tennessee Court of the Judiciary, which enforces the code of conduct for judges. He was a director of the Tennessee Trial Judges Association in 1996-97 and has been a member of the Kingsport Bar Association since 1971. He also is a member of the American Judicature Society and the American Trial Lawyers Association.
McLellan graduated from Dobyns-Bennett High School in 1964 and the University of Tennessee in 1968 with a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration. In 1970, he earned his Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Tennessee Law School in Knoxville. He and his wife Wanda G. McLellan have two sons, John and Jason Ray, and two granddaughters, Brittany Star and Kaile Pearl.
(07/15/2003)
Appellate Court Clerk Retiring, Supreme Court to Fill Position
Applications will be accepted through Sept. 2 from attorneys wanting to succeed Tennessee Appellate Court Clerk Cecil Crowson, who has announced he will retire effective Jan. 1, 2004, after a decade in the position and 23 years of service with the judicial system.
"His dedication to the judicial branch has been unwavering throughout his career with the courts," said Chief Justice Frank Drowota. "It is no cliche to say that Cecil will be a tough act to follow. He has been instrumental in implementing many changes to improve the system of justice in Tennessee while at the same time he and his staff have dealt with growing numbers of cases on appeal in the Court of Appeals, Court of Criminal Appeals and Supreme Court."
Crowson, a graduate of Vanderbilt Law School, was employed by the Supreme Court in 1975 to serve in a newly created position as staff attorney to the court. In 1993, he was appointed Appellate Court Clerk to oversee offices and staff in Nashville, Knoxville and Jackson. Prior to his appointment, each of the offices had a clerk and chief deputy clerk, but Crowson has been responsible for supervising and unifying practices and procedures for all three offices.
A screening committee made up of one member of the Court of Appeals and Court of Criminal Appeals from each grand division will review applications and conduct interviews. The six-member committee will be assisted by Pam Taylor, human resources manager for the Administrative Office of the Courts. Finalists recommended by the committee will be interviewed by the five-member Tennessee Supreme Court and presiding judges of the Court of Appeals and Court of Criminal Appeals or their designees.
Applications should be submitted to the Administrative Office of the Courts, Human Resources Office, 511 Union Street, Suite 600, Nashville, TN 37219.
(07/02/2003)
Governor to Make Four Trial Court, One Appellate Court Appointments
The Oct. 1 retirement of Chancellor Irvin Kilcrease and the authorization by the General Assembly of two new Criminal Court judgeships and one additional Chancery Court position will add four new faces to the trial court bench in Davidson County, the 20th Judicial District.
A July 31 deadline has been set for the Administrative Office of the Courts to receive applications from attorneys hoping to succeed Kilcrease or serve in the three new positions.
The 17-member Judicial Selection Commission will meet Aug. 21 to conduct a public hearing and interview Criminal Court applicants. The two criminal Court vacancies will be filled from a single pool of applicants. The commission will meet the following day to conduct a public hearing and interview Chancery Court applicants. Locations for the meetings will be announced.
The commission will submit names to Gov. Phil Bredesen who will appoint the two judges and two chancellors. All four of the positions will be on the ballot in 2004, the next August biennial election, and again in 2006 for full eight-year terms.
The commission also will meet Aug. 23 to interview applicants for a seat on the state Court of Appeals. Judge Ben Cantrell will retire Sept 1 after a judicial career spanning three decades. Applications to succeed him must be submitted to the Administrative Office of the Courts no later than Aug. 5. The governor also will appoint a successor to Cantrell. The position then will be on the ballot in August 2004 and again in 2006 for an eight-year term.
Cantrell has been on the appellate bench since 1980 when he was appointed by Gov. Lamar Alexander. He was elected in 1982, 1990 and 1998, when he also became presiding judge of the Middle Tennessee division. In 1973, Cantrell was appointed to the Davidson County Chancery Court by Gov. Winfield Dunn. The following year he was elected to an eight year term.
Kilcrease, a graduate of the Nashville School of Law, has served as chancellor since1980. He has been a member of the Court of the Judiciary and is a past president of the Tennessee Judicial Conference.
The legislature created the new Davidson County judicial positions based on the most recent Weighted Caseload Study. The study showed the average caseload per judge in the 20th Judicial District was higher than in other cities, in part because state law requires many types of lawsuits to be filed in Davidson County Chancery Court. The addition of three trial judges will bring the number to 18 for the district.