Baker Donelson has been honored by the American Bar Association as a recipient of the ABA Free Legal Answers 2020 Pro Bono Leader Award in recognition of the outstanding contribution of service by the firm’s attorneys to the virtual legal advice clinic.

The ABA Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service presents this annual recognition to individual attorneys, law firms, corporate law departments and other organizations that have provided extraordinary pro bono services through ABA Free Legal Answers. In 2020, Baker Donelson attorneys answered more legal questions on ABA Free Legal Answers than any other law firm or legal group, responding to 1,155 questions on the sites for Georgia, Louisiana and Tennessee.

The ABA Free Legal Answers website, which originated in Tennessee a decade ago and which Baker Donelson developed, has been licensed as a free service for low-income clients in 43 states. More than 145,000 pro bono legal questions have been answered through the site, which has nearly 9,000 volunteer lawyers. Similar software has been licensed to pro bono agencies in the Virgin Islands, Australia and the United Kingdom.

Lewis Thomason begins diversity initiative

Tennessee law firm Lewis Thomason recently fulfilled a priority of its strategic plan by forming InclusivLT, a diversity, equity and inclusion committee. The committee will be chaired by John R. Tarpley, a Nashville attorney whose practice focuses on complex litigation in the areas of transportation, tort, product liability, and a wide range of insurance-related matters in both state and federal courts.

Reflecting the diversity of the firm, committee members include Robyn Askew, Ray Babaoglu, Christen Blackburn, Ryan Clark, Brian Faughnan, Tania Freeman, Preston Hawkins, Whitney Henry Kimerling, Lynn Peterson, Kaya Grace Porter, Margaret Cooper Roney, Mary Ann Stackhouse, Marshall Stair, Chris Vescovo, Nic Vescovo, and firm president and managing partner, Lisa Ramsay Cole.

Lewis Thomason saw the need to form a DE&I committee, not only as a response to current events, but as an amplification of the firm’s already existing commitment to women and minority leadership across its four Tennessee offices.

Executive search firm coming to Nashville

20/20 Foresight, an executive search company, is entering the Nashville market.

The opening comes as the firm continues a period of growth, including the acquisition of California-based retained search firm Saenger Associates, the addition of an office in Pittsburgh, and the appointments of several experienced recruitment professionals.

Peter Wilson, who brings 15 years of executive search experience to his role, has been tapped to lead the Nashville office as managing director. Wilson has successfully completed searches for clients across every discipline of commercial real estate including developers, private equity and institutional investors and national contractors, as well as several health systems.

For such clients, he has filled positions ranging from analysts to C-Suite executives, in every major U.S. market. Wilson places a great deal of value in understanding his client’s needs, both logistically and intrinsically, demonstrated in the long-term success of his placements and long-lasting relationships with clients.

“I have followed the trajectory of 20/20 Foresight during my recruitment career and have been impressed by the agility and perseverance it takes to stay one step ahead of the industry,” Wilson says.

Bridgestone raises $3.6M for B&GC

Bridgestone Retail Operations, a subsidiary of Bridgestone Americas based in Nashville, raised more than $3.6 million in 2020 for Boys & Girls Clubs of America as part of their nationwide Driving Great Futures partnership.

A large portion of the 2020 funds went to help Club kids and teens gain access to high-impact, out-of-school support amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Included in the $3.6 million is a $200,000 donation from the Bridgestone Americas Trust Fund to help fund technology gaps and support ongoing virtual programming needs.

“Boys & Girls Clubs of America is always a critical resource for kids and families, but even more so as they pivoted to provide essential services like meal delivery and Wi-Fi hot spots for Club kids who abruptly moved to new ways of learning due to COVID-19,” says Marko Ibrahim, president, Bridgestone Retail Operations. “Despite these challenging times, the generosity of our customers and teammates did not waver, and we are grateful for their support as we continue to drive great futures together.”

TowerBrook, Ascension invest in Regent Surgical

Regent Surgical Health, a developer, owner and manager of ambulatory surgery centers headquartered in Nashville and Chicago, has announced the completion of a strategic investment from TowerBrook Capital Partners L.P., an international investment management firm, and Ascension Capital, an investment affiliate of Ascension, providing additional capital for future growth.

In conjunction with the transaction, Ascension, the nation’s largest nonprofit and Catholic health system, has selected Regent as its exclusive national partner for ambulatory surgery center development. Through this partnership, Regent and Ascension will develop or acquire and operate ambulatory surgery centers across the communities Ascension serves, providing patients with convenient access to high-quality outpatient surgical services.

Regent has developed, owned and managed ASC facilities in partnership with hospitals and physicians since 2001, and has grown to become the nation’s largest independent health system joint venture-focused ASC operator. Regent currently owns or operates ASCs across the United States and has successfully pursued a strategy focused on the development of several multisite health system partnerships.

Regent will use the capital investment from TowerBrook and Ascension Capital to further grow its management team as well as enhance its operational and technology capabilities to support both existing and new health system and physician partners. In addition, TowerBrook and Ascension Capital have committed significant incremental growth capital to support Regent’s role in assisting its health system partners in modernizing their surgical systems through both ASC acquisition and new developments.

New homes available in Cross Plains/White House

Century Communities, Inc., a top 10 national homebuilder, has built a new community of single-family homes in the Cross Plains/White House area.

The community, Chelsea’s Way, offers Calderwood floor plans, showcasing two stories of fully furnished living space, complete with designer finishes and an open-concept layout.

“We’ve very excited for Nashville-area homebuyers to discover Chelsea’s Way, which offers the best of both worlds in a beautiful location with incredible new homes,” says John Hennebery, Nashville Division President. “And with 80 homesites and seven floor plans, now’s the perfect time for buyers to get in early and find their best fit.”

The homes are being sold from the high $200s, feature three to six bedrooms, two to four baths, two-bay garages and up to 2,641 square feet.

Century Communities, Inc. is a Colorado-based company operating in 17 states across the U.S.

Rise&Walk InClinic pilot debuted

Healing Innovations, Inc., a Nashville company, has announced the successful completion of the first pilot for the new Rise&Walk InClinic technology at Shepherd Center in Atlanta.

The pilot included the technology’s different use cases and gathered session data including clinician and patient feedback.

The Rise&WalkInClinic is a neurorehabilitation technology designed to facilitate body-weight supported activities and locomotor therapy to help a wide range of patients recovering from neurological injuries and gait impairments.

Activity-based therapy is a critical component in the rehabilitation process for patients recovering from neurological injuries. Previous research suggests the central nervous system is capable of synaptic plasticity (i.e., neuroplasticity) and anatomical reorganization through participation in intensive, repetitive and task-specific activities.

The Rise&Walk InClinic is a robotic neurorehabilitation technology that targets muscle groups important for walking and facilitates locomotor-related movements to help a wide range of patients recovering from neurological injuries. It is the first ever sit-and-stand device that replicates up to three different therapy modalities, giving clinicians more flexibility in a therapy session.

AdhereHealth unveils new COVID-19 tool

Franklin’s AdhereHealth has launched its High-Risk Patient COVID-19 Vaccine Accelerator.

AdhereHealth is a health care technology leader in medication adherence insights and health outcomes.

The outbound, data-driven tele-pharmacy solution helps governments, health plans and providers facilitate vaccinations for vulnerable populations by addressing social determinants of health, such as health literacy, transportation and chronic condition medication access, as well as increasing vaccination clinics or in-home services.

Analytics and outbound tele-pharmacy can ensure equitable access to vaccinations by engaging vulnerable populations.

Built within the Adhere Platform’s Optimize solution, the High-Risk Patient COVID-19 Accelerator uses a combination of innovative technology that enables AdhereHealth’s nationwide team of licensed clinicians. By proactively identifying the most vulnerable populations, overcoming SDOH issues and connecting them with vaccine services, the solution directly supports Americans at highest risk.

LogicPlum targets India in expansion

AI solutions platform LogicPlum of Franklin plans to continue expanding its efforts in India, having invested $2 million to date.

India has a large workforce of intelligent, IT-focused, English-speaking engineers dedicated to excellence and equipped with a strong services backbone.

LogicPlum’s investment will help build new research and development teams, expand regional offices, and recruit key leadership roles. The company recently opened a new regional headquarters in PMG, Trivandrum, India, quadrupling the size of the previous office space while also ensuring the company has 24-hour development and support with LogicPlum’s global teams located in India, the U.S., and France.