Judge James G. Martin III will be honored next month with the Tennessee Bar Association’s Justice Frank F. Drowota III Award.

The Drowota Award is awarded to a judge or judicial branch official of a federal, state or local court in Tennessee who has demonstrated extraordinary devotion and dedication to the improvement of the law, the legal system and the administration of justice as exemplified by the career of former Supreme Court Justice Frank F. Drowota III – the award’s first recipient. The Drowota Award is the TBA’s highest award for service to the judiciary and has been given annually for more than a decade.

Judge Martin practiced law in Middle Tennessee 1974-2008 focusing on civil litigation with an emphasis on family law. In 2008, Gov. Phil Bredesen appointed Judge Martin to the Tennessee Circuit Court, 21st Judicial District, Division II.

The Drowota Award will be presented at the Tennessee Bar Association Annual Convention in Nashville June 17 during the Lawyers’ Luncheon.

Dixon to receive 2022 Reeves Award

Jacqueline “Jackie” B. Dixon will be honored next month with the Judge Pamela L. Reeves Tennessee Professionalism Award from the Tennessee Bar Association (TBA) and the Tennessee American Inns of Court. The award is named in honor of the late Judge Reeves, who was also the first recipient of the award in 2020.

The award is presented each year to a lawyer or judge whose life and practice display sterling character and unquestioned integrity, coupled with ongoing dedication to the highest standards of the rule of law and the highest standards of the legal profession in Tennessee. The award is presented to a lawyer or judge residing in the Grand Division of Tennessee where the TBA’s Annual Convention is held.

Dixon was chosen for her years of leadership within the bar. A past president of the TBA, Dixon actively worked on issues related to well-being in the legal profession, including service on the TBA Attorney Well Being Committee and as a Commissioner for the Tennessee Lawyers Assistance Program. She has also served as a leader in other legal organizations, including the American Bar Association, Tennessee Lawyers Association for Women, Lawyers Association for Women-Marion Griffin Chapter and the Harry Phillips American Inn of Court.

Her former law firm, Weatherly & Dixon PLLC, recently merged with Lewis Thomason PC.

The award will be presented at the Tennessee Bar Association Annual Convention in Nashville June 17 during the Lawyers’ Luncheon.

Butler Snow welcomes 3 attorneys in Nashville

Butler Snow LLP has added Jamie M. Thompson, W. Travis Vest and W.W. Frank Wilbert.

Thompson will practice with the firm’s labor & employment practice group, while Vest and Wilbert will practice with the commercial litigation practice group.

Thompson focuses his practice on labor and employment, general civil litigation, transportation and education matters.

Thompson earned his bachelor’s degree, Master of Public Administration and Policy degree and juris doctor from the University of Tennessee. While in law school, Thompson served as research editor and staff editor of the Transactions: The Tennessee Journal of Business Law, as well as a member of the National Trial Team and the executive board of the moot court board.

He also completed an externship with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee and clerked for the Tennessee Attorney General’s Office. He is a member of the Nashville and Tennessee Bar Associations.

Vest’s practice will primarily focus on various carrier, contract, real estate, construction, products liability and other commercial litigation matters.

Vest earned his bachelor’s degree and juris doctor at the University of Tennessee. While in law school, he participated in the SBA Mentorship Program and UT Law Pro Bono program. Vest was also the recipient of the C.A.L.I. Awards in a number of categories.

Wilbert brings nearly two decades of experience representing individual and corporate clients, including clients in intellectual property, commercial, tort, real estate, banking, trucking, insurance and construction litigation matters.

He earned his juris doctor from the University of Tennessee College of Law. He is a member of the Nashville and Tennessee Bar Associations and a Fellow of the Nashville Bar Foundation.

He has previously served as a member of the board of directors for the Nashville Bar Association Young Lawyers Division, as well as a former associate member of the Harry Phillips American Inn of Court and a former master level member of the Belmont University College of Law Inn of Court.

Bradley adds associate Ndam to Nashville office

Sordum Ndam has joined Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP as an associate.

Ndam is a member of Bradley’s economic development and environmental law practice groups, working with clients throughout all stages of their development projects, including site selection, identifying incentives, and proactively looking ahead to ensure the client’s goals are being met.

A graduate of the Florida State University College of Law, Ndam also earned her LL.M. in taxation from the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law. She also is a graduate of Belmont University.

She has been named to the 2022 “Nashville Top 30 Under 30” list by the Tennessee Chapter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation for her professional accomplishments and involvement in the local community. Ndam was also selected as one of 14 professionals for the 2022 spring cohort of Arts Board Matching by the Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville (ABC), which prepares business professionals for nonprofit board service by pairing them with Nashville-based arts organizations.

Bradley’s Richard W.F. Swor also has been selected to the 30 Under 30 list.

Swor is a member of Bradley’s litigation and intellectual property practice groups, focusing on complex business and commercial litigation and representing clients in trademark disputes. He earned his J.D. from the Belmont University College of Law and his bachelor’s degree from Belmont University.

Swor serves on the board of the Belmont Wesley Fellowship and on the LGBT Law Executive Council of the Tennessee Bar Association.

Bass, Berry & Sims adds Brown as counsel

Bass, Berry & Sims is pleased to announce Justin K. Brown has joined the firm’s nationally ranked health care practice as counsel.

Brown guides clients through the health care regulatory challenges they face in both day-to-day operations and transactions. He focuses his practice on issues related to the federal physician self-referral (Stark) law and Anti-Kickback Statute, as well as state self-referral, anti-kickback, fee-splitting, and corporate practice of medicine prohibitions.

Before joining Bass, Berry & Sims, Brown was an attorney in the health care group at Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP. He began his legal career as a trial attorney in the Massachusetts public defender’s office.

Brown is a graduate of Harvard Law School, where he was a member of the Harvard Prison Legal Assistance Project and the Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review. He holds a degree in finance and entrepreneurship from Auburn University.

Chauhan honored with Culinary Institute award

Nashville-based chef, award-winning TV personality, restaurateur and author Maneet Chauhan has been honored with an Augie Award at The Culinary Institute of America. Chauhan graduated from CIA Hyde Park in 2000.

The Augie Award, named for chef, restaurateur and culinary writer August Escoffier, is given to recipients who exemplify innovation and leadership, as well as his spirit, integrity and professionalism.

Chauhan has introduced global flavors to the Nashville culinary landscape through her restaurants under the Morph Hospitality Group umbrella: Chauhan Ale & Masala House, Chaatable, The Mockingbird and Tansuo.

Fourth Capital adds pair of vice presidents

Fourth Capital today has added two vice presidents, Harrison Griffin and Heidi Phillips, to its relationship banking team.

Griffin, who brings nearly eight years of banking experience to Fourth Capital, joins the team after serving as a banking center manager for First Horizon. Meanwhile, Phillips joins Fourth Capital with more than eight years of experience, including her most recent position as a vice president of business banking at First Citizens Bank.

Before joining Fourth Capital, Griffin held multiple positions at First Horizon Bank, ranging from financial services representative to banking center manager. Griffin earned his bachelor’s degree from Auburn University.

Phillips, a Vanderbilt graduate, previously held senior positions at First Citizens Bank, as well as at First Horizon Bank, where she served as an associate vice president and personal banker. She’s also worked for HomeTrust Bank as an associate vice president with a focus on treasury management services.

ACLU-TN announces new legal director

The American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee has chosen Stella Yarbrough, former ACLU-TN staff attorney, as its new legal director.

Yarbrough’s relationship with ACLU-TN began in 2011 as an intern while she was studying law at Vanderbilt University. She also has a master’s from the Vanderbilt Divinity School and is a graduate of Gideon’s Promise CORE 101 program, a three-year intensive trial-skills training for public defenders.

Before joining ACLU-TN as a staff attorney in January 2020, she was a staff attorney in the Office of Civil Rights at the Tennessee Department of Education. She previously served as an assistant public defender in the Davidson County Public Defender’s Office.