Chattanooga Bar Association Young Lawyer's Division
The purposes of Young Lawyers Division shall be to promote a better understanding of the law and the legal profession to the general public; to sponsor community, educational and professional programs for the general public and the legal profession; and to encourage fellowship among the young lawyers of Hamilton County, Tennessee. All licensed attorneys of Hamilton County, Tennessee, who are members of the Chattanooga Bar Association and who are under 36 years of age, or within the first five years of their practice of law, shall be eligible for membership in this organization.
The YLD hosts social events after hours for networking purposes, including socials to welcome summer interns from various firms, and events to highlight local venues, events, such as Lookouts. The Fall social benefits CASA – Court Appointed Special Advocates – held in November. CASA for Children is a network of 951 community-based programs that recruit, train and support citizen-volunteers to advocate for the best interests of abused and neglected children in courtrooms and communities. Every day in this country, 1,900 children become victims of abuse or neglect, and four of them will die. Volunteer advocates—empowered directly by the courts—offer judges the critical information they need to ensure that each child’s rights and needs are being attended to while in foster care.
In February of every year, the YLD hosts the High School Mock Trial Competition. Mock Trial Competition involves students to take on the roles of attorneys and witnesses and present their case against teams from other schools. It has been running annually since 1991 with regional tournaments and the national finals.
If you would like to be part of the YLD, contact the CBA Office at 602-9430.
You can follow the YLD on Facebook @ Chattanooga Bar Association YLD;
Twitter @ChattBarYLD; or
Instagram@ chattbaryld.
CHATTANOOGA BAR ASSOCIATION
2022 YLD Executive COUNCIL
President/Pres-Elect Melody Shekari
of Melody Shekari Law
Attorney Melody Shekari is a lawyer, community advocate, and proud daughter of immigrants. Raised in Chattanooga, Shekari earned her B.S. in Economics from Bentley Univ., a Master in Public Administration from the Univ. of Washington, and a J.D. from the Univ. of Southern California. She has traveled to over 45 countries and received fellowships to work in local government and study international genocide and legal institutions. After law school, Shekari returned home to Chattanooga, completed a fellowship in the Mayor's office, and ran for political office. She is active in a number of local and volunteer initiatives and organizations including serving on the statewide board of ACLU-TN and volunteer scuba diving at the Tennessee Aquarium. Shekari’s current work and volunteer priorities include criminal justice reform, access to healthcare, job creation and workforce development, and immigrant rights. The majority of her legal practice is in criminal defense and civil contract matters, and she is licensed to practice law in TN and CA.

Vice President/President Elect Logan Threadgill
of Chambliss Law Firm
Attorney Logan Threadgill is a commercial litigation attorney at Chambliss Law Firm in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He handles construction cases, contract and payment disputes, products liability cases, Chapter 7, Chapter 11, and Chapter 13 bankruptcy proceedings, and various other business litigation matters. Threadgill is actively involved in the Chambliss Startup Group, which has allowed him the opportunity to work with a number of startups and entrepreneurs through the Company Lab (CO.LAB) on myriad business matters ranging from entity choice and incorporation, intellectual property and technology rights, and risk management strategies. Threadgill also serves on the Board of Directors for the TBA's Young Lawyers Division, as district representative for Hamilton County. Threadgill previously played a fundamental role for the TBA YLD's Publications Committee in which he was the editor of the Tennessee Young Lawyer—a statewide e-newsletter.
Secretary / Vice President Elect John Jolley
of Legal Aid of East Tennessee
Treasurer Brian Bush
of Spears Moore Rebman & WILLIAMS
Brian Bush is a native Chattanoogan, and a graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Law and Maryville College. He currently practices at the firm of Spears, Moore, Rebman, & Williams, P.C. Prior to joining SMRW, Bush served as an Assistant District Attorney in the Hamilton County District Attorney’s Office. He’s also a commissioned officer, serving in the U.S. Navy Reserve. Bush is dedicated to serving his community through his work, and he and his wife, Mauriel, enjoy calling Chattanooga home.
Immediate Past President Alex McVeagh
of Hamilton County General Sessions Court
Currently Tennessee’s youngest judge, Alex McVeagh was appointed in 2017 by Governor Bill Haslam as one of 5 Hamilton County General Sessions Court judges. A native of Lafayette, Louisiana, McVeagh obtained his B.S. and J.D. degrees from Vanderbilt University. He previously worked as a litigator at Chambliss Law Firm in Chattanooga, where he practiced both civil & criminal law, as research analyst and law clerk for the TN Senate Judiciary Committee, and as analyst/legislative liaison for the TN Dist. Public Defenders Conference. In 2019, McVeagh founded Hamilton County’s General Sessions Drug Recovery Court, which rehabilitates individuals in the criminal justice system suffering from substance use disorder. He currently serves on the TN Supreme Court’s Access to Justice Commission & Technology/E-Filing Committee, on the TN Governor’s Criminal Justice Reform Task Force, and serves in leadership roles with the young lawyers divisions of the CBA, TBA & ABA.
Council Member Tim Ballard
of EVANS HARRISON AND HACKETT
Tim Ballard practices civil litigation with Evans Harrison and Hackett. His practice focuses on domestic relations and personal injury. His domestic relations practice includes not only divorce and child custody cases, but also cases involving grandparent visitation, termination of parental rights, Juvenile Court practice, and service as a Guardian ad Litem in Circuit and Chancery Courts. He earned his J.D. from the University of South Carolina School of Law & bachelor’s degree from UT.
Council Member Tim Crosby
of Whitfield Coleman Bullock
Tim Crosby grew up in Southern Illinois and after some travel made his way to Chattanooga in 2017. Crosby currently practices law at Whitfield Coleman Bullock. His practice encompasses mass tort and class action litigation and a variety of other civil matters. Outside of the office Crosby enjoys being outside and exploring the Chattanooga area with friends.
Council Member Jenna Fullerton
of Miller Martin
Jenna Fullerton, an attorney at Miller & Martin PLLC, practices in the area of commercial litigation. She represents and advises clients in a broad range of litigation matters, including contract disputes, complex personal-injury claims, and white-collar criminal matters. Fullerton completed her undergraduate at the University of Texas at Austin and obtained her law degree from Vanderbilt Law School, where she served on the Vanderbilt Law Review. After law school, Fullerton completed a two-year term as law clerk for U.S. District Court Judge Travis R. McDonough. Fullerton serves on the Board of Directors of the Downtown Council of the Chattanooga Chamber of Commerce and as President-Elect of the Chattanooga Chapter of the Federal Bar Association.
Council Member Tim Henshaw
of Ali awad law
Attorney Tim Henshaw of Ali Awad Law, P.C.. was born and raised in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He studied at UT–Chattanooga where he graduated with honors in 2012. Henshaw attended Georgia State University College of Law while working for McMahan Law Firm and graduated with honors in 2017. During law school, Henshaw received awards for excellence in constitutional law, brief writing, oral appellate arguments and complex litigation, scholarships from the Chattanooga Bar Association and the Student Trial Lawyers’ Association, and worked as an Associate Research Editor for the Georgia State Law Review. He currently practices in civil litigation, including industrial accidents, Workers' Compensation claims and motor vehicle accidents. Tim is a member of the Chattanooga Bar Association, Tennessee Bar Association and Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association. Henshaw attends church at the Venue Church in North Georgia and volunteers in the kids department. He loves spending time with his wife, a special needs teacher, and his whole pack of dogs.
Council Member Matthew Wayne
of Carlock Stair
Council Member Chelsea Lyle
of Chelsea Lyle Law

COUNCIL MEMBER Raven Austin
of HCDAG
Raven Austin graduated with a B.A. in History from the University of Alabama and a J.D. from Lincoln Memorial University. In law school, Austin was involved with Mock Trial and the Black Law Student’s Association boards. Since 2018, she has been with the Hamilton County District Attorney’s Office. She is an active volunteer in Mock Trial competitions across the country, including the CBA YLD Hamilton County high school mock trial competition.
Council Member Aaron Wells
of Robinson, Smith & Wells
COUNCIL MEMBER Alexis Crutchfield
of Miller Martin
Alexis Crutchfield is an Attorney at Miller & Martin, PLLC, where she concentrates her practice in the firm’s Litigation department. Alexis returned to her native town of Chattanooga in the inaugural class of the Chattanooga Legal Diversity Consortium, where she gained practical legal experience while working in the legal services department at EPB and as a judicial intern at the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee. Alexis earned a bachelor's degree in Psychology from Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama and obtained her law degree from Howard University School of Law in Washington, D.C. While in law school, Alexis served as a student attorney working in the Howard Child Welfare Clinic, where she represented clients in D.C. Superior Court, primarily throughout CPS investigations and custody matters.

TBA YLD Liaison Justin Faith
of Gearhiser Peters
Justin B. Faith, a member at Gearhiser, Peters, Elliott & Cannon, PLLC, has a proven track record handling all types of cases with a focus on civil business litigation and estate related litigation matters. Over the years, he has taken on numerous leadership roles and received various recognitions in the CBA, TBA, and ABA Association Young Lawyer Divisions, including serving on the Executive Committee for the Tennessee Bar Association YLD as the group’s Treasurer for the past several years. Faith is a Super Lawyers® Rising Star in Business Litigation (2020), a proud graduate of the TBA’s Leadership Law (TBALL) program, and has been involved with the Chattanooga Bar Association YLD dating back to 2011. Prior to starting private practice, Faith served as the Judicial Law Clerk for the Hamilton County Chancery Court. Faith is a graduate from the University of Tennessee College of Law, magna cum laude with High Honors, and from the University of Louisville, magna cum laude, with Highest University Honors. He is an avid traveler, sports junkie, and Kentucky bourbon aficionado.
SETLAW Liaison Lauren Kaywood
of Pinnacle Bank
Lauren Sherrell Kaywood serves as a trust advisor for the trust team at Pinnacle Bank’s offices in downtown Chattanooga, Tennessee. Kaywood enjoys helping individuals and families manage their assets and pass wealth to children as efficiently as possible. A former estate planning attorney, Kaywood enjoys assisting clients in a variety of estate planning and end of life matters. In addition to being a graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Law, Kaywood holds a M.B.A. and a Bachelor of Music from UT-Chattanooga. She is past president of the Southeast Tennessee Lawyers’ Association for Women (SETLAW), and is a member of the TBA & CBA.
Criminal Defense Bar Liaison Matt Brock
of Best Brock
Attorney Matt Brock is a criminal defense attorney whose practice is focused on impaired driving crimes. He also handles cases ranging from Class C misdemeanors to Frist Degree murders and is most conformable litigating in the courtroom. Brock is extremely passionate about representing the accused and believes in absolute zealous advocacy. He is a certified instructor in DUI Detection & Standardized Field Sobriety Testing course recognized by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). This is the same course that police officers take in order to make DUI arrests. Brock is a board member for the DUI Defense Lawyers Association and is also a member of the National Association of Criminal defense Lawyers and the Chattanooga Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.