The Knoxville-based Law Firm of Brock Shipe Klenk PLC is pleased to announce that Justice Sharon Lee, formerly Chief Justice of the Tennessee Supreme Court, has joined the Firm. Through her many years of experience as a litigator, mediator, and appellate judge, Justice Lee will enhance the Firm’s dynamic litigation section in the practice areas of complex litigation, appellate advocacy, and mediation.
Justice Lee is a graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Business and the University of Tennessee College of Law. Before her nineteen-year tenure on the appellate bench, Justice Lee practiced law for twenty-six years, serving as an advocate in various civil and criminal litigation matters, as well as in the fields of real estate, estate planning, and transactional matters. She also served as a mediator, county attorney, municipal attorney, and municipal judge in Monroe County. In 2004, Governor Phil Bredesen appointed her to the Tennessee Court of Appeals. She served on the Court of Appeals until 2008, when she was appointed to the Tennessee Supreme Court. Justice Lee served on the Tennessee Supreme Court until her retirement in 2023, including a tenure as Chief Justice from 2014-2016.
Among her many prestigious awards, Justice Lee has been honored by her alma mater, having delivered commencement speeches for the University of Tennessee College of Law classes of 2014 and 2023 and being awarded the University of Tennessee Alumni Professional Achievement Award, the University of Tennessee Centennial Alumnus Award, the University of Tennessee Distinguished Alumna Award, and the University of Tennessee College of Law Legal Clinic Bernstein-Ritchie Award. In addition, Justice Lee received the Tennessee Bar Association Justice Frank F. Drowota III Outstanding Judicial Service Award, the Knoxville Bar Association Judicial Excellence Award and the Grayfred Gray Public Service in Mediation Award. She has demonstrated unwavering commitment to Access to Justice, receiving the Chief Justice William M. Barker Equal Access to Justice Award, the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services Lifetime Achievement Award, and being a Legal Aid of East Tennessee Hall of Fame inductee.
Throughout her career as a member of the bench and bar, Justice Lee has devoted herself to her community and the legal profession by serving in roles ranging from the president of her children’s parent-teacher association to a liaison with the Supreme Court of Japan. The Knoxville YWCA, the Girls Scouts of the Southern Appalachians, and the East Tennessee Lawyers’ Association for Women have recognized her civic and legal contributions through achievement awards. Justice Lee has served as a vital member of the Monroe County Bar Association, the Knoxville Bar Association, the Tennessee Bar Association, and the Knoxville, Tennessee, and American Bar Foundations. She has administered oaths of office to numerous state and local elected officials, including Governor Bill Haslam, served on many non-profit boards, and published thought-provoking and insightful articles.
Established in 2019, Brock Shipe Klenk PLC serves clients in a wide range of transactional and civil litigation matters. The Firm is honored that Justice Lee has chosen to continue her remarkable legal career by providing her unparalleled knowledge and experience to its practice and greatly looks forward to Justice Lee, with her experience of appellate law and community service, being an integral part of the Firm’s continued growth.