The first six appointments to the newly created Trial Court Vacancy Commission have been made, with Nashville attorney Tom Lawless to serve as chairman of the entity.
The commission was created as part of the compromise that established a procedure by which the legislature would approve appellate court judges. The commission is charged with giving three nominees to the governor, who may select one of the trio to fill a vacancy in the state’s trial courts or may ask for a new slate.
The commission will have 11 members, five each appointed by the lieutenant governor and the speaker of the House, and a chairman appointed by both.
Lawless, a veteran banking and creditors rights attorney, has been active in Republican politics and is a former chairman of the Davidson County Republican Party.
In addition, Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey named his five appointees.
They are:
- Gilbert McCarter II, a Murfreesboro attorney who practices domestic and criminal defense law. In 2011, he was appointed by Ramsey to serve on the Judicial Nominating Commission.
- David Golden is the chief legal officer and senior vice president of Eastman Chemical Company and is based in Kingsport. He, too, served on the Judicial Nominating Commission.
- J. Bartlett Quinn is a Chattanooga attorney who focuses on representing employers in employment law cases. A Republican appointee to the Hamilton County Election Commission, he also has served on the Judicial Nominating Commission.
- Jesse Cannon Jr. is an internist in Stanton in Tipton County. A former chairman of that county's Republican Party, he once ran for the legislature against former House Speaker Jimmy Naifeh.
- Beverly Nelms is a partner in Knoxville's Frantz, McConnell & Seymour. Her practice concentrates on construction law, arbitration and mediation and personal injury, as well as insurance defense, workers' compensation, and conservatorships.
A spokesperson for Harwell said the speaker had not yet made her five appointments.