KBA MEMBER TESTIMONIALS
WHAT DOES KBA MEMBERSHIP MEAN TO YOU?
|
As the elected District Attorney for Knox County, I find that my membership in the Knoxville Bar Association is one of my most valuable affiliations. It is very easy for an attorney to stay within his or her own field; however, interacting with KBA members who practice in other areas not only provides the foundation for personal friendships, it also helps expand resources for your office. My staff and I have found that KBA membership also presents wonderful avenues for service to the community, networking events and great CLE discounts. I can’t say enough about the benefits of KBA membership and encourage everyone to participate.
|
As a practicing attorney, if you're going to join only one bar association, it really ought to be the one in your own backyard. Personally and professionally, the relationships I have built through my affiliation with the Knoxville Bar Association have been among the most rewarding of my career. I can also attest to the fact that the Knoxville Bar Association has received kudos and well deserved recognition among both the Tennessee and the American Bar Associations for the service it provides to both the Bar and the public. Furthermore, as a small practitioner, the value of KBA membership is self-evident. I can't imagine having started or grown my practice in this community without the support of the local bar, and the KBA is a vital part of the collegiality we all enjoy in our local legal community. So, if you're wondering whether joining the KBA Is worth the investment, the only answer to that question ls an unqualified "yes."
|
|
I am thrilled to be a member of the KBA! The KBA serves as an integral pillar in the Knoxville and East Tennessee legal community through diverse CLE programming for attorneys and pro bono services provided to local residents. My participation on the CLE committee has given me the opportunity to learn about a diverse array of practice areas that I do not normally have the opportunity to learn about in my current practice. In addition, my service on the CLE committee has given me the opportunity to interact with kind-hearted and giving members of the Knoxville legal community. I hope to become further engaged with the KBA and be able to encourage other attorneys to become more involved with this special legal community.
|
When I began practicing law several years ago, I joined the KBA to assist me in finding permanent employment in the Knoxville legal community. However, the almost immeasurable benefits of KBA membership extend far beyond that initial job search. The law school experience rarely teaches anyone to actually be a lawyer, and certainly not to be a Knoxville lawyer; however, membership in the KBA helped me learn just that. The KBA gave me opportunities to network with other lawyers who could teach me the ins and outs of local practice, the standard of professionalism and collegiality expected from all lawyers practicing in Knox County and surrounding localities, as well as local customs and the unwritten rules of many different courts. Later through my participation in KBA CLE courses, bar events, and committees, many of those lawyers have become trusted colleagues and friends. The KBA continues to help me be a better lawyer every day.
|
|
The KBA strongly believes that a major part of the successful practice of law is in building sustainable and healthy relationships. Because most of us practice in a specific area, KBA activities have allowed me to get to know some great lawyers I would not have run across otherwise. That has been both personally and professionally important to me. Even today, the majority of cases I get come from referrals from people I know who have different concentrations. But KBA is not just networking. There is something inspiring about being around other people who are trying hard to be the best lawyers they can be. I don’t view the KBA as an extra-curricular, but as an integral part of my practice and a part of what it means to be a professional.
|
The KBA has been a major catalyst for the success of both my personal and professional life. Through my involvement with the KBA, such as membership on the board for the Lawyer Referral and Information Service (LRIS) and the board for Continuing Legal Education (CLE), partnered with great networking opportunities like the KBA Golf Tournament, the KBA has provided me with countless relationships, referrals and lost-lasting friendships. The KBA does everything in its power to help Knoxville attorneys succeed, and I consider the KBA and its respective offerings truly to be an essential part of my practice.
|
|
I have found in the KBA the ultimate opportunity to enjoy connections with attorneys in all fields and years of practice in the Knoxville area and share professional growth, knowledge gained through experience, and a support system of those who understand the rewards and rigors of our chosen profession. The additional benefits of community service opportunities, character building, business growth, opportunities to strengthen the practice of law and image of the modern attorney, along with discounted CLE and litigation services, simply speaks to the strength of our particular bar and makes membership a necessity and a pleasure for every attorney.
|
In my years of involvement in the KBA, I have never attended a bad event and never been disappointed with the conversations, stories, and fellowship that have occurred. It is joy to be removed from the adversarial role; to make connections; to engage on a personnel level; to feel part of a community. I want that for all attorneys and believe that the KBA delivers.
|
|
The KBA is so much more than a line on a resume. It has not only been a source of professional networking, but it has also given me the opportunity to form personal friendships with local attorneys that I may not have otherwise had the opportunity to meet. As a first-generation attorney, I did not have mentors or colleagues that I felt I could turn to with questions regarding the practice of law until I joined the KBA. It provided a sense of comfort and confidence as a young attorney that I had been searching for since I began practicing. From attending social events and fundraisers with fellow members to participating in CLE programs, I have benefitted from joining the KBA in more ways than I could imagine. I am forever grateful for the opportunities and relationships I have gained, and I look forward to seeing what the future for the KBA holds.
|
Personally, the KBA is a fantastic avenue through which I get to make and cultivate friendships with people working in the same field as myself. In what other area of work do you end up being friends with your competitors? KBA is a huge facilitator in making that happen. Professionally, the KBA is simply an asset that only makes me better at what I do. It provides insight, perspective, knowledge, not to mention potential clients! I cannot say enough good things about the way the Lawyer Referral Service is handled. It is simply a great program that puts money directly in lawyer’s pockets. Top marks!
|
|
The Knoxville Bar Association is a respected organization and I am proud to have been a member for almost forty years. Some benefits of memberships are difficult to quantify- the support of your colleagues, avenues for service to the community and the profession, and direct participation in improving the rule of law in Tennessee, What I have gotten, and continue to get, from the KBA far outweighs the dues I've paid over the past forty years. Belonging to the KBA is the right thing to do. When I first started practicing, the local bar was much smaller and you were just expected to join. Now there are many opportunities to get involved and the CLE discounts alone are worth the price of membership. However, if I had to pay just one dollar for each practice tip, idea or client referral that I have received due to my KBA membership, my debt to the KBA would be almost incalculable. Membership dues pale in comparison.
|
The KBA is important to me as a resource for networking and education. As a member of a niche Life Care Planning firm that offers comprehensive long-term legal and care planning, I find that my clients sometimes have tangential legal needs that fall outside my practice areas. In this situation, the KBA network is an excellent resource for referrals and mutual information-sharing. I value my relationships with other KBA member attorneys, who answer questions or collaborate on cases to achieve the best outcomes for clients. Likewise, I am pleased when attorneys in the network approach me to assist with issues related to elder law, and we are able to work out creative solutions that span multiple practice areas to address their clients’ needs. The KBA’s networking and CLE events afford additional opportunities to meet other professionals with whom I wouldn’t otherwise cross paths, learn what’s happening in their practice areas, share advice and ideas, and identify ways in which our fields may dovetail.
|
|
For me, KBA is really like a Swiss Army Knife. One day, my law firm may use its lawyer referral service for new clients. The next, my mediation firm may use DICTA to advertise new services. The third, my law incubator may use mentor for the moment for new insight. And the last, my employees may grab a beer at a social event for new laughs. Without a doubt, my KBA membership - and everything comes with that - has proven absolutely essential for my businesses.
|
I use the resources available through the KBA every day in my role as Director of Career Services at LMU Duncan School of Law. My KBA annual attorneys’ directory is never far from my side, and I frequent the KBA website to show students how to find information about local job postings. Additionally, I know I can rely on the KBA to provide me with monthly bar news in DICTA, schedule upcoming social events, and coordinate opportunities to volunteer. To me, the KBA means a connection not only to the Knoxville legal network, but a connection to the Knoxville community. Thanks to the KBA, I have enjoyed a wide range of activities, including: making sandwiches at the local mosque for the homeless, clearing invasive trees at Ijams Nature Center, surviving a Pure Barre exercise class at Suttree Landing Park, and losing deservedly and consistently at KBA trivia.
|
|
Professionally, the KBA has provided me with invaluable networking experiences, worthwhile CLEs, and meaningful mentoring opportunities. In fact, I learned of two job postings from talking to a fellow KBA member at meetings. One of those positions I secured and worked in for three years, and the other is my current place of employment. If it weren’t for the KBA and meeting that individual through KBA, I absolutely would not have had the same opportunities that I am so grateful for today. Personally, the KBA has helped me form some of my most meaningful friendships. Despite attending law school outside of the state of Tennessee, I was welcomed to the KBA with open arms, friendly faces, and helpful people. It is an honor to serve the community and the profession alongside my fellow KBA members, and I truly look forward to memorable professional and personal experiences to come.
|
I owe a number of professional relationships and friendships to KBA. KBA fosters camaraderie among Knoxville’s bar, which is an important function for newer attorneys who, like me, attended law school in another state. Out of more than 200 in my graduating class, just two of us landed in Knoxville. Bar prep classes at UT were full of unfamiliar faces that already knew each other. I felt like a bit of an outsider. But KBA quickly changed that. I felt a sense of belonging on my first day as a lawyer—at KBA’s annual New Admittee Reception. That sense has grown ever since, thanks in no small part to KBA’s busy event calendar.
|
.jpg)
