Bredesen fills Court of Appeals vacancy

Figure in earlier dispute over Supreme Court vacancy now ascends to appellate court

Email | Print By Ken Whitehouse

Gov. Phil Bredesen today announced his appointment of Davidson County Chancery Court Chancellor Richard H. Dinkins to fill the vacancy on the Tennessee Court of Appeals, Middle Section.

The vacancy was created by the death of Judge William Bryan Cain in September.

In a statement issued this afternoon, Bredesen said, "Richard Dinkins has developed extensive experience in his career with the Davidson County Chancery Court and in the private sector, and I am confident that he will serve the Tennessee Court of Appeals with honor and integrity."

As reported by NashvillePost.com, the state's Judicial Selection Commission in November nominated Dinkins; Christina Henley Duncan, Attorney/Partner, Rogers and Duncan Law Firm, Decherd, Tenn.; and, Amy V. Hollars, Attorney, Livingston, Tenn.

Dinkins' most recent high-profile role came early in 2007, when Bredesen and the Judicial Selection Commission struggled to appoint a successor to former Justice A.A. Birch. Dinkins was initially nominated as one of the top three candidates for Birch's seat, but withdrew his name as a candidate and inadverdently set off a months-long standoff between the governor and the commission.

A decade ago, Dinkins was a key plaintiff's advocate during the successful 1998 effort by the Metro Nashville Board of Public Education's to earn the recognition of federal courts for having achieved "unitary" status, as a district no longer segregated.

Dinkins had served as Part IV Chancellor since 2003. He earned his J.D. at Vanderbilt University School of Law School in 1977. Earlier, he spent 18 years as an associate at the law firm of the prominent late civil rights advocate, litigator and State Sen. Avon M. Williams Jr. Dinkins was a member of Dodson, Parker, Dinkins and Behm, P.C. from 1999 to 2003. In that role, he was counsel to the Metropolitan Development and Housing Agency and Fisk University.

"It is an honor and a privilege to be appointed by Governor Bredesen to serve the state as a member of the Tennessee Court of Appeals," Dinkins said in the release issued buy the Office of the Governor.

He continued, "I have devoted my career to securing equal justice under the law for all segments of society. It is an honor to follow in the footsteps of my predecessor, Judge Cain, and I look forward to continuing my career in public service in this new role."

Dinkins has received the Freedom Fighter Medal from the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education, and was awarded the William M. Leech Jr. Public Service Award from the Tennessee Bar Association in 2004. He is currently serving on the Board of Directors for the Nashville Bar Association, and is also on the Board of Trustees at First Baptist Capitol Hill Church. Dinkins lives in Nashville and has four children.