The Editorial Staff of the Nashville PRIDE is excited to introduce Rachel Thomas, attorney, who will answer readers’ legal questions in her weekly column, ‘Ask a Lawyer.’ Rachel is a native Tennessean, who was raised in a family of attorneys. She watched her dad, who is both an attorney and ordained Southern Baptist minister, preach equality under the law from the pulpit as well as in his role as Knoxville Legal Aid’s Litigation Director. Her uncle, a long-time attorney, is now a judge on one of Tennessee’s Courts of Appeal.
Rachel Thomas began her legal career in the Nashville District Attorney’s Office, where she had sole responsibility for handling approximately 16,000 criminal cases. During her five years in the District Attorney’s Office, Rachel managed a large case load, including murder, rape, domestic violence, drug conspiracy, violent robbery, kidnapping, and carjacking. She served as lead counsel in many jury and non-jury trials. She also met and married her husband, a Metro Nashville Police Officer.
Rachel’s civil litigation background is also diverse. She has worked on securities fraud class action lawsuits in which her client had been sued for several hundred million dollars. Rachel has worked on other state and federal commercial disputes, including contract disputes involving physician practice agreements, non-compete, non-solicitation, and non-disparagement employment agreements, joint venture agreements involving the corrections system and technology industry, and music industry disputes involving concert tours and song production.
Rachel has garnered public recognition for her legal work. In 2014, she was named a Nashville Business Journal ‘Forty Under Forty’ award recipient and a ‘Super Lawyers’ Mid-South Rising Star. Rachel serves as a board member of the Tennessee Supreme Court Historical Society and is the past Co-Chair of the Nashville Bar Association’s Criminal Law & Criminal Justice Committee.
As she witnessed her father’s model early on, Rachel is dedicated to helping all Nashvillians achieve equality under the law. In addition to advocating for clients in the courtroom, she spends a considerable amount of time volunteering, serving on boards, and participating in various organizations. She is proudest of having founded and organized the North Nashville Legal Clinic with Rev. Enoch Fuzz, held at Corinthian Missionary Baptist Church (the next clinic, offering free legal advice on a Saturday morning, will be held in Sept., exact date to be determined).
Rachel graduated cum laude from the University of Tennessee College of Law in 2008, where she wrote for the Transactions business journal and served as head research assistant to a constitutional law professor. Prior to attending law school, she worked on the Tennessee Speaker of the House’s legislative staff for two legislative sessions. Rachel received her undergraduate degree in 2003 from the University of Virginia.Rachel owns and runs the Law Office of Rachel Thomas PLC, located at 114 30th Avenue South, where she focuses on representing persons accused of committing crimes as well as those dealing with family law issues (divorce or child support/custody). You can find additional legal information on Rachel’s website’s News/Blog page at www.rachelthomaslaw. com. Her contact information is rachelthomas@rachel-thomas@rachelthomaslaw.com or 615-645-9596.
