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“Looking back, you can see clearly the momentum we gained during these years, building upon key clients and cases to add others, expanding
in various industries and practice
areas,” shareholder Dick Krieg said. “By 1988, we also had opened a Sevierville office and grown to more than 25 lawyers. We were well poised
to restructure at the start of the new decade.”
NEW NAME AND FRESH FACES
Building upon the prior growth and success, in January 1990 the firm altered its corporate structure and changed its name to Lewis, King, Krieg & Waldrop, P.C.
The well-respected firm with a new name continued to stay on the cutting edge. In the next decade, it would appoint the first female as managing partner of a large firm in Tennessee, as well as the first African- American female partner of a firm in Knoxville.
“It was an exciting time, especially considering the depth of our bench,” shareholder John King said. “We had built a roster of outstanding attorneys, well known and respected in the industry.”
WINNING COMBINATION
In 2014, a merger to expand statewide made sense, as Lewis King and Thomason Hendrix had complementary strengths: robust defense litigation practices and a roster of seasoned attorneys.
John Thomason, Frank Crawford and Roy Hendrix established the Memphis-based firm in 1967 and grew in much the same way that Lewis King did – by creating a solid foundation of exceptional leadership and expanding steadily.
Lewis King became a leader in defense and commercial work. Thomason Hendrix developed a healthy litigation practice emphasizing the representation of doctors and other medical professionals and entities.
“We combined the best practices from both firms and created a statewide footprint,” Krieg said.
External accolades lend credence to Krieg’s assessment:
• Lewis Thomason’s Nashville and Knoxville offices are members of ALFA International, the oldest legal network of independent law firms. ALFA comprises 145 member firms with just 85 in the United States.
• 26 Lewis Thomason attorneys were selected by their peers for inclusion in the latest edition of The Best Lawyers in America.
• 18 attorneys were voted by their peers as Cityview Magazine’s 2015 Top Attorneys in Knoxville.
CONSTANT AMID CHANGE
While the firm has undergone changes over the years, King noted two things have remained the same – the firm’s competence and client service.
“We are confident that the first step to getting the results you want is to call us,” King said.
Teamwork among the attorneys is a bedrock principle. The result is a firm that affords clients the ability to tap into a wealth of knowledge and expertise while primarily working with one or only a few attorneys.
POISED FOR THE FUTURE
Lewis Thomason is thriving today with 27 attorneys in Nashville, 29 in Knoxville and 33 in Memphis. The firm has developed strengths in a wide variety of practice areas, which continue to expand.
Loy Waldrop, a shareholder whose practice is devoted almost exclusively to the construction industry,
said the firm is further strengthened by the diverse backgrounds of its attorneys and their ability to be conversant in fields outside of law.
“Several of our construction attorneys have engineering or architectural degrees, while other lawyers include former plant managers, members
of state legislatures, real estate
developers and military officers,” Waldrop said. “This saves clients from spending
money just to get us up to speed.”
As the roots of the firm notch 55 years and Lewis Thomason marks its one-year anniversary, King noted one thing will not change: “Our strength is and always has been our people.”
www.lewisthomason.com