From the President

MIKE ABELOW, Publisher WILLIAM T. RAMSEY, Editor-in-Chief CAROLINE SAPP, Managing Editor LAUREN POOLE, Managing Editor ADRIENNE BENNETT CLUFF, Layout/Design/ Production

EDITORIAL COMMITTEE

RAMONA DESALVO TIM ISHII KELLY FREY SUMMER MELTON ROB MARTIN BART PICKETT KATLIN RYAN KRISTIN THOMAS JONATHAN WARDLE

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FROM THE PRESIDENT My Year as President | Mike Abelow

It is hard to believe, but the year has flown by and this is my final chance to address you in writing as your NBA President. It has been a true honor to serve in this capacity –– an honor I would not have enjoyed had you not elected me to the Board over four years ago. For that, I thank you.

I may well have had one of the more unusual years of presidency in the history of the NBA, second perhaps only to my immediate predecessor, Laura Baker, who experienced the jarring interruption of a global pandemic that would forever change our daily lives as we knew them. Laura, at least, had no inkling that her year would be disrupted by COVID, whereas I “came to the nuisance” and had some time to prepare. Through the pandemic, the Christmas Day bombing, flooding, and other unexpected events, the NBA has reacted swiftly and creatively to serve its members and our broader Nashville community.

I quickly came to realize that we would not be returning “back to normal” during my tenure. “Normal” would have to change, and it has. The President’s Reception was held outside mid-year. Law Day will be held in October rather than on actual Law Day in May. We’ve added a second golf tournament and restarted the tennis tournament. We’ve started a trial court report, and are holding a roundtable on space and office needs given the new remote environment. Through it all, the NBA has tried to put your membership to work in ways that foster the legal and broader community.

Looking forward, we recently conducted a survey of our members and other attorneys in town who are not members. Over 500 members responded, and over 381 non-members responded. We were blown away by the number ad quality of responses. We reviewed the survey results in connection with our Board Strategic Planning session. Thank you to those of you who took the time to complete the survey—the data was extremely helpful to the Board as we formulated our plan for the next two years. Our plan recognizes that 80% of what we are doing is going well, but like good Type A, self-critical people we focused on the 20% we can do better.

One adjustment in focus that you should expect is a re-dedication to Bar members practicing in-house, government, and solo practitioners. The entire Bar, including those of us who practice at law firms, is strengthened if we draw more members from all constituencies. As Nashville and its legal community continue to grow, the strength of the Bar is critical to preserving the core of Nashville’s unique legal culture that make it a pleasure (most days!) to practice law here, while adapting to inevitable change. As new firms come to town, as more people work remote, and as more firms move out of the Downtown corridor, the Bar will continue to work creatively to provide ways for our members to connect with each other, to be apprised of the cutting edge legal and practice management developments, and to serve our community. It has been my great honor to serve as your President in making strides along these lines in 20202021. Again, thank you for that privilege. n