NASHVILLE - Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Cornelia A. Clark will be honored next month with the Tennessee Bar Association's prestigious Justice Frank F. Drowota III Award.

Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Cornelia A. Clark

Named in honor of former Tennessee Chief Justice Frank Drowota, the Drowota Award is the TBA's highest award for service to the judiciary and has been given annually for more than a decade.

Clark was chosen for her decades of service to the legal profession in Tennessee, including the implementation of the Access to Justice Commission's first-ever strategic plan in 2010, and creation of the Tennessee Faith and Justice Alliance (TFJA) in 2011. The TFJA aligns volunteer attorneys with faith-based social justice programs to help those in need.

"No one in Tennessee knows more about the Tennessee judicial system than Justice Clark," said Margaret Behm of Nashville's Dodson Parker Behm & Capparella PC. "Her entire professional life has been devoted to the service of others and the promotion of the rule of law."

A native of Franklin, Clark earned her bachelor's degree from Vanderbilt University and a Master of Arts in Teaching from Harvard University. She completed her law degree at Vanderbilt University in 1979. After practicing law for 10 years, she was appointed Circuit Court judge for the 21st Judicial District in 1989. Prior to her appointment to the Supreme Court in 2005, she served as director of the Administrative Office of the Courts for six years.

She will accept the award during the Tennessee Bar Association's Lawyers Luncheon on June 15 at its annual convention in Memphis.

The Drowota Award is given to a judge or judicial branch official of a federal, state or local court in Tennessee who has demonstrated extraordinary devotion and dedication to the improvement of the law, the legal system and the administration of justice as exemplified by the career of former Supreme Court Justice Frank F. Drowota III - the award's first recipient, who died in April. Thanks to a donation from Justice Drowota and a matching gift from the Frist Foundation, the award allows the recipient to direct a gift of $1,000 to the charity of his or her choice.

The Tennessee Bar Association (TBA) is the largest professional association in Tennessee with more than 13,000 members. Founded in 1881, the TBA provides opportunities for continuing legal education, professional development and public service. The TBA is dedication to serving the state's legal community is evidenced by its membership roll, which represents the entire spectrum of legal practice: plaintiff and defense lawyers, corporate counsel, judges, prosecutors, public defenders, government lawyers and legal services attorneys.