Following the long-standing tradition of honoring local retired judges by having their portraits prepared and hung in the courthouse in which they presided, the Frank Brown Portrait Committee has gathered together to raise the funds necessary to honor the retired chancellor in the same manner.
Since undertaking the project, the committee has found that the cost to accomplish this honor is not inconsiderable, even though it runs in the lower range for portraits. Therefore, it is soliciting individual and firm contributions to help pay for the expenses involved, which include the artist’s fee, travel expenses to Chattanooga for the prep work and sitting, the cost of the frame, and a small sum for the reception at the unveiling ceremony.
“Given his 16 years of public service on the bench and his many other contributions to the work of the bar throughout his legal career, providing this honor for Frank seems no less important [than it did for past judges],” committee members Fielding H. Atchley, Jr., and Linda J. Norwood wrote in a letter sent to potential donors.
All donations to fund the portrait and reception are fully tax deductible. Checks should be made payable to the Tennessee Judicial Conference Foundation and contain the notation “Chancellor Frank Brown” in the memo line. The Foundation’s address is: Tennessee Judicial Conference Foundation / 629 Woodland St. / Nashville, TN 37206.
W. Frank Brown, III served as chancellor of the 11th Judicial District between Sept. 1, 1998 and Aug. 31, 2014. He graduated from Randolph-Macon College in 1967 with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. Brown received his Juris Doctor from Tulane University on June 1, 1970. On June 2, 1970, he began working with the Witt Gaither law firm in Chattanooga. He was admitted to the bar on Aug. 28, 1970.
Brown had been a solo practitioner for almost 20 years when he was elected to the bench, with his primary interest being conservatorship cases. Brown worked with Bill Barrick and numerous other persons on an ad hoc Tennessee Bar Association committee in 2012 dealing with conservatorships. This committee suggested numerous changes to the conservatorship laws.
Brown received several awards throughout his career, including the Chattanooga Bar Association (CBA)’s Harry Weill Zealous Practice of Law Award, the Conservatorship Association of Tennessee’s Outstanding Service Award, and the Public Guardian program’s Flame Award, to name a few.
Brown is a member of the CBA, a Fellow with the Chattanooga Bar Foundation, and a member of the Brock-Cooper Inns of Court. He and his wife, Marian, have four children and nine grandchildren. Brown serves as a member of the school board at Silverdale Baptist Academy.
“We thank you for ... helping us to complete this endeavor,” Atchley and Norwood wrote.