When Judge Nicholas Whittenburg was a practicing lawyer, he’d spend time after a case was over contemplating what he should have done differently. He’s doing the same thing now, at the end of his first week as the newest bankruptcy judge for the Eastern District of Tennessee.
One word comes to Whittenburg’s mind on this quiet Friday afternoon at the Federal Courthouse on East 11th Street: overwhelming.
“My predecessor, Judge [John C.] Cook, was on the bench for 28 years,” he says. “I’m learning how inefficient I am compared to him. It took me a week to do what he could accomplish in a matter of hours. He had a finely tuned legal mind.”
Whittenburg said he didn’t appreciate the sheer number of matters that come before a federal bankruptcy court, even though he devoted 25 years of practice to debtor-creditor issues.
“When you’re an attorney, you’re the advocate for your client,” he says. “But as a judge, you’re no longer an advocate; you’re administering justice, and all of the parties are before you. And you’re handling hundreds of cases a week, which is far more than an attorney handles.”
Whittenburg was challenged not only by the size of his docket the week of June 8 but also by the range of matters that came before him. “In the course of handling debtor-creditor issues almost exclusively, I learned a lot of the substantive knowledge of bankruptcy law,” he says. “But in the limited amount of time I’ve been on the bench. I’ve discovered just how little I know. In private practice, I tended to have certain clients who had similar problems again and again. But as a judge in bankruptcy court, all of the problems come to me. So, I’m learning about things I’ve never dealt with, or refreshing my memory on things I haven’t dealt with in a long time.”
Although feeling snowed under after his first week on the bench, Whittenburg knows he’s not alone. He says the other judges and the court staff have made themselves freely available to him, and are helping to ease his transition from private practice to the judiciary. “I will continue to rely on their experience and knowledge as I move into this different phase in my life,” Whittenburg says.
Whittenburg did not move quickly and thoughtlessly into his new role. Rather, he and his wife, Saun, “wrung their hands” over the decision.
“I went to law school with the notion that I wanted to help people,” he says. “I was going to practice criminal law or Constitutional law, and help indigent people. I was idealistic from the get-go.”
Following his graduation from Emory University School of Law, Whittenburg began practicing bankruptcy law at Miller & Martin. Although his practice was diverse, and involved both litigation and transactional work, there was a debtor-creditor component to each matter he handled.
In 2001, Whittenburg accepted the position of assistant general counsel with AmSouth Bank (now Regions Bank). In 2004, he rejoined Miller & Martin as a Member, and focused his practice on representing a wide array of clients both regionally and throughout the U.S. on matters including business bankruptcy, insolvency issues, commercial litigation, enforcement actions, and financial restructuring.
Although Whittenburg never practiced criminal or Constitutional law, he did become a respected and sought after bankruptcy attorney, and represented many wealthy clients and companies. While he took pride in zealously representing these parties, his work on smaller matters gave him the opportunity to exercise the idealism that had guided him to the law.
“My most rewarding clients were those who had less in controversy than the multimillion dollar matter going on at some company, but their problem was a really big issue to them,” he says.
When Judge Cook announced his retirement in 2014, Whittenburg wrestled with whether or not to apply for the position. “I never saw myself as the judge. I just wanted to be the lawyer,” he says. “But my children had grown up, and my life was changing, so I was looking for a new challenge.”
Whittenburg was also once again attracted to the idea of helping people. “I was drawn to this position because I think I can do a lot of good as a judge,” he says.
He’s not the only one who feels this way. Miller & Martin chairman Jim Haley called Whittenburg’s appointment a proud moment for the new judge and the law firm to which he had devoted 25 years of his career. “This is representative of the character, ability, and impartiality required of each individual designated to serve in a federal judiciary position,” Haley said. “He is a valued part of the Miller & Martin family, and we wish him the best in his new role.”
Whittenburg is also a cherished husband and father. When he isn’t hearing cases, the judge spends most of his leisure time with his family, which includes his wife of 27 years, two children, and a pair of grandchildren “We’re fairly outdoorsy people,” he says. “We like to get on the water, and now that we’re getting older, we’re trying to travel more than we have.”
Whittenburg is also a member of the Chattanooga and Federal Bar Associations.
At 50, Whittenburg has at least 14 years of service on the bench ahead of him, and more if the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals reappoints him. While his first week might have been overwhelming, he says he’s ready for the challenges that lie ahead.
“I was blessed to have worked with a regional law firm that had good clients with challenging legal issues, which gave me the opportunity to practice not only in the Eastern District of Tennessee but throughout the country,” he says. “That exposed me to really good lawyers on the other side, which helped me improve my skills as a lawyer, all of which I hope will make me a good judge.”
Whittenburg’s “character, ability, and impartiality” have already made him the judge he hopes to be. The efficiency for which he’s striving will fall into place in time, and someday, his successor will say, “I’m learning how inefficient I am compared to Judge Whittenburg. It took me a week to do what he could accomplish in a matter of hours. He had a finely tuned legal mind.”
By David Laprad
When Judge Nicholas Whittenburg was a practicing lawyer, he’d spend time after a case was over contemplating what he should have done differently. He’s doing the same thing now, at the end of his first week as the newest bankruptcy judge for the Eastern District of Tennessee.
One word comes to Whittenburg’s mind on this quiet Friday afternoon at the Federal Courthouse on East 11th Street: overwhelming.
“My predecessor, Judge [John C.] Cook, was on the bench for 28 years,” he says. “I’m learning how inefficient I am compared to him. It took me a week to do what he could accomplish in a matter of hours. He had a finely tuned legal mind.”
Whittenburg said he didn’t appreciate the sheer number of matters that come before a federal bankruptcy court, even though he devoted 25 years of practice to debtor-creditor issues.
“When you’re an attorney, you’re the advocate for your client,” he says. “But as a judge, you’re no longer an advocate; you’re administering justice, and all of the parties are before you. And you’re handling hundreds of cases a week, which is far more than an attorney handles.”
Whittenburg was challenged not only by the size of his docket the week of June 8 but also by the range of matters that came before him. “In the course of handling debtor-creditor issues almost exclusively, I learned a lot of the substantive knowledge of bankruptcy law,” he says. “But in the limited amount of time I’ve been on the bench. I’ve discovered just how little I know. In private practice, I tended to have certain clients who had similar problems again and again. But as a judge in bankruptcy court, all of the problems come to me. So, I’m learning about things I’ve never dealt with, or refreshing my memory on things I haven’t dealt with in a long time.”
Although feeling snowed under after his first week on the bench, Whittenburg knows he’s not alone. He says the other judges and the court staff have made themselves freely available to him, and are helping to ease his transition from private practice to the judiciary. “I will continue to rely on their experience and knowledge as I move into this different phase in my life,” Whittenburg says.
Whittenburg did not move quickly and thoughtlessly into his new role. Rather, he and his wife, Saun, “wrung their hands” over the decision.
“I went to law school with the notion that I wanted to help people,” he says. “I was going to practice criminal law or Constitutional law, and help indigent people. I was idealistic from the get-go.”
Following his graduation from Emory University School of Law, Whittenburg began practicing bankruptcy law at Miller & Martin. Although his practice was diverse, and involved both litigation and transactional work, there was a debtor-creditor component to each matter he handled.
In 2001, Whittenburg accepted the position of assistant general counsel with AmSouth Bank (now Regions Bank). In 2004, he rejoined Miller & Martin as a Member, and focused his practice on representing a wide array of clients both regionally and throughout the U.S. on matters including business bankruptcy, insolvency issues, commercial litigation, enforcement actions, and financial restructuring.
Although Whittenburg never practiced criminal or Constitutional law, he did become a respected and sought after bankruptcy attorney, and represented many wealthy clients and companies. While he took pride in zealously representing these parties, his work on smaller matters gave him the opportunity to exercise the idealism that had guided him to the law.
“My most rewarding clients were those who had less in controversy than the multimillion dollar matter going on at some company, but their problem was a really big issue to them,” he says.
When Judge Cook announced his retirement in 2014, Whittenburg wrestled with whether or not to apply for the position. “I never saw myself as the judge. I just wanted to be the lawyer,” he says. “But my children had grown up, and my life was changing, so I was looking for a new challenge.”
Whittenburg was also once again attracted to the idea of helping people. “I was drawn to this position because I think I can do a lot of good as a judge,” he says.
He’s not the only one who feels this way. Miller & Martin chairman Jim Haley called Whittenburg’s appointment a proud moment for the new judge and the law firm to which he had devoted 25 years of his career. “This is representative of the character, ability, and impartiality required of each individual designated to serve in a federal judiciary position,” Haley said. “He is a valued part of the Miller & Martin family, and we wish him the best in his new role.”
Whittenburg is also a cherished husband and father. When he isn’t hearing cases, the judge spends most of his leisure time with his family, which includes his wife of 27 years, two children, and a pair of grandchildren “We’re fairly outdoorsy people,” he says. “We like to get on the water, and now that we’re getting older, we’re trying to travel more than we have.”
Whittenburg is also a member of the Chattanooga and Federal Bar Associations.
At 50, Whittenburg has at least 14 years of service on the bench ahead of him, and more if the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals reappoints him. While his first week might have been overwhelming, he says he’s ready for the challenges that lie ahead.
“I was blessed to have worked with a regional law firm that had good clients with challenging legal issues, which gave me the opportunity to practice not only in the Eastern District of Tennessee but throughout the country,” he says. “That exposed me to really good lawyers on the other side, which helped me improve my skills as a lawyer, all of which I hope will make me a good judge.”
Whittenburg’s “character, ability, and impartiality” have already made him the judge he hopes to be. The efficiency for which he’s striving will fall into place in time, and someday, his successor will say, “I’m learning how inefficient I am compared to Judge Whittenburg. It took me a week to do what he could accomplish in a matter of hours. He had a finely tuned legal mind.” v