Tennessee Supreme Court Set To Review Applicants For New Attorney General
Image Credit: tn.gov
The Tennessee Conservative [By Jason Vaughn] –
With Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery III’s eight-year term set to expire soon, he recently notified the state’s Supreme Court that he will not be seeking an additional term.
Tennessee’s Supreme Court is responsible for appointing the Volunteer State’s chief legal officer and they are set to review applications from six applicants this week.
The applicants are:
Donald Q. Cochran, Jr
D. Cochran, born in St. Louis, Missouri has lived in Tennessee for thirteen years and currently resides in Davidson County.
He received a Juris Doctorate degree from Vanderbilt Law School in 1992 and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Vanderbilt in 1980.
He was appointed by President Donald Trump in 2017 as the U.S. Attorney for Middle Tennessee.
D. Cochran’s redacted application can be viewed HERE.
Jerome Cochran
J. Cochran, born in Saigon, Vietnam has lived in Tennessee his whole “life except for time in law school.”
He received a Juris Doctorate degree from Regent University School of Law (Virginia Beach, VA) in 1999 and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of Tennessee Knoxville in 1995.
Of note, J. Cochran served on the House Judiciary Committee from 2003 – 2006 and previously served as board member and legal advisor for the Abortion Alternatives and Women’s Center (2002-2015).
J. Cochran’s redacted application can be viewed HERE.
David Michael Dunavant
Dunavant was born in Millington, Tennessee and has lived in Tennessee 1970-1992 and 1995 to present.
He received a doctorate of Jurisprudence from the University of Mississippi School of Law in 1995 and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of Tennessee Knoxville in 1992.
He is currently employed as the Chief Investigative Counsel for the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury.
In 2017, he was appointed by President Trump and confirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve as the U.S. Attorney fpr the Western District of Tennessee.
Dunavant’s redacted application can be viewed HERE.
R. Culver Schmid
Schmid was born in Knoxville, Tennessee and has lived in Tennessee for 63 years.
He received a Doctorate of Law degree from the University of Tennessee in 1984 and a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from the University of Virginia in 1981.
He is currently employed at Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, PC.
Schmid’s redacted application can be viewed HERE.
Jonathan Thomas Skrmetti
Skrmetti was born in New London, CT and has lived in Tennessee for 11 years, currently residing in Williamson County.
He received a J.D. from Harvard Law School in 2004 and a B.A. in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from Oxford in 2001 and a B.A. in Philosophy from George Washington University in 1999.
Skrmetti currently serves as the General Counsel to Governor Bill Lee.
Skrmetti’s redacted application can be viewed HERE.
William Edwin “Bill” Young
Young was born in Clarksville, Tennessee except for part of 1984 when his wife and he worked in D.C. and lived in neighboring Virginia.
He received a J.D. from Vanderbilt University and a B.A. in Political Science and History from Vanderbilt in 1977.
Young is currently employed by the Tennessee Bureau of Ethics and Campaign Finance.
Young’s redacted application can be viewed HERE.
Interviews will be held on August 8 and 9 at the Nashville Supreme Court Building. The interviews will be livestreamed to the TNCourts YouTube page HERE.
Under the state constitution, the Tennessee Attorney General and Reporter is appointed by the state Supreme Court and serves an eight-year term. The term for the new Attorney General will begin September 1, 2022.
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As the chief legal officer of the state, the Attorney General and Reporter represents state officers and agencies and manages a staff of approximately 340 employees working in five offices across Tennessee. The Office of the Attorney General represents the State in criminal appeals and defends the State in civil actions in state and federal court. The Office also has the authority to investigate and prosecute civil actions for environmental enforcement, antitrust violations, Medicaid fraud, and consumer fraud.
More information is available at: www.tncourts.gov/attorneygeneral2022
Of note, Slatery was the first Republican to occupy Tennessee’s Attorney General and Reporter position since Reconstruction.
About the Author: Jason Vaughn, Media Coordinator for The Tennessee Conservative ~ Jason previously worked for a legacy publishing company based in Crossville, TN in a variety of roles through his career. Most recently, he served as Deputy Director for their flagship publication. Prior, he was a freelance journalist writing articles that appeared in the Herald Citizen, the Crossville Chronicle and The Oracle among others. He graduated from Tennessee Technological University with a Bachelor’s in English-Journalism, with minors in Broadcast Journalism and History. Contact Jason at news@TennesseeConservativeNews.com
