James B. Summers

Born: Memphis, Tennessee 1950                                                                       

Bar: Tennessee 1976; Arkansas 2017; admitted to United States Supreme Court in 1999; admitted 6th Circuit; Eastern District, Arkansas; Western, Middle, Eastern District of Tennessee; Northern, Southern District, Mississippi; Eastern District, Michigan 

Education: University of Virginia. University of Tennessee, Knoxville, B. S., Finance, 1973. University of Memphis, J. D., 1976. Delta Theta Phi. Associate Editor, University of Memphis Law Review, 1974-1976. 

Professional: Memphis Bar Association. Former member, Board of Governor and Board of Directors; former Chair, Press Liaison Committee; Speakers Committee; Lawyers Helping Lawyers; former Chair, Law Practice and Technology Section; Tennessee & American Bar Associations. Fellow, Tennessee Bar Foundation. Fellow, Memphis Bar Foundation. Defense Research Institute. Tennessee Defense Lawyers Association. American Society of Legal Advocates. American Law Firm Association: Past Member, Transportation, Products Liability, Labor & Employment Practice Groups. Tennessee Trucking Association. Tennessee Association of General Contractors (Member TN AGC Legislative Committee). Tennessee Association of Construction Counsel (President, 2014; Vice-President, 2013; Secretary, 2007-2012). Certified Federal Court Mediator. Certified Tennessee State Court Mediator. Supreme Court Mediator for Workers' Compensation Appeals. Former Editor, Tennessee Commentary and Report from Counsel. Contributing Author, Technology for Lawyers column, Memphis Lawyer. Certified as a) Civil Pretrial Practice Advocate and b) Civil Trial Specialist by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. Certified in Tier 1 Erosion Control by Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation 2006-present. Named Best Lawyer's Memphis Construction-Litigation "Lawyer of the Year" in 2014, 2019. Selected as Memphis Area Superlawyer in Construction Litigation by Thomson Reuters, 2007-2022. Martindale-Hubbell Top Attorney in Tennessee in Transportation, 2013.  Featured Lawyer, Mid South Superlawyer Magazine Dec., 2012. Top 100 in Tennessee, 2012-2015. Top 50 in Mid-South. Selected for inclusion in Best Lawyers in America in construction litigation, 2007-2022. Featured Lawyer, Memphis Daily News, Sept. 3, 2009. American College of Board Certified Attorneys. Martindale-Hubbell Rating of AV.

Practice: Summers has an extensive background in construction, catastrophic injury defense, transportation and employment. He has an active practice in products liability, general liability issues, and professional negligence of engineers and appraisers. He represents Fortune 500 and other major corporations, including construction, transportation and manufacturing companies in a variety of litigation matters. He represents a major shopping center ownership group in matters of liability, contracts, leasing and landlord tenant disputes. He serves as major case counsel for one of the largest CGL carriers in the United States. Summers has lectured at the University of Tennessee for the Health Sciences on a variety of medical-legal issues, and also lectures on E-discovery and technology from time to time to various groups. 

Community: Board of Directors of Chickasaw Council of Boy Scouts of America, former chair of Risk Management Committee. Rotary Club International, where for 18 years, he has read books to pre-school children at Cummins Elementary. Economics Club of Memphis. Lindenwood Christian Church, former Elder; Past chair, Personnel Committee; Past counsel to the Board of Directors. Summers also provides Pro Bono legal work to the Memphis Area Legal Services and its clients.

 

Published Articles

Ediscovery Gloom and Doom/World FamousTech Seminar/Flat Panel Payback
Feb 2008 MBA Journal

Spam/Manly Man/Dynamic Zombie BotNets/Security Tips
Aug 1997 MBA Journal

Tale of Two Gadgets/USB Irreconcilable Differences/Scanner Insurgency
Apr 2007 MBA Journal

Getting Ready for the Big One/Office Server Backup Options
Jan 2007 MBA Journal

Bluetooth Fashion Woes\Treo Déjà vu All Over Again
Jun 2006 MBA Journal

Insanity and the Trials of Voice Dictation Software - Dragon Naturally Speaking Revisited
Feb 2006 MBA Journal

PDA Phone is Not Better than Sex/Treo 600 Revisited/Teenagers, Golf Clubs, GPS
Oct 2004 MBA Journal

PDA Phone Choices
Aug 2004 MBA Journal

Wireless for Dummies/E-Filing Comes to a Federal Court Near You/TBA Bench Bar Promo
Jul 2004 MBA Journal

Professional and Ethical Traps for Technophobes and Technoweenies
Jan 2004 MBA Journal

Virus Blues/Take This Hard Drive and Shove It/Day Job Requiem/Poltergeists
Nov 2002 MBA Journal

Tax Dollars/Oops Mail/Spam Wars/Bitches from Hell
Jul 2002 MBA Journal

Technological Sex Change Operation/Wireless/Telephone Network/Perusing the Internet/Lying, Cheating Specs
Mar 2002 MBA Journal

Phone Lessons at Verizon/Kyocera Revisited/Heavenly Shining Light
Jan 2002 MBA Journal

Burning Turkeys/MIS Jeapordy/ELMO is Not Just a Muppet/Drooling Cellphones/Viagra Slide Show/Napster Redux
Jul 2001 MBA Journal

Personal Digital Assistants Revisited: What Lawyers Should do When the Office Server Does Not Accept the
Sacrifice of a Runner or Secretary

Oct 2000 MBA Journal

Fantasy Land, Windy City and Other Exciting Developments You Won’t be Learning About, Plus Security
Mar 2000 MBA Journal

Expos, Toys and Tales from the Land of Technoweenies
Jan 2000 MBA Journal

The RoadRunner Saga (Where Was the Coyote When I Needed Him?)
Nov 1999 MBA Journal

Technology for Lawyers - An Actual Review (Plus, Stolen Web Sites)
Sept 1999 MBA Journal

Technology for Lawyers - A Review (Sort of) of Speech Recognition Software
July 1999 MBA Journal

 

Seminars and Presentations

Seminars and Presentations

11/19/21 COVID-19 Federal Vaccine/Mask Mandate and OSHA Emergency Standard Litigation                    Tennessee Association of Construction Counsel Annual Meeting

11/15/12 E-Discovery Update
Tennessee Attorneys Memo Webinar

11/5/11 Contract Specialist Training: Insurance, Indemnity and Contract Issues
API Group, Inc. Contract Training, Memphis

5/3/11 Document Control & Presentation Tips for the Construction Practitioner
Tennessee Association of Construction Counsel Spring Meeting Seminar

11/09/09 Risk Managment for Physicians (You Don't Bring Me Lawsuits Anymore. . . Not!)
Lecture to senior residents in Department of Internal Medicine at University of Tennessee Health Sciences on malpractice and recent legislative changes that might impact their practice.

11/20/08 Advanced Directives: Keeping Congress and the President (But probably not Obama) Out of the Hospital Room
University of Tennessee Center for Health Sciences

10/03/08 Tennessee Law Conference E-Discovery Issues
Law Conference for Tennessee Practitioners

06/11/08 Federal E-discovery: What Attorneys Must Know
Tennessee Attorneys Memo Webinar

04/10/08 TN Defense Lawyers Assn E-Discovery: Be Very Afraid
Lunch Seminar

04/08/08 MBA Legal Tech Seminar
Legal Technology

09/28/07 Tennessee Law Conference Legal Technology Update 2007
Tennessee Attorneys Memo Law Conference

06/18/07 Patient Privacy and Confidentiality
UT Center for Health Sciences

11/20/06 Introduction to Summation for Litigation: Use in Construction Cases
Memphis Bar Association, Memphis, TN

04/14/05 Advanced Directives: Keeping Congress (and the President) Out of the Hospital Room
University of Tennessee College of Medicine, Dept. of Internal Medicine, Memphis, TN

02/21/05 Managing Physician Risk -- How Not to Put a Trial Lawyer's Children Through College
University of Tennessee College of Medicine, Dept. of Internal Medicine, Memphis, TN

02/14/05 Legal Technology Malpractice and Ethical Issues (When Attorney Ignorance is Not Bliss)
Tennessee Bar Assn Ski-CLE, Park City, UT

09/17/04 Specialized Claims Issues for Product Liability Claims
Tyson Foods, Inc. Casualty Claims Symposium, Springdale, AR

10/11/03 Tennessee Defense Lawyers Association Technology Update
TDLA Annual Meeting, Memphis, TN

09/18/03 The Law of Bad Faith in Tennessee
Tyson Foods, Inc. Casualty Claims Symposium, Springdale, AR

03/19/03 Litigation Support for Geezers and Dummies
Memphis Bar Association CLE, Memphis, TN

02/03/03 Dull Edge Technology that Works-Common Sense Guide for Solo and Small Firm Practices
Tennessee Bar Assn, SKI-CLE, Park City, UT

12/09/02 Advanced Directives, Employment Contracts, Doctors as Employees (When is a doc just another working stiff?)
University of Tennessee College of Medicine, Internal Medicine, Memphis, TN

09/30/02 CONFIDENTIALITY AND PRIVILEGE (Can You Really Tell That Sheriff to Take That Subpoena and Shove It?)
University of Tennessee College of Medicine, Internal Medicine, Memphis, TN

07/19/02 Tennessee Personal Lines Adjusting Concepts
MetLife Insurance Companies, Charlotte, NC

04/29/02 Risk Management for Physicians--How to Keep Trial Lawyers Unemployed (Not)
University of Tennessee College of Medicine, Internal Medicine, Memphis, TN

09/27/01 Technology Times Two
Memphis Bar Assn/Legal Administrators/Memphis, TN

08/08/00 Discovery-Swimming with the Sharks
Tyson Foods, Inc., Rogers, AR

07/14/00 What do Lawyers Look for in a Legal Nurse Consultant--A Nurse with Legal Training, or a Paralegal Who Happens to be a Nurse?
American Assn of Legal Nurse Consultants, Memphis, TN

03/09/99 Physician Strategies to Manage Professional Risk
University of Tennessee College of Medicine, Internal Medicine, Memphis, TN

10/23/98 Law and Order: Cases that Really Make the Law
Mid South Workers Compensation Assn, Memphis

01/22/98 Employment Law Issues for Churches and Religious Institutions
National Assn of Church Business Administrators, Memphis

03/27/96 Current Decisions and Issues under Tennessee Workers Compensation Law
Kemper National Insurance Companies, Memphis, TN

01/17/96 Assisting the Lawyer in a Workers Compensation Case
Greater Memphis Legal Assistants, Inc., Memphis, TN

10/31/95 Automobile Policy Defenses and Issues; Arson Claims Handling Techniques; Reservation of Rights Issues; Declination of Coverage Issues
Midland Risk Insurance Company, Memphis, TN

04/18/95 Trends Affecting Tennessee Workers Compensation
Witco Corporation, Memphis, TN