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Blount County School Board replaces longtime attorney, approves Lewis Thomason counsel
Summary
The Blount County Board of Education voted to remove its long-serving board attorney Rob Goddard and unanimously approved retaining the Lewis Thomason law firm and attorney Chris McCarty as board counsel.
The Blount County Board of Education voted during its August meeting to replace longtime board attorney Rob Goddard and to retain the Lewis Thomason law firm, naming attorney Chris McCarty as the board’s legal counsel.
Board Chair (presiding officer) told the board that Goddard "has served us very well in Blount County Schools ... for well over two decades," and said the board was seeking "to advance our legal representation with education law." The board then voted to remove Goddard and subsequently voted to hire Lewis Thomason and Chris McCarty; both roll-call votes were recorded as carried.
The board’s packet cited the Lewis Thomason firm’s experience representing 27 Tennessee school districts. Board members noted McCarty’s background: the packet and discussion state he previously taught in a school, later earned a law degree and now teaches education law at the University of Tennessee. Board members said those credentials were a factor in selecting the firm.
The board also said it expects to continue limited future business with Rob Goddard and his firm for ongoing legal matters even after the change in primary counsel.
Actions recorded at the meeting included a motion to replace Rob Goddard as board attorney and a motion to retain Lewis Thomason (attorney Chris McCarty) as the board’s counsel; both motions passed by roll call.
The board did not provide further contractual details in the meeting materials about term length, fee schedule, or effective start date for the new firm during the public portion of the meeting.
