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About Vonda M. Laughlin

Vonda M. Laughlin, is an Associate Professor and Director of Bar Studies. She is licensed to practice in Tennessee and is a member of the Tennessee Bar Association and the Jefferson County Bar Association. She received her LL.M. in Insurance Law from the University of Connecticut School of Law, with honors, where she received the LL.M. Prize for exemplifying the law school’s commitment to distinguished scholarship in the field of insurance law and for dedication to serving the community. She was also awarded CALI Excellence for the Future awards in Principles of Insurance and Surety Law. She received her J.D., with highest honors, from the University of Tennessee College of Law, where she was ranked first in her class. There, she received several honors including the Outstanding Graduate Award from the Michie Company, the Hornbook Award for the highest GPA, the Corpus Juris Secundum Award for scholastic performance, American Jurisprudence (now CALI) awards in Constitutional Law I, Criminal Law, Evidence, Jurisprudence, Legal Profession, Products Liability, Sales and Secured Transactions, and Torts II.

Upon graduation from law school, Professor Laughlin served as a judicial clerk to U.S. District Court Judge Thomas G. Hull who at the time was Chief Judge for the Eastern District of Tennessee.

She later practiced with a New York-based firm that is now Milberg LLP and with Butler, Vines, and Babb in Knoxville. She also served as in-house counsel for Permanent General Insurance Company, where she tried cases and handled policy disputes.

In addition to experience teaching in law school, Professor Laughlin taught for a number of years at the undergraduate level and graduate MBA levels where she obtained significant experience in the field of distance education.

Professor Laughlin is a listed general civil and family mediator in Tennessee.

Her articles have been accepted in a number of publications including the Drake Law Review, the Connecticut Insurance Law Journal, the Whittier Journal Child and Family Advocacy, and most recently, the Baylor Law Review. She also published in American Law Reports.

Professor Laughlin believes students have different and varied strengths and abilities, and her goal is to help each student excel and reach his or her chosen goals. “Through the law, lawyers have the opportunity to speak for those who lack the skills to speak for themselves,” she says.

Professor Laughlin lives in Jefferson City and enjoys spending time on Cherokee Lake with her husband, Mike. They enjoy time with their rescue dog, Happy Dog, and their rescue cat, Ms. McGoo. She also enjoys travel, water sports, and bee keeping.

Positions

Present Director of Bar Skills & Associate Professor of Law, Lincoln Memorial University - Duncan School of Law
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Curriculum Vitae



Research Interests


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Honors and Awards

  • University of Connecticut School of Law - LL.M. Prize for exemplifying the law school's commitment to distinguished scholarship in the field of insurance law and for dedication to serving the community.
  • University of Connecticut School of Law - CALI Excellence for the Future awards in Principles of Insurance and also in Surety Law.
  • University of Tennessee College of Law - Outstanding Graduate Award, Michie Company
  • University of Tennessee College of Law - Hornbook Award for Highest Graduating GPA
  • University of Tennessee College of Law - Corpus Juris Secundum Award
  • University of Tennessee College of Law American Jurisprudence (now CALI) Awards in Constitutional Law I, Criminal Law, Evidence, Jurisprudence, Legal Profession, Products Liability, Sales and Secured Transactions, and Torts II.
  • Order of the Coif
  • Selected as a Barrister in the American Inns of Court, Hamilton Burnett Chapter
  • Carson-Newman University - Awarded the Excellence in Teaching and Leadership Award, the highest award available to nontenured faculty ( was later awarded tenure)
  • Carson-Newman University - Awarded the Excellence in Academic Advising Award which was voted on by students on a college-wide basis

Courses

  • Secured Transactioins
  • Insurance Law
  • Contracts

Education

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LLM, with honors, University of Connecticut ‐ School of Law
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JD, with highest honors, University of Tennessee, Knoxville ‐ College of Law
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Contact Information

Lincoln Memorial University
Duncan School of Law
601 W. Summit Hill Dr.
Knoxville, TN 37902
(865) 545-5344

Email:


Recent Works (3)

Articles (7)