PFPH-LAW.COM - Key Persons

Job Titles:

• Admin
• Partner, 2006 / Location: Knoxville, TN

Mr. Priest is a graduate of The University of Tennessee (B.S. Finance, summa cum laude, 1995) and The University of Tennessee College of Law (J.D., magna cum laude, 1999). Mr. Priest was admitted to the Tennessee Bar in 1999 and is admitted to practice before the United States District Courts for the Eastern, Middle, and Western Districts of Tennessee. He is a member of the Order of the Coif, Knoxville Bar Association, Tennessee Bar Association, Tennessee Association for Justice, American Association for Justice, and the Hamilton Burnett American Inn of Court. Mr. Priest has been an adjunct professor in the Advocacy Program at The University of Tennessee College of Law since 2005, and he is also a member of the Advisory Board to The University of Tennessee College of Law's Advocacy Clinic. Mr. Priest has been recognized by his peer Attorneys and Judges with the AV rating, which is the highest rating bestowed by Martindale-Hubbell upon only a select few licensed attorneys. He has also been regularly recognized for many years by Knoxville area attorneys and judges as one of Knoxville's Top Attorneys in City View magazine's polls. Further, Mr. Priest was named by his peers to the Mid-South Super Lawyers Rising Stars list for 2012, and he has been named a Mid-South Super Lawyer since 2013. Mr. Priest's practice has an emphasis on the courtroom and litigation, primarily representing plaintiffs in cases involving personal injury, defective products, and wrongful death cases. Mr. Priest also practices extensively in the area of family law and domestic relations. Mr. Priest participates frequently in forms of alternative dispute resolution, including both mediation and arbitration. Mr. Priest is also a Rule 31 Listed Mediator by the Tennessee Supreme Court, and he regularly serves as a mediator for other attorneys and litigants as well. Mr. Priest's practice is based in Knox County, but he regularly handles cases throughout East Tennessee and has represented many clients from other parts of the state and from states other than Tennessee. Mr. Priest is a frequent speaker and lecturer to his peers in continuing education programs, having been a speaker for the Knoxville Bar Association, the National Business Institute, and other presenters in the fields of personal injury law and family law. Mr. Priest has two daughters, Kate and Annie, and a golden retriever named Lucy. When not practicing law, Mr. Priest enjoys coaching his daughters in youth sports, snow skiing, going to the lake, and playing golf. He is also an instrument rated private pilot who enjoys flying his Beechcraft Bonanza, both in support of his law practice and for pleasure. Practice Areas Courtroom and Litigation

Job Titles:

• Admin
• Partner since 2007 / Location: Knoxville, TN

Mr. Gillman joined the firm in 2003, became an associate in 2005, and became a partner of the firm in 2017. Mr. Gillman was born in Alexandria, Virginia and became a Knoxville resident at a very young age. He is a graduate of The University of Tennessee (B.A. Political Science, 2002, Summa Cum Laude) and The University of Tennessee College of Law (J.D., 2005, Cum Laude) where he concentrated in the school's Advocacy and Dispute Resolution program. Mr. Gillman was admitted to the Tennessee Bar in 2005 and has also been admitted to practice before the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee. He is a member of the Knoxville Bar Association and a member of the Tennessee Bar Association. In the community, Mr. Gillman served as instructor for the Farragut High School Mock Trial team between 2008 and 2012 and served for many years as an advisor to the Career and Technical Services Department for Lenoir City High School which has a legal concentration. Mr. Gillman has also contributed to the Knoxville Bar Association magazine "Dicta" and has taught numerous attorney Continuing Legal Education seminars in East Tennessee ranging from topics such as "Advanced Personal Injury" to "Legal Ethics" to "Probate Practice." Mr. Gillman was proud to be invited twice to be a speaker for the annual personal injury seminar in Nashville for the Tennessee Attorneys Memo, a prestigious forum in Tennessee law. Mr. Gillman has also contributed as a guest legal expert on WBIR 10 News Weekend on Saturday mornings and has been a commentator on Newstalk 98.7. Mr. Gillman was proud to be selected in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020 to the mid-south Super Lawyers Rising Stars for SuperLawyers magazine, which is peer nominated. He has been a named in City View Magazine as a Top Attorney in Knoxville in 2020 (Family Law and Consumer Protection), 2021 (Personal Injury Motorcycle Injury) and 2022 (Estate Planning/Trusts, Will/Probate, and Personal Injury-Motorcycle Injury). The voting for these awards is limited to peer attorneys in the Knoxville area. Mr. Gillman's areas of practice include representing individuals in damages cases involving personal injury, family law and domestic relations, preparation of wills and probate and estate litigation and consumer protection. In addition to these general practice areas, Mr. Gillman has extensive experience in assisting clients with detainer and ejectment actions, encroachment and property disputes, and helping small business owners establish their existence, drafting and interpreting contracts, and formulating internal governing documents, partnership agreements, leases, and other documentation necessary to conduct business on a daily basis with emphasis on individual need. Mr. Gillman has assisted numerous individuals and small businesses against insurance companies in obtaining successful results in fire and theft loss claims and has represented numerous clients in litigation under the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act. He has settled multiple $1,000,000.00 cases for clients in the field of personal injury, obtained a verdict in excess of $5,000,000.00 in a wrongful death case against a drunk driver and has been representative counsel in over $37,000,000.00 worth of business acquisition. Mr. Gillman represents a number of locally owned businesses and individuals in all forms of litigation and representation in East Tennessee. Mr. Gillman is married to the former Katie Thompson of Knoxville, Tennessee and makes his home in Knoxville with Katie and their daughter, where he has lived the majority of his life. Practice Areas Personal Injury Mr. Gillman's areas of practice include representing individuals in damages cases involving personal injury, family law and domestic relations, preparation of wills and probate and estate litigation and consumer protection. In addition to general practice areas…

Job Titles:

• American Inn of Court, Master of the Bench Emeritus
• American Inn of Court, Member

Job Titles:

• Admin
• Adjunct Associate Professor of Law, University of Tennessee College of Law

Mr. Harber has served as an Adjunct Associate Professor of Law, University of Tennessee College of Law, where he taught trial practice (1992-1996). Mr. Harber is a certified state and federal mediator as well as a board certified civil trial specialist by the National Board of Trial Advocacy and the Tennessee Commission of Continuing Legal Education. Mr. Harber's practice focuses on civil litigation including personal injury, medical malpractice, worker's compensation, civil rights, family law, and civil mediation.

Mr. Coffey's practice has an emphasis on litigation in the areas of personal injury, wrongful death, and medical malpractice. Mr. Coffey also represents citizens accused of criminal offenses in state and federal courts.

Job Titles:

• Admin

Mark Floyd is a graduate of The University of Tennessee (B.S. Business Administration, 1981) and The University of Tennessee College of Law (J.D., 1985). Mr. Floyd was admitted to the Tennessee Bar in 1985 and has also been admitted to practice before the United States District Court for the Eastern and Middle Districts of Tennessee and the United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit. He is a member of the Knoxville Bar Association, Tennessee Bar Association, Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association, and American Association for Justice. He has served on the Executive Committee of the Knoxville Bar Association Barristers and as a Barrister with the Hamilton Burnett American Inn of Court. Mr. Floyd taught trial practice classes at The University of Tennessee College of Law and Continuing Legal Education Courses related to trial practice from the perspective of plaintiff's counsel. Mr. Floyd's practice has an emphasis on jury trial litigation representing plaintiffs in damage cases involving personal injury, medical malpractice, professional negligence, and defective products. Although Mr. Floyd's practice is located in Knoxville, he frequently handles cases throughout Tennessee and has represented numerous clients from outside the State of Tennessee. He is married to the former Sheila Wilmoth, a registered nurse. Practice Areas Personal Injury

Job Titles:

• Member of the Tennessee Bar Association

Mikaela M. Smith was born in Southern California, spending her formative years in California, Texas, and Virginia. Mikaela moved to Tennessee to attend East Tennessee State University where she graduated in 2016, with a degree in Criminal Justice and Criminology. During her tenure at ETSU Mikaela received Dean's List recognition and served on the Executive Board of the Sigma Kappa sorority as Vice President. Mikaela earned her Juris Doctorate degree from Lincoln Memorial Duncan School of Law in 2019. During her time at Duncan School of Law she was a member of the Immigration Law Society where she served as treasurer. Mikaela also completed an internship with the Office of Chief Counsel for the United States Customs and Border Protection in Washington D.C. In 2019, Mikaela was admitted to the Tennessee Bar and began practicing law in Greenville, TN with the Law firm Foster and Potter P.C., and in 2020, Mikaela moved to Knoxville and became the lead attorney in the Knoxville office of Foster and Potter, P.C. focusing on family law. Ms. Smith's practice is based in Knoxville, but she has represented clients throughout East Tennessee. She works at the firm in the areas of family law, estate law and general litigation. Mikaela is currently a Member of the Tennessee Bar Association including the TBA's Adoption Law section, Juvenile and Children's Law Section and Family Law Section, and the Knoxville Bar Association.

Job Titles:

• Admin
• Founding Partner
• Founding Partner / Location: Knoxville, TN
• Partner since 2006 / Location: Knoxville, TN

Robert E. Pryor, Sr. was admitted to the Tennessee bar in 1969. He is a graduate of The University of Tennessee (B.S.) and The University of Tennessee College of Law (J.D., 1969). He is a member of the Knoxville, Tennessee, and American Bar Associations; the American Association of Justice; the Tennessee Association for Justice; American Board of Trial Advocates (Advocate); Hamilton Burnett American Inn of Court (Master of the Bench Emeritus); and the Society of Law and Medicine. Mr. Pryor is a founding partner of the firm and has practiced as a trial litigator in civil matters since his admission to the bar in 1969. Because of his regional and national reputation as a trial attorney, Mr. Pryor has represented clients in the courts of many other states. Because he believes that the mark of a true professional is the willingness to give back to the profession by teaching others, he has been an Instructor in Law and an Adjunct Professor of Law most of his professional career. He served as a lecturer on law in the College of Business of The University of Tennessee from 1971 to 1974 and has served since 1978 as an Adjunct Professor of Law and lecturer at The University of Tennessee College of Law. He has served as a faculty member of the National Institute for Trial Advocacy, the Case Western School of Law Litigation Forum, and the Tennessee College of Advocacy. Mr. Pryor is a frequent presenter and lecturer on trial practice topics on educational programs for lawyers sponsored by the American Trial Lawyers Association, the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association, the Tennessee Bar Association, the Knoxville Bar Association, the American Board of Trial Advocates, the National Practice Institute, the Tennessee Young Lawyers Conference, the Federal Practice Institute, the Georgia Bar Association, and the National Business Institute. In 1977, Mr. Pryor served as President of the Tennessee Young Lawyers Conference and was a member of the Board of Governors of the Tennessee Bar Association from1977-78. He has served as an officer of the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association and as a member of its Board of Governors intermittently since 1974. He was elected to the Tennessee Appellate Court Nominating Commission and served from 1991-94 and has been a member of The University of Tennessee College of Law Advisory Board and Dean's Circle since 1995. Mr. Pryor has vast experience in representing injured people in various types of litigation and much of his practice has been devoted to the representation of the catastrophically injured client. He is married to the former Norma Lee Hammer, and they have three children, Robert E. Pryor, Jr. (a partner with the firm), John P. Pryor, and Amy Pryor of Knoxville. They have five grandchildren. Practice Areas Personal Injury Mr. Pryor is a graduate of The University of Tennessee (B.S. Finance, 1991) and The University of Tennessee College of Law (J.D., 1995). Mr. Pryor is a member of the Knoxville Bar Association, Tennessee Bar Association, and the American Bar Association. He was admitted to practice in Tennessee in 1995 and subsequently admitted in the United States District Courts for the Eastern and Middle Districts of Tennessee. Mr. Pryor is admitted to practice in the United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit. He has served on the Executive Committee of the Knoxville Barristers, which is the young lawyers division of the Knoxville Bar Association and as a Barrister of the Hamilton Burnett American Inn of Court. He has served as co-chair for the People's Law School and continues to engage in public speaking and education on legal issues. He serves as an adjunct professor of law at The University of Tennessee College of Law, teaching Trial Practice. In 2003, Mr. Pryor was awarded the Knoxville Bar Association President's Award in recognition of his service to the organization. Mr. Pryor's practice has an emphasis on litigation in the areas of personal injury, wrongful death, defective products, and medical malpractice and professional negligence. He has represented clients from Tennessee and other jurisdictions and obtained successful results by trial and mediation. Mr. Pryor has trial experience in State Circuit, Chancery, and Sessions Courts and Federal District Court. Mr. Pryor is a native Knoxvillian, and married to the former Nancy Ackermann. He and Nancy have four children. Practice Areas Personal Injury

Job Titles:

• Lawyers Association, Officer

Job Titles:

• President

Job Titles:

• Admin
• Retired from Pryor, Priest, & Harber in January 2023.
• Retired Partner

Mr. Priest is a native of Huntingdon, Tennessee, and a graduate of The University of Tennessee (B.S., Cum Laude, 1972) and The University College of Law (J.D., Valedictorian, 1975). Mr. Priest was admitted to the Bar in 1976 and admitted before the United States District Courts for the Eastern District of Tennessee. He is a member of the Order of the Coif and the Knoxville and Tennessee Bar Associations and the Tennessee and American Trial Lawyers Associations. Mr. Priest's peer attorneys and judges have bestowed upon him the AV rating, which is the highest rating through Martindale-Hubbel and is awarded to only a select few attorneys. He has been selected as one of Knoxville's top attorneys in the area of personal injury litigation by City View. Mr. Priest's practiced had an emphasis on the courtroom and litigation, primarily representing persons injured in vehicular crashes, by defective products, and including wrongful death cases. Mr. Priest had served as a Rule 31 mediator listed by the Tennessee Supreme Court. Mr. Priest's practice is based in Knox County, Tennessee, but he regularly handled cases throughout East Tennessee and occasionally in Middle and West Tennessee, as well as surrounding states. Mr. Priest is married to the former Betsy Minnis. His son, Adam, is a partner in the firm, and his daughter, Laura, is an acute care nurse practitioner in a cardiology group in Suawnee, Georgia. When not practicing law, Mr. Priest has served for 22 years as the color analyst on The University of Tennessee football radio broadcasts. He much enjoys watching his four grandchildren participate in school and travel sports. Practice Areas: Personal Injury PRACTICE AREAS Personal Injury/Wrongful Death Mr. Priest's practice has an emphasis on the courtroom and litigation, primarily representing persons injured in vehicular crashes, by defective products, and including wrongful death cases.