FIRM APRIL SAWHILL - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Director
- Director at the Firm
- Elected As Director
Grant, Konvalinka & Harrison is please to announce the election of Ms. Sawhill as a Director at the Firm
Ariel Resnick grew up in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She graduated from Girls Preparatory School in 2011 and attended the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, where she received a B.A. in Philosophy and graduated cum laude in 2016. Ariel received her Juris Doctor and graduated cum laude from the University of Tennessee College of Law in 2020. While in law school, Ariel was an editor for the Tennessee Law Review and the Tennessee Journal for Race, Gender, and Social Justice. Ariel was a student-attorney in the Domestic Violence Clinic and received an award of excellence in Trial Practice.
Prior to joining the firm, Ariel clerked for the Honorable Pamela A. Fleenor and the Honorable Jeffrey M. Atherton at the Hamilton County Chancery Court. Ariel was admitted to the Tennessee Bar in January 2021. She is a member of the Tennessee Bar Association, Chattanooga Bar Association, and the Young Lawyers Division. Ariel's areas of practice will include Civil Litigation and Family Law, primarily focusing on Family Law.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Contributor
- Head of GKH 's Immigration Practice Group
Brittany Faith is head of GKH's Immigration Practice Group. Ms. Faith has extensive experience serving clients throughout the world with their immigration needs, including employment-based petitions, family-based immigration petitions, and humanitarian relief. She is committed to providing personalized, cost-effective immigration services for her clients around the world and across the U.S.
Ms. Faith is a regular contributor and speaker on immigration for organizations such as the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), the American Bar Association (ABA), Fair Immigration Reform Movement (FIRM), Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC), Immigrant Legal Resource Center, the Tennessee Bar Association (TBA), the AILA Midsouth Chapter, as well as numerous local bar associations, non-profits, and media outlets.
Ms. Faith is an Oak Ridge, Tennessee native. She attended Pennsylvania State University where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree. She then progressed to the University of Tennessee College of Law, where she was Director of Tennessee's Pro Bono Program; Treasurer of Law Women; ABA Representative for the Student Bar Association; and AILA Midsouth Law School Liaison. Before coming to GKH, Ms. Faith worked at several immigration non-profits and created the College of Law's U Visa Alternative Spring Break Program.
In addition to her role at GKH, Ms. Faith serves her community as a leader through her involvement in bar associations. She currently serves as an Elected Director of the AILA National Board of Governors as well as the Past Chair of the AILA Midsouth Chapter, which constitutes immigration attorneys in Tennessee, Kentucky, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana. As a Chapter Chair, she serves on the AILA Board of Governors. She also currently serves on AILA's Well-Being and Annual Conference Committees and as the Chapter Liaison to the Department of State.
Ms. Faith also believes in the importance of bar involvement for young lawyers and has served in many leadership roles as part of the Young Lawyers Division (YLD). Ms. Faith was recently elected to serve as President of the TBA YLD. She is on the ABA YLD council, currently serving as its Fit2Practice Director. She served as President of the Chattanooga Bar YLD in 2017. She is especially proud that she was part of the reinvigoration of SETLAW and served as President in 2015. She was also honored to be selected to serve on the Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts Immigration Task Force. At the local, state, and national level, Ms. Faith improves her community and profession through consistent leadership and service to others.
Ms. Faith's dedication and skill has earned her numerous accolades. In 2021, she received the AILA Joseph Minsky Young Lawyer for her outstanding contributions made as a young lawyer in the field of immigration and nationality law. In 2019, she was one of only 40 attorneys in the country to be selected for the "ABA on the Rise- Top 40 Young Lawyers" award. In 2022, she received the TBA YLD's President's Award for her service to the division. In 2017, she was awarded the TBA YLD President's Recognition award. In 2020, Ms. Faith was selected for membership in the Fellows of the American Bar Foundation, in which membership is limited to one third of one percent of all lawyers in America. She has been nominated to be a Super Lawyer Rising Star since 2017, and she maintains a 10.0 Superb Rating from Avvo. She was also awarded the AILA Pro Bono Hero award in 2014.
Ms. Faith is also very active in Chattanooga and around the South East. She served as Board Chair for La Paz of Chattanooga in 2020 and 2021. In addition, Ms. Faith volunteers for various organizations such as TIRRC, Midsouth Immigration Advocates, Justice for Our Neighbors, the University of Tennessee College of Law, etc. She was previously a member of the Foreign Ministry of Mexico's PALE program, which provides legal advice and services to Mexican nationals residing in the U.S.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Member of the Chattanooga
Chuck Fisher is a native of Covington, Tennessee. He joined the firm in 1997 after receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and a J.D. degree from the Cumberland School of Law of Samford University, where he was a member of the Cumberland Law Review. Chuck focuses his practice on business organizations, debt and equity financing, business transactions, contracts, commercial lending and real estate. In addition to his private practice, Chuck serves as the General Counsel of a local real estate development company.
Chuck is a member of the Chattanooga, Tennessee, Federal and American Bar Associations and the Alabama State Bar. He is admitted to practice in Alabama and Tennessee and before the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Tennessee and the U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit and Eleventh Circuit. He is a frequent seminar instructor in the areas of contracts, real property, title insurance, commercial finance and executions on civil judgments.
David Higney began his practice with the firm in 1991. He received his B.S. from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and his J.D. from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville in 1991. David's primary focus is civil litigation and environmental matters. He represents clients on a full range of environmental issues before local, state and federal administrative agencies, as well as in litigation. He provides services to businesses and individuals in the administrative, enforcement, litigation and settlement negotiation contexts involving federal CERCLA (Superfund); Clean Air Act; Clean Water Act and Underground Storage Tank (UST) statutes and/or state-related counterparts. David has represented defendants in environmental criminal matters, investigations and audits. He consults on environmental matters related to various business transactions, including redevelopment opportunities involving Brownfield sites. He has provided advice and counsel to the regulated manufacturing community regarding utility rate making cases in Tennessee for nearly 20 years.
David has been counsel in multiple complex civil litigation, federal multi-district and class action matters, in addition to handling state court matters in both Tennessee and Georgia. He also served on the defense steering committee in the federal multi-district litigation class action involving over 50 defendants (In re Tri-State Crematory Litigation).
He was a member of the Tennessee Bar Association Environmental Law Section leadership council from 2003-2010, and was Chairman in 2009. David is a 2006 graduate of Leadership Chattanooga, and in 2010 was elected President of Leadership Chattanooga Alumni. He has represented the Chattanooga Regional Manufacturers Association since 1992, serving as its Energy chair from 2002 until 2004.
David Elliott is a native of Cleveland, Tennessee who joined the firm in 1996. He received his B.A. in mathematics, magna cum laude, from Vanderbilt University in 1992, and his Juris Doctor degree from Duke University School of Law in 1996. He is a member of the Chattanooga, Lookout Mountain, Tennessee, Georgia and Federal Bar Associations, and the American Immigration Lawyers Association. David is a former member of the Chattanooga Bar Association's Board of Governors and a 2008 graduate of the Tennessee Bar Association Leadership Law program.
David utilizes his background in mathematics to solve problems in business and financial transactions, and to provide strategic counsel to diverse clientele. He represents lenders and borrowers in multimillion dollar transactions. He represents buyers and sellers in mergers and acquisitions, and counsels clients financing businesses and real estate, including healthcare facilities. Many of David's clients are doctors and other professionals. The financial aspect of his practice includes estate planning and administration as well. David represents businesses and individuals in the U.S. and around the world with regard to business, immigration, and tax issues.
David is involved in the Chattanooga community as the member of the Rotary Club of Chattanooga Hamilton Place (President 2011-2012), former Director and Treasurer of Chattanooga Neighborhood Enterprise, Inc., a member of the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce Workforce and Education Committee, a member of the Advisory Board of La Paz Chattanooga, a nonprofit Hispanic outreach organization, and a Vestry member of St. Paul's Episcopal Church.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Director at the Firm
- Elected As Director
Grant, Konvalinka & Harrison is pleased to announce the election of Ms. Floberg as a Director at the Firm
Scott McDearman received his B.A. from Washington and Lee University and his J.D. in 1986 from University of Tennessee with honors. He practices primarily in the areas of employment and health care. He also represents entities in defense of Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) claims, as well as insurance companies in defense claims and individuals and entities in general litigation.
Joseph Dickson is a native of Chattanooga, Tennessee who joined the firm in 2009. He received his Bachelor's degree from Wake Forest University and received his J.D. from the University of Tennessee College of Law in 2003. Joe's primary areas of practice are general civil litigation, landlord/tenant matters, real property disputes and commercial litigation.
Joe formerly served on the Washington, D.C. legislative staff of U.S. Representative John S. Tanner (l8th District - Tennessee). Joe then served as a registered lobbyist for a national trade association headquartered in Washington, D.C. He is a member of the Chattanooga, Tennessee, American and Federal Bar Associations as well as the American Association for Justice and is a former member of the Brock-Cooper American Inn of Court. Joe has served on the Board of Directors of Signal Centers, Inc. since 2005, serving as Board President from 2011 to 2013. Joe is an avid and eclectic music and film fan. Joe also enjoys following the Atlanta Braves and Atlanta Hawks, relaxing with family, and playing golf when he gets a chance.
Kane Shepherd is a native of Montana who joined the firm in 2019. He graduated with high honors from the University of Montana, where he received his B.A. in history and political science. Kane received his J.D. with a concentration in business transactions from the University of Tennessee in 2018. While attending law school, Kane served on the editorial boards of the Tennessee Law Review and Transactions: the Tennessee Journal of Business Law, and worked as a student attorney in the Business Law Clinic. His areas of practice include business and corporate law, real estate, and financial services and transactions.
Job Titles:
- Director
- Director at the Firm
- Elected As Director
- Member of the Chattanooga
Katherine Lentz is a native of Chattanooga, Tennessee who joined the firm in 2004. Katherine was previously a summer associate with Grant, Konvalinka & Harrison during law school. She attended Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, Studio Art, with a minor in Art History. Katherine attended the Publishing Institute at New York University before obtaining her J.D. from the University of Tennessee College of Law, where she was a student-attorney in the Domestic Violence Clinic.
Katherine is a member of the Chattanooga and Tennessee Bar Associations, as well as the Southeast Tennessee Lawyers Association for Women. She is admitted to practice in Tennessee and Georgia and before the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Tennessee. Katherine is the immediate past President of the Brock-Cooper American Inn of Court and is currently serving a second term on the Board of Governors for the Chattanooga Bar Association.
Katherine's practice focuses on family law, alternative dispute resolution, and litigation. She strives to provide the best representation for individuals and families during some of the most difficult times of life. Katherine is designated as Rule 31 Listed Family Law Mediator by the Tennessee Supreme Court and enjoys helping litigants resolve their issues outside of litigation.
Katherine is married to Jason Lentz and has two daughters. She enjoys being outdoors, reading, traveling, and spending time with her family and friends.
Grant, Konvalinka & Harrison is pleased to announce the election of Ms. Lentz as a Director at the Firm
Mathew Brownfield is a native of St. Louis, Missouri who now resides in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He joined the firm in 1986. Matt graduated summa cum laude from the University of Missouri and received his J.D. from the University of Tennessee College of Law in 1984 where he graduated with honors and was Research Editor of the Law Review. Additionally, while at the University of Tennessee College of Law, Matt was a member of Phi Kappa Phi, Phi Delta Phi, and the recipient of the Harold Warner Scholarship. Matt's practice areas include civil litigation, with an emphasis on commercial and intellectual property matters such as trademarks, trade names, copyright, unfair competition and trade secrets. He is a member of the Chattanooga, Tennessee, Georgia and American Bar Associations and is also a member of the International Trademark Association. Matt clerked for Justice Robert E. Cooper of the Tennessee Supreme Court before joining the firm and has served as a director for the Visually Impaired Training and Learning Center (VITAL) and was legal counsel for the Chattanooga Jaycees. Matt has also conducted character and fitness investigations for the Tennessee Board of Law Examiners, is presently a member of and legal counsel for the Chattanooga Elks, and is also a director and legal counsel for the Tennessee Elks Association. Matt enjoys gardening and following the St. Louis Cardinals, the Missouri Tigers, and the Tennessee Volunteers.
He is a native of Memphis Tennessee and first moved to Chattanooga to attend the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in 2012. After graduating with a degree in philosophy and religion with a history minor in 2016, he moved back to Memphis to attend the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphrey's School of Law. Michael served as an Articles Editor on the University of Memphis Law Review and competed as a finalist in the Duberstein National Bankruptcy Moot Court Competition. Upon graduation, he became a member of the Tennessee Bar and clerked for the Honorable Shelley D. Rucker, Chief Bankruptcy Judge for the Eastern District of Tennessee. Michael is now working with the Bankruptcy and Litigation practice at GKH.