Thomas Lee Robinson "Tommy" Parker (born 1963) is a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the United States federal judiciary, U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each United States federal judicial district, federal judicial district, which each cover o ...

of the

United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee The United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee (in case citations, W.D. Tenn.) is the federal district court covering the western part of the state of Tennessee. Appeals from the Western District of Tennessee are taken to ...

Education and career

Parker received a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree in 1985 from the University of South Carolina. He received a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

in 1989 from

Vanderbilt University School of Law Vanderbilt University Law School (also known as Vanderbilt Law School or VLS) is a graduate school of Vanderbilt University. Established in 1874, it is one of the oldest law schools in the southern United States. Vanderbilt Law School has consiste ...

. Parker began his legal career as an associate at Waring Cox Lawyers in

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

. He then served as an

assistant United States attorney An assistant United States attorney (AUSA) is an official career civil service position in the U.S. Department of Justice composed of lawyers working under the U.S. Attorney of each U.S. federal judicial district. They represent the federal gove ...

in the Western District of Tennessee for nine years. Before becoming a federal judge, he was a shareholder in the Memphis office of

Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz P.C. is a large U.S. law firm and lobbying group with offices in the Southeastern United States and Washington, D.C. ''Fortune'' has selected Baker Donelson as one of the 100 Best Companies to Work ...

, P.C., where he represented clients in civil litigation and criminal matters. Additionally, he previously served as president of the Memphis Bar Association and is a

fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

in the

American College of Trial Lawyers The American College of Trial Lawyers (ACTL) is a professional association of trial lawyers from the United States and Canada. Founded in 1950, the College is dedicated to maintaining and improving the standards of trial practice, especially tria ...

Federal judicial service

On July 13, 2017, President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

nominated Parker to serve as a United States district judge of the

, to the seat vacated by Judge

Samuel H. Mays Jr. Samuel Hardwicke Mays Jr. (born 1948) is a senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee. Education and career Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Mays received a Bachelor of Arts degree ...

, who assumed

senior status Senior status is a form of semi-retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the Federal judiciary of the United States, federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of servi ...

on July 1, 2015. A hearing on his nomination before the

Senate Judiciary Committee The United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, informally the Senate Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of 22 U.S. senators whose role is to oversee the Department of Justice (DOJ), consider executive and judicial nominations, a ...

was held on September 6, 2017. On October 5, 2017, his nomination was reported out of committee by a

voice vote In parliamentary procedure, a voice vote (from the Latin ''viva voce'', meaning "live voice") or acclamation is a voting method in deliberative assemblies (such as legislatures) in which a group vote is taken on a topic or motion by responding vo ...

. On January 9, 2018, the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

invoked cloture on his nomination by a 96–1 vote. On January 10, 2018, his nomination was confirmed by a 98–0 vote. He received his commission on January 30, 2018. He was sworn into office on February 2, 2018.

Notable ruling

On June 2, 2023, Parker ruled Tennessee's drag ban unconstitutional.

References

External links

* * 1963 births 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American judges 21st-century American lawyers Assistant United States Attorneys Judges of the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee Living people Lawyers from Memphis, Tennessee United States district court judges appointed by Donald Trump University of South Carolina alumni Vanderbilt University Law School alumni {{US-federal-judge-stub