Chattanooga's biggest law firm has lost most of its Nashville staff, but a spokesman said Wednesday the firm will try to maintain at least some presence in the Music City.
Miller & Martin grew to include nearly 60 attorneys in Nashville after buying the former Trabue Sturdivant DeWitt in the 1990s. But only three lawyers - Shomari Dailey, Sean Kirk and Alston Hamilton - still are listed with the firm in its Nashville office.
Last month, nearly 40 partners and associates left en masse to join Butler Snow, a Mississippi-based law firm expanding its presence in Tennessee. Others have joined other Nashville firms.
Melvin Malone, a former Tennessee Public Service Commissioner in Nashville, was elected managing partner of Miller & Martin two years ago to become the firm's first managing partner outside of Chattanooga. But last October, members of the law firm replaced Malone with Chattanooga attorney James Haley, and Malone decided to leave the firm this year.
Despite the loss of most of its Nashville staff, a spokesman for Miller & Martin, Frederick Strobel, said the firm "remains committed to Nashville and is committed to having a presence in Nashville."
Miller & Martin was founded in 1867 and has added offices in Chattanooga, Atlanta and Nashville. The Chattanooga-based firm has more than 150 attorneys in Tennessee and Georgia.