“Discourage litigation. Persuade your neighbors to compromise whenever you can. Point out to them how the nominal winner is often the real loser — in fees, and expenses, and waste of time. As a peace-maker, the lawyer has a superior opportunity of being a good man. There will still be business enough.”
Abraham lincoln
TN Rule 31 Family Mediation
PLEASE EMAIL RICHARD HUGHES, TN RULE 31 FAMILY MEDIATOR TO SCHEDULE A MEDIATION RICHARD@SOLOMONFAMILYSOLUTIONS.ORG
SOLOMON FAMILY SOLUTIONS IS DEDICATED TO MAKING MEDIATION AFFORDABLE FOR ALL!
MEDIATION FEES FOR UNREPRESENTED (PRO SE) INDIVIDUALS* IS $50/HR WITH A TWO HOUR MINIMUM
MEDIATION FEES FOR CLIENTS REPRESENTED BY ATTORNEYS IS $80/HR WITH A TWO HOUR MINIMUM
ADDITIONAL DISCOUNTS AND FEE REDUCTION FOR PRO SE INDIVIDUALS OR *THOSE REPRESENTED BY LEGAL AID OR A PRO BONO ATTORNEY ARE AVAILABLE FOR THOSE THAT QUALIFY.; AN APPLICATION AND PROOF OF INCOME WILL BE REQUIRED TO DETERMINE ELIGIBILITY AND FEE.
MEDIATION IS OFFERED AT OUR TWO OFFICE LOCATIONS IN CLEVELAND OR ATHENS, VIA ZOOM, OR WE ARE HAPPY TO MEDIATE OFFSITE (I.E., ATTORNEY’S OFFICE).
Solomon Family Solutions is so blessed to have Richard Hughes join our team of professionals! We are so happy he will be providing family mediation services for our community!
Hughes began his career as an assistant public defender after graduating from the University of Memphis’ Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law in May 1989. He went to work in his hometown of Cleveland, Tennessee, where he has represented clients in Bradley, McMinn, Monroe and Polk counties.
In 2005, Hughes was appointed by former Gov. Phil Bredesen to fill the public defender role, winning a contested election the following year to remain. He’s held the position of public defender ever since. He was a founding member of the 10th Judicial District Recovery Treatment Court, the Bradley County Juvenile Recovery Court and the 10th Judicial District Mental Health Court. Hughes also helped create the Bradley County Brian K. Smith Inmate Workhouse, where nonviolent inmates are released during the day to work around the county.
Stephen Crump, the 10th Judicial District attorney general, who has worked on many cases with Hughes over his career, had good things to say about their work together.
“He always represented his clients zealously and was a very good advocate for the rights of his clients and their position. I always appreciated the fact that he did the best to see what was not only his clients’ side, but both sides of the argument, and then try to decide what was in the best interest of his client,” Crump said in a telephone interview.
“I wish him the very best on a well-deserved retirement,” he said. “He leaves the office with very good people to carry on what he has accomplished.”
Hughes said he hopes his successor continues to provide consistency and stability in the office. Donald Leon Shahan Jr., assistant public defender, who has worked with Hughes for almost 10 years, is the only person so far to announce a bid for the position. However, if anyone else decides to run, Hughes wants his successor to remember one thing.
“Don’t forget what your role is and who you’re responsible toward,” he said. “I like this quote by [author] Sam Quñones: ‘We need to attend the most vulnerable; we are only as strong as the least of us,'” he said.
“It’s been a very good career for me here, but to avoid stagnation, to avoid complacency, I want to pursue some other opportunities that are out there,” Hughes said, including possibly teaching at a local college or doing family law mediation work. “My goal is not to just go out to pasture, but to try other things,” he said.
(Article written by La Shawn Pagan, Times Free Press, 12/27/2021; https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2021/dec/27/longtime-cleveland-tenn-public-defender-richa/)