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Patricia Gunn

Volunteer Attorney

Dr. Patricia Gunn, on professional development leave from Ohio University, joins the Tennessee Justice Center as a Volunteer Attorney.  This Fisk University graduate returns to Nashville to do research in the field of health care law and to learn about the actual practice of health care law from the experts at the Tennessee Justice Center.

Dr. Gunn earned her law degree from Boston College Law School.  She subsequently practiced law at Roxbury Defenders Committee, a public interest law firm serving indigent clients accused of major felonies; then as an Assistant Attorney General for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Civil Rights Division.  Upon leaving Massachusetts, Patricia returned to her home state of West Virginia to pursue private practice.  While there, she also served as Coordinator of the Legal Assistant Program at Marshall University Community College.

After two years in “wild, wonderful, West Virginia,” Dr. Gunn went to Washington, D.C., where she had the privilege for the next eleven years of working as an attorney for the United States Department of Justice.  Nine of those years were spent in the Office of International Affairs, Criminal Division.  She also had the distinct honor of serving for a year as Special Assistant to the Solicitor General of the United States. The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) represents the United States in the Supreme Court in all cases in which the U.S. is a party. The OSG is also responsible for reviewing all requests by U.S. Attorneys Offices throughout the country to appeal cases from U.S. District Courts to U.S. Courts of Appeals and for deciding which cases will be appealed.

Since leaving government and joining academia, Dr. Gunn has thoroughly enjoyed teaching Ohio University students, whom she describes as “dedicated scholars, community servants, and all-around nice people.”  She also enjoys research and writing and has written numerous papers on a variety of topics.  Currently, Dr. Gunn is doing in-depth research in health care law and expects that her year at TJC will give her great insights into the current state of the law in this field. 

In her spare time, Patricia enjoys attending Nashville’s wonderful array of cultural venues, as well as ice skating, roller skating, reading, swimming, and horseback riding.  Patricia also enjoys participating in the civic activities of the Links, Incorporated.

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