KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The late Chief District Judge Pamela L. Reeves is being honored posthumously for her lifelong dedication to the law and the administration of justice.
The Tennessee Bar Association on Friday will present Reeves' family with its Justice Frank F. Drowota III Award for dedication to the field.
Reeves, a Knoxvillian, succumbed in September 2020 to cancer. She was 66. Reeves was chief judge of the U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Tennessee.
According to the TBA, the Drowota award recognizes "a judge or judicial branch official of a federal, state or local court in Tennessee who has demonstrated extraordinary devotion and dedication to the improvement of the law, the legal system and the administration of justice..."
Drowota, who died in 2018, was a former Tennessee Supreme Court chief justice.
A Virginia native, Reeves was a pioneer in the Tennessee legal arena, becoming the first female District Court judge in the Eastern District and first female president of the Tennessee Bar, among other achievements.
Above all, Reeves was a fierce advocate for justice for all who came before the court.
Her husband, Charles Swanson, is law director for the city of Knoxville. They have two children, Reedy and Amanda.
The TBA will present the award Friday in Memphis to Reeves' family.
