Nashville Bar Association

What Nashville Bar Association does

The Nashville Bar Association (NBA) is a nonprofit professional membership organization serving attorneys in the Nashville, Tennessee area. Founded around 1831 (with the 180th anniversary publicly noted), it is among the oldest bar associations in the United States. The NBA operates from a single headquarters at 150 4th Ave N, Ste 1350 in downtown Nashville, with a lean staff of approximately seven full-time professionals led by Executive Director Jeanne Heaton. Its members include Nashville-area attorneys and law firms spanning Davidson County and surrounding Middle Tennessee counties.

The NBA's core offerings cluster around member services and public legal access. Member-facing products include the Nashville Bar Journal (a quarterly print and online publication reaching 2,500+ attorneys), a Continuing Legal Education (CLE) program with live seminars and distance learning, the myNBA member portal, a Career Center job board, the Young Lawyers Division, and the Diversity Committee. Public-facing services include the Lawyer Referral & Information Service (LRIS), established over 25 years ago and referring roughly 6,000 callers annually to pre-screened attorneys for a $40 consultation fee plus a 15% administrative fee on earned matters, and Dial-A-Lawyer, a free monthly legal guidance hotline. Additional programs include the Nashville Bar Foundation (the charitable arm hosting the Fellows Program, Leadership Forum, and Rutherford Award), an Oral History Project documenting 150+ Nashville lawyers and judges, and conference facility rentals (Conference Center seating 50 and Board Room seating 14) at $350–$950 per day. The technology footprint is modest: a web-based platform with member portal, online event registration, and digital publication delivery, with no disclosed software product or API.

The business model combines recurring membership dues, subscription-like CLE registration fees, transactional LRIS referral fees, one-time facility rental income, and advertising/sponsorship revenue (including annual Diversity Committee sponsorships from firms such as Husch Blackwell and Spencer Fane). The NBA does not have external investors, is not publicly traded, and has no subsidiaries or parent company. Operations are regional, with no claims of global footprint, and its reach is concentrated in the Nashville metropolitan legal market.

Name

Nashville Bar Association

Legal name

Nashville Bar Association

Website

https://nashvillebar.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1831

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Nashville Bar Association is a nonprofit professional membership organization serving Nashville-area attorneys, founded around 1831. It delivers CLE programming, a quarterly journal, lawyer referral services, facility rentals, and public legal access programs such as Dial-A-Lawyer.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Nashville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Lawyer Referral & Information Service (LRIS): The LRIS charges a $40 referral fee for most legal matters, connecting callers with pre-screened attorneys. Attorneys pay an administrative fee and 15% of earned fees to LRIS. Referrals are waived for personal injury, medical malpractice, and worker's compensation cases.
2. Conference Room Rental: The NBA rents its Conference Center (up to 50 people) and Board Room (up to 14 people) to attorneys for arbitrations, mediations, meetings, and depositions. Members pay $350/day (half-day free); non-members pay $500-$950 depending on duration.
3. CLE Seminars and Distance Learning: The NBA offers continuing legal education programs including live seminars and distance learning options, generating revenue from registration fees.
4. Membership Dues: Annual membership fees for attorneys to join and renew membership in the NBA.
5. Advertising & Sponsorship: The NBA sells advertising space in the Nashville Bar Journal and offers event sponsorships, including annual Diversity Committee sponsors (Husch Blackwell, Spencer Fane).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Nashville Bar Association is a nonprofit professional membership organization serving Nashville-area attorneys through annual membership, continuing legal education programming, a public-facing Lawyer Referral & Information Service, the quarterly Nashville Bar Journal publication, facility rentals, and a Career Center job board. It also operates community programs including Dial-A-Lawyer free legal guidance and the Nashville Bar Foundation's charitable initiatives.

Product overview

The Nashville Bar Association (NBA) is a professional membership organization for attorneys in Nashville, Tennessee. It offers a portfolio of member services including its official quarterly publication (Nashville Bar Journal), a Lawyer Referral & Information Service (LRIS), free Dial-A-Lawyer community program, CLE education, Career Center, oral history videos, and conference facility rentals. The NBA also supports a Young Lawyers Division and operates the Nashville Bar Foundation nonprofit. The organization does not offer a software product or technology platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Nashville Bar Foundation: The charitable and educational arm of the Nashville Bar Association, established to support law-related community initiatives, grants, and leadership programs.
• Young Lawyers Division
• Lawyer Referral & Information Service (LRIS)
• Dial-A-Lawyer
• Nashville Bar Journal

Products and services

• Lawyer Referral & Information Service (LRIS) A nonprofit public service established over 25 years ago that connects individuals with pre-screened attorneys across 30+ practice areas in the Nashville area. The service charges a $40 referral fee for most legal matters (waived for personal injury, medical malpractice, and workers' compensation cases), with attorneys paying 15% of earned fees. The LRIS refers approximately 6,000 callers per year to member attorneys.
• Continuing Legal Education (CLE) Continuing legal education programming for Nashville-area attorneys to satisfy licensure requirements, including live seminars, distance learning online courses, and a historical CLE archive. Registration fees generate revenue and the programming supports member professional development.
• Nashville Bar Journal The official quarterly magazine of the Nashville Bar Association, published in both print and online formats exclusively for NBA members. It delivers legal news, feature stories, and practice-area coverage to over 2,500 attorneys in the Nashville area, with advertising space sold to law firms and legal service providers.
• Dial-A-Lawyer A free legal guidance program held on the first Tuesday of each month from 6:00-8:00 pm, where Nashville-area residents can call 615-242-9272 to speak with volunteer attorneys about general legal questions at no charge.
• Conference Center & Board Room Rental Physical facility rental service for attorneys at the NBA's downtown Nashville office at 150 4th Ave N, Ste 1350. The Conference Center seats up to 50 people and the Board Room seats up to 14 people, available for arbitrations, mediations, meetings, and depositions. Members pay $350/day (half-day free); non-members pay $500 for half-day and $950 for full day.
• Career Center An online job board for legal professionals in the Nashville area, operated at nashvillebar.careerwebsite.com. The platform lists attorney positions from litigation associates to in-house counsel roles across multiple states and practice areas, enabling law firms to post openings and candidates to search for legal employment.
• Oral History Videos Video interviews with senior NBA members (age 65 or older) and others in the local legal community, produced by the Oral History Committee (a sub-committee of the Historical Committee). The project has documented over 150 Nashville lawyers and judges since inception, with content published on the NBA YouTube Channel and additional interviews housed through the Legal History Project of the Tennessee Bar Foundation.

Quantifiable outcome

• 6,000+ referrals annually through LRIS
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Stonewall Bar Association of TennesseecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 June 2026Co-hosting LGBTQ+ Pride Month celebrations including Happy Hour and Pride Parade. Coalition partner for Diversity Committee programming.
• Napier-Looby Bar AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 27 June 2026Co-hosting LGBTQ+ Pride Month celebrations including Happy Hour and Pride Parade. Coalition partner for Diversity Committee programming.
• Husch BlackwellcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 24 June 2026Annual Diversity Committee sponsor for 2026, supporting LGBTQ+ Pride events including the Happy Hour celebration on June 24, 2026 at Tribe Nashville and participation in Nashville Pride Parade.
• Spencer FanecoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 24 June 2026Annual Diversity Committee sponsor for 2026, supporting LGBTQ+ Pride events including the Happy Hour celebration on June 24, 2026 at Tribe Nashville and participation in Nashville Pride Parade.
• Legal History Project of the Tennessee Bar FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Collaboration to house additional oral history interviews of Nashville lawyers and judges. Full collection available on the Tennessee Bar Foundation website.
• JAMS (Judicial Arbitration and Mediation Services)minorOthers · 1 January 2026Sponsor of oral history video content, with featured neutral Gareth S. Aden highlighted on JAMS website.
• Tennessee Bar AssociationcoreOthers · 1 January 2026Affiliated with the statewide Tennessee Bar Association for broader professional resources and advocacy.
• Caen, France Sister CityminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026International sister city relationship through NBA Sister Cities Committee. Trip planned September 10-13, 2026 to Caen, France.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Direct peers

• Atlanta Bar Association: Southeastern metropolitan bar association with parallel CLE, networking, and community programming. Comparable in scale and Southeast growth-market dynamics to NBA.
• National Bar Association: Predominantly African-American national bar association offering CLE, networking, and advocacy. Comparable member-services structure to NBA and an active coalition partner in NBA's Diversity Committee programming.
• Houston Bar Association: Texas-based metropolitan bar association offering CLE, networking, and lawyer referral services. Operates a comparable member-services portfolio to NBA within a similar Sun-Belt growth-market context.
• Chicago Bar Association: Major metropolitan bar association providing CLE, lawyer referral, member benefits, and publications to Chicago-area attorneys. Closely comparable operating model and revenue mix to NBA.
• Tennessee Bar Association: Tennessee's statewide bar association, formally affiliated with NBA. Offers overlapping CLE programming, networking events, member publications, and advocacy — directly competing for the same Tennessee attorneys' dues and engagement dollars.
• Philadelphia Bar Association: Long-standing metropolitan bar association serving Philadelphia attorneys with CLE, lawyer referral, and member services — a structurally equivalent peer operating in a comparable urban legal market.
• Los Angeles County Bar Association: Large metropolitan bar association serving LA attorneys with CLE programming, lawyer referral services, and member events — a direct functional analog to NBA in a different geography.
• New York City Bar Association: One of the largest and oldest US metropolitan bar associations. Operates a lawyer referral service, CLE programs, member facilities, and a peer-reviewed journal — closely mirroring NBA's product mix at a much larger urban scale.
• Boston Bar Association: Historic metropolitan bar association offering CLE, lawyer referral, publications, and member benefits to Boston-area attorneys — directly parallel in mission and product mix to NBA.

Broad incumbents

• American Bar Association: The national umbrella bar association serving US attorneys with CLE, publications, advocacy, lawyer referral, and member sections. Directly comparable to NBA on services offered, though at national rather than metropolitan scope, and is the parent of NBA's LRIS quality standards.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/nashvillebar
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC_z2B3ae0iATUgGNPjt0lcg
• Facebookfacebook.com/NashvilleBarAssociation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nashville-bar-association
• Instagraminstagram.com/nashvillebarassociation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Nashville Bar Association