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Senior Managing Attorney NBTA Certification

The National Board of Trial Advocacy (NBTA) and West Tennessee Legal Services (WTLS) are pleased to announce that WTLS’ Senior Managing Attorney, Beth Bates, has successfully achieved recertification as a Social Security Disability advocate. The NBTA was formed out of a strong conviction that both the law profession and its clients would benefit from an organization designed specifically to create an objective set of standards illustrating an attorney’s experience and expertise in the practice of trial law.

Beth Bates is part of a growing number of trial attorneys that have illustrated their commitment to bettering the legal profession by successfully completing a rigorous application process and providing the consumer of legal services with an objective measure by which to choose qualified and experienced legal counsel.

The elaborate screening of credentials that all NBTA board certified attorneys must successfully complete includes demonstration of substantial trial experience, submission of judicial and peer references to attest to their competency, attendance of continuing legal education courses, and proof of good standing.

Board Certification is the highest, most stringent, and most reliable honor an attorney can achieve. Board certifications are the only distinctions awarded by non-profit organizations. The NBTA as well as all board certifying organizations are committed to safeguarding the public’s ability to choose a good attorney.

Beth Bates earned her undergraduate degree in Political Science from Mississippi College for Women. She is a graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Law. Ms. Bates is licensed to practice in Tennessee. Her memberships include the Tennessee Bar Association and its Disability Law Section Executive Committee; the Tennessee Lawyers Association for Women, past president 2015-2016; the Lawyers Association for Women, Anne Schneider Chapter; the Howell Edmunds Jackson American Inns of Court as a Master and Co-Chair the Membership Committee; the National Organization of Social Security Claimants Representatives (NOSSCR); and the Distinguished Service Award Committee. Ms. Bates is a life fellow of the Tennessee Bar Foundation and of the American Bar Foundation. Ms. Bates formally published several columns regarding Social Security Law in the Jackson Sun and has presented continuing legal education sessions for the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services and the Tennessee Bar Association.

Approximately three percent of American lawyers are board certified, and Ms. Bates is a member of a very select group who has taken the time to prove competence in their specialty area and earn board certification.

For more information on Attorney Beth Bates, please visit www.wtls.org and www.nbtalawyers.org