Amy McLaughlin, J.D., serves as a Senior Associate Counsel for the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services. Amy earned her bachelor’s degree in social work from the University of Southern Mississippi. After working as a licensed social worker, she continued her education and earned her juris doctorate from the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss). Following law school graduation, Amy relocated to Johnson City, Tennessee, and worked with Legal Aid of East Tennessee running a 10-county grant program providing civil legal representation to victims of domestic violence, stalking, and sexual assault. She made a brief 4-year return to Mississippi to serve as Assistant Court Administrator for the Mississippi Supreme Court and Court of Appeals before settling back in the Knoxville, Tennessee area. Since then, she has worked with DCS and in private practice focusing primarily on juvenile and family law. She is certified in Tennessee as a Juvenile Law-Child Welfare legal specialist and as a Rule 31 family mediator.