Ellen Hobbs Lyle served 27 years as a Chancery Court Judge in the Twentieth Judicial District (Nashville/Davidson County) of Tennessee. This is a civil law court that is assigned business and government cases. During her tenure, Chancellor Lyle was selected by the Tennessee Supreme Court to launch and preside over the initial phase of their Business Court Pilot Project. Her judicial career spans a broad spectrum of state and local government cases and business cases, including the 2007 litigation over the $1.5 billion Genesco/Finish Line merger.
In August of 2022, Chancellor Lyle retired from the bench and has joined JAMS Arbitration and Mediation Services, Inc. where she serves as an arbitrator, mediator and ADR neutral alongside retired Tennessee Court of Appeals Judge Patsy Cottrell. JAMS is the world’s largest private alternative resolution provider.
Chancellor Lyle is the recipient of the Nashville Business Journal’s Lifetime Achievement Award (2022), American Board of Trial Advocates’ Judicial Excellence Award (2021), Nashville Bar Association’s Liberty Bell Award (2021), AgeWell Sage Award for Lifelong Commitment to Improving Community Life (2023), Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services B. Riney Green Award (2023), and Harpeth Hall Outstanding Alumna Award (2018).
Prior to taking the bench, Chancellor Lyle was a partner in the law firm of Trabue, Sturdivant & DeWitt (1984-1995), and an associate attorney with Fulbright and Jaworski in Houston, Texas (1981-1984). Chancellor Lyle is a fifth generation Nashvillian.