By Ashley Benkarski
NASHVILLE, TN — Patricia Moskal is running unopposed in this year’s retention election for Chancery Court Judge, Part I.
Moskal was appointed to the position by former Governor Bill Haslam last year to replace Chancellor Claudia Bonnyman, who retired. She has been in the area since 1985 and worked in private practice until her appointment.
A graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Law and Indiana University-Bloomington Chancellor Moskal brings over three decades of private practice legal experience to the bench, having served as a litigation and appellate attorney in cases involving business and commercial disputes, state and local government and administrative law. She’s represented businesses as well as individuals and has handled over 100 cases in the state, including Davidson County.
She was also appointed by the state’s Chief Justice of the Supreme Court to the Business Court Advisory Commission and chaired the Commission before taking the bench.
“When I was appointed Chancellor, I have to say it was the honor of my career,” Moskal said of her judicial position to serve the citizens of Davidson County. Chancery Court judges typically hear cases involving business and contract disputes, real estate lawsuits, tax disputes, government litigation, and other civil cases requiring equitable relief. A Chancellor may fashion appropriate relief that is needed in certain types of cases. “Criminal defendants can have appointed attorneys but civil litigants cannot, and there’s a lot of barriers economically for people to access the courts and obtain the relief that they need and are entitled to,” she said.
She describes herself as a hardworking problem-solver who listens to people and strives to be a fair and impartial judge. “My number one job is to follow the rule of law and to be fair and impartial with every person who comes before me,” Moskal said. “And my personal goal is to make sure that everyone who comes into my courtroom is treated with respect by the court and all other parties that are involved in the lawsuit, and that everyone who leaves my courtroom feels that they’ve been heard and had their day in court.”
She has received the Martha Craig Daughtry Award in 2018 from the Lawyer’s Association for Women for her commitment to mentorship, and she’s also been awarded Appellate Lawyer of the Year-Nashville, Best of the Bar by the Nashville Business Journal and Top 250 Women in Litigation in America, among others.
Moskal is active in the legal community and has held a variety of leadership positions during her career, including Past President of the Lawyer’s Association for Women, First Vice President and board member of the Nashville Bar Association. She also served as Trustee of the Board for the Nashville Bar Foundation.
Moskal will be on the ballot Mar. 3, which is Super Tuesday. The remainder of her term expires Aug. 31, 2022 and she will then have the opportunity to run again to serve a full eight-year term. For more information on Chancellor Moskal’s campaign, visit www.friendsofpatmoskal.com or follow her on social media.
