Dodson, Parker, Behm, & Caparella, proudly traces its roots to several of Nashville's most respected and history-making law firms and their legacy of outstanding professionalism coupled with commitments to public service.
Partners Harlan Dodson III and Paul Parker both began their legal careers with the Nashville firm of Hooker, Keeble, Dodson & Harris. A small practice, it earned a reputation for excellent service to its clients, as well as the dedication of its community-minded lawyers. Harlan Dodson III grew up in this tradition, inspired by his father, Harlan Dodson Jr.'s, example. The senior Dodson was instrumental in the formation of Metro government in Nashville; today his son serves on the Metro Charter Revision Committee and helped launch another Metro government in Moore County.
In 1985, Harlan Dodson III and his father, Harlan Dodson, Jr., formed Dodson and Associates, soon regarded as among the top law firms in the city.
Like Dodson, Margaret Behm was influenced by the law at an early age. Her mother's work as a legal secretary in a small Murfreesboro firm left a lasting impression on Margaret, who today favors the small-town, small-firm style of practice with which she grew up. As a young attorney, she also became determined to break the traditional barriers to women in the practice of law.
Behm worked with Legal Services of Middle Tennessee, wrote and lobbied on behalf of a number of groundbreaking bills and then decided to take an enormous risk. In 1980, she and Marietta Shipley established Nashville's first all-women law firm, Shipley and Behm. They merged their firm, in 1988, with Dodson & Associates to form Dodson, Parker, Shipley & Behm. In 1990, Shipley left the firm when she was elected to the Second Circuit Court bench.
An important part of Dodson, Parker, Behm, & Caparella's history is its relationship with Richard Dinkins. A member of Nashville's first African-American law firm, Williams & Dinkins, he represented the plaintiffs in the Metro schools desegregation case, among other landmark cases. The firm merged with Dodson, Parker & Behm in 1999, with a commitment, as Dinkins said, "to serving persons and issues that are not generally part of the mainstream." Continuing the firm's tradition of community service, Dinkins left in 2003 when he was appointed Chancellor for Davidson County.
Today, as it has throughout its history, Dodson, Parker, Behm, & Caparella continues its dedication to excellence in the practice of many kinds of law. And it maintains its dedication to diversity, the service of others, community activism and social justice.
"I'm proud that the faces of our law firm look like the faces of Nashville," says Margaret Behm. "Our firm has two major assets - our clients and our employees. Everything we do, our entire reputation, rests on these two assets."
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