Wayne A. Kline

Wayne A. Kline received his undergraduate degree with honors from the University of Tennessee. He obtained a Master of Science degree in Administration from the University of Tennessee and was employed as an Associate Professor in the Department of Audiology and Speech Pathology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville for several years before entering law school. Following a clerkship with the firm and after receiving his law degree from the University of Tennessee in 1988, Mr. Kline joined Hodges, Doughty & Carson that same year. He holds memberships in the Tennessee Defense Lawyers Association, Defense Research Institute, and American Inns of Court. He has been a member of the Board of Governors of the Knoxville Bar Association. He received the Knoxville Bar Association’s President’s Award in December of 2005 and again in 2012 for his outstanding performance and dedication to the KBA. He currently chairs the Knoxville Bar Association’s Senior Lawyers Section. In 2006, he was appointed by the Tennessee Supreme Court to the Disciplinary Hearing Committee for District II. He is the current Chairman of the Board of Directors of The Free Medical Clinic of America, is legal counsel for the Board of Directors of The Knoxville Center of the Deaf. He has also served on the Board of Directors of the Blount Hearing & Speech Foundation. Mr. Kline has extensive experience and emphasis in the defense of long-term nursing and rehabilitation litigation, medical, hospital and dental malpractice litigation, as well as trial practice in employment, discrimination, human resources, and personal injury law. Mr. Kline has extensive experience representing homeowners in zoning and land management disputes and more than twenty-eight years experience in general liability, trial practice and litigation, including mass tort litigation. Mr. Kline provides litigation, legal support services for employment related and human resources issues for businesses, medical practices and corporations. Mr. Kline has also represented licensed and certified professionals before their various boards for claims and licensure issues.

Areas of Practice

• Health Care Practice
• Medical Malpractice Defense
• Healthcare Entities and Physician Practice Representation
• Healthcare Litigation
• Nursing Home and Long-Term Care Defense
• Employment and Human Resources Law
• Harassment & Discrimination
• Zoning, Planning & Land Use

Litigation Percentage

• 90% of Practice Devoted to Litigation

Bar Admissions

• Tennessee, 1988
• U.S. District Court Eastern District of Tennessee, 1988
• U.S. District Court Middle District of Tennessee
• U.S. District Court Western District of Tennessee
• U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit, 1991

Education

• University of Tennessee College of Law, Knoxville, Tennessee J.D. – 1988
• University of Tennessee - Master of Science - Major: Administration
• University of Tennessee B.S. - Honors: With Honors

Honors & Awards

• Appointed by the Tennessee Supreme Court to the Disciplinary Hearing Committee for District II
• President’s Award, Knoxville Bar Association, 2005
• Legal Aid of East Tennessee Pro Bono Partner Award, 2005
• Knoxville Center of the Deaf Community Service Award, 2005
• The Free Medical Clinic of America Leadership Award, 2006
• Cityview 2011 Top Knoxville Attorney – Nursing Home Liability-Defense & Wrongful Death-Defense
• Cityview 2012 Top Knoxville Attorney – Nursing Home Liability – Defense
• Best Lawyers in America 2013 – Medical Malpractice Law – Defendants
• Cityview 2013 Top Knoxville Attorney – Health Care Law; Labor & Employment Law-Employer; Medical Malpractice-Defense; Nursing Home Liability-Defensse; Wrongful Death-Defense
• Knoxville Bar Association – Pro Bono Project 2013 Award
• Best Lawyers in America 2014 – Medical Malpractice Law-Defendants
• Cityview 2014 Top Knoxville Attorney – Nursing Home Liability – Defense, Medical Malpractice – Defense, Health Care Law, Professional Malpractice Defense, Administrative Law
• Best Lawyers in America 2015 – Medical Malpractice Law-Defendants
• Cityview 2015 Top Knoxville Attorney – Professional Malpractice – Defense, Nursing Home Liability – Defense, Medical Malpractice – Defense
• Best Lawyers in America 2016 – Medical Malpractice Law-Defendants. Listed as Best Lawyer since 2013.
• Cityview 2016 Top Knoxville Attorney – Health Care Law, Medical Malpractice – Defese, Nursing Home Liability – Defense, Professional Malpractice – Defense
• Best Lawyers in America 2017 – Medical Malpractice Law-Defendants
• Cityview 2017 Top Knoxville Attorney – Medical Malpractice-Defense, Nursing Home Liability-Defense
• Cityview 2018 Top Knoxville Attorney – Nursing Home Liability-Defense
• Best Lawyers in America 2018 - Medical Malpractice Law - Defendants
• Best Lawyers in America 2022 - Medical Malpractice Law - Defendants

Professional Associations and Memberships

• Tennessee Defense Lawyers Association
• Defense Research Institute
• Knoxville Bar Association, (member, Board of Governors)
• Tennessee Bar Association
• Chairman, Board of Directors of Free Medical Clinic
• Secretary, Board of Directors of Knoxville Center of the Deaf
• American Inns of Court
• Board Member, Tennessee Children’s Dance Ensemble

Past Employment Positions

• Department of Audiology and Speech Pathology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Associate Professor