Leaders Learn Here: Holly Kirby, Tennessee Supreme Court Chief Justice

Even though Judge Holly Kirby arrived at the University of Memphis as an undergrad to begin an engineering degree, she already knew she would go to law school and might even want to be a judge.

“I came from a family with not a lot of money, so I wasn’t sure how I was going to pay for college,” she said. “The University of Memphis solved that problem for me by giving me a generous Herff engineering scholarship.”

Kirby lived in the dorms and loved her classes. Eventually, she was awarded a Herff scholarship to law school, too.

“Engineering and the law are actually surprisingly similar,” she said. “Both are logical, analytical and you’re often dealing with situations that have a lot of factors. You have to make the best decision to solve a problem. I’ve always had a strong sense of fairness and I’m comfortable making decisions.”

Kirby has had plenty of chances to do that. After some early clerkships and a stint as a labor and employment attorney with Burch, Porter & Johnson, where she became the firm’s first female partner, she was appointed by then-Gov. Don Sundquist to the Tennessee Court of Appeals in 1995. Kirby was the first woman to serve on that court, too. In 2014, she was appointed to the Tennessee Supreme Court and she became Chief Justice in 2023.

“The University of Memphis made a huge difference in my career,” she said, “and really made it possible. It was a good and nurturing environment for me. It opened up the horizon so I could imagine the future.

“It’s such an asset to the region. Not every community has a first-rate research university in their town.”