DOJABA Member Spotlight: Bridget Bailey Lipscomb
Bridget Bailey Lipscomb joined the Department of Justice in June 2004, after serving as Legislative Counsel for United States Senator Lamar Alexander and becoming the first African American partner in a major law firm in Knoxville, Tennessee. Currently, Bridget is an Assistant Director in the Civil Division, Environmental Torts Office, where she supervises teams of attorneys who defend the United States in suits brought under the Federal Tort Claims Act for monetary damages as a result of environmental contaminants.
Bridget has taken an active role in several associations dedicated to the legal profession. She is Immediate Past President of the Women’s Bar Association, Past President of the Women’s Bar Association Foundation, and Past Second Vice President of the Washington Bar Association. She served two terms on the D.C. Bar Board of Governors, and she was nominated by the D.C. Bar Committee on Nominations to run for President-Elect for the D.C. Bar on two occasions, in 2012 and 2018. She served as a hearing officer for both the Tennessee Supreme Court Board of Professional Responsibility and the District of Columbia Court of Appeals Board on Professional Responsibility. Her past and present memberships in other voluntary bar associations and community organizations are too numerous to list here. Bridget has also previously served as a quasi-administrative law judge and a certified mediator.
Throughout her legal career, she has been a regular speaker at the National Advocacy Center, within the Civil Division, for voluntary bar associations, and community organizations. She is the recipient of scores of appointments and awards, including the gubernatorial appointment as a Tennessee Human Rights Commissioner and the mayoral appointment as a member of the City of Knoxville Police Advisory and Review Committee (Vice President); 2022 Attorney General’s Award for Distinguished Service; 2021 Marquis Who’s Who Award; 2019 DOJ Civil Division Special Commendation Award; 2017 Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, Pioneering Award; 2016 Washington Bar Association President’s Award; 2002 Knoxville Project Change Trailblazer Law Award; and 1997 Annie Selwyn Knoxville Woman of the Year Award.
As Bridget will tell you, we are all standing on the shoulders of greatness – the many people who endured to ensure that we have the opportunity to succeed. Bridget believes it’s our responsibility to continue that legacy and create those opportunities for others. Helping others achieve their goals brings her great joy, whether it’s mentoring new attorneys or seeking justice for our community. The highlight of her legal career was her involvement in the death penalty case of Paul Gregory House, who was released from prison in 2008.
Bridget received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history, summa cum laude, and a Master of Public Administration degree from Grambling State University. She received a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Tennessee College of Law.
On July 10, 2019, the District of Columbia Judicial Nomination Commission recommended Bridget and two other candidates to the President to fill the judicial vacancy on the Superior Court of the District of Columbia created by the retirement of the Honorable John Ramsey Johnson. See https://jnc.dc.gov/release/jnc-recommends-candidates-dc-superior-court-vacancy-0. Until someone is confirmed by the United States Senate for Judge Johnson’s vacancy, Bridget remains a viable candidate for this position.
Bridget is honored to be a member of DOJABA and applauds its sustained impactful work! DOJABA celebrates your excellence, Bridget!
