Susan Kay ’79, Associate Dean for Experiential Education and Director of the Criminal Legal Clinic at Vanderbilt Law, has received the 2026 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services (TALS). She will be recognized at TALS’ annual Equal Justice University event, held in Murfreesboro August 26-28.
Kay is one of six attorneys recognized by TALS for their extraordinary work promoting access to justice in Tennessee. The Lifetime Achievement Award is given to an individual whose body of work at an organization that provides civil legal assistance, primarily to the indigent, represents an exceptional contribution to the civil justice system for all people regardless of race, color, creed or income, who demonstrates exemplary commitment to equal justice, and whose professional accomplishments serve as an inspiration to the entire legal profession.
“Every day, access to justice advocates work to ensure that people facing legal challenges are not left to navigate the system alone. We present these awards to recognize the extraordinary individuals who turn the promise of equal justice into action, through their dedication, compassion, innovation, and commitment to serving their communities. Their work reminds us that ‘Liberty and Justice for All’ is not simply a theme; it is a responsibility we all share.” Laura Brown, Executive Director, Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services, said.
Kay has headed the law school’s clinical and experiential legal education program since 2001, having joined the clinical faculty in 1980. In addition to teaching in the Criminal Practice Clinic, Kay supervises the Trial Advocacy courses and teaches courses on Criminal Law and Evidence. Among her many professional and service activities, Associate Dean Kay has served as president of the Clinical Legal Education Association and president of the board of the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services and the Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands.
Within the Criminal Practice Clinic, she has conducted major public law litigation concerning jail overcrowding, inmates’ rights, and juvenile justice. Kay has been elected as a fellow of both the Nashville Bar Foundation and the Tennessee Bar Foundation and is a recipient of the ACLU of Tennessee’s Lifetime Achievement Award.