John Bowers

John D. Bowers serves as Thompson Burton’s Chief Executive Officer. In this role, he is responsible for developing and implementing the Firm’s business strategy.

Prior to joining the Firm, John served in law firm executive roles with a tax and estates boutique in Nebraska as well as the largest intellectual property boutique in Tennessee. He brings decades of law firm leadership in finance, technology, business development and marketing, facilities, attorney and staff recruitment, human resources and benefits operations.

John’s career in the legal industry began in 2000 in the Accounts Payable Department of an American Lawyer 200 firm and he transitioned into progressively more consequential leadership roles with business development teams for Philadelphia-based firms including Fox Rothschild, Saul Ewing, and Duane Morris.

Active in professional and community organizations, John serves as:

• Secretary and Board Member for the Battlefield of Franklin Trust

• Trustee at ClearView Baptist Church

• Immediate Past Chair of the Future Readiness Advisory Council of the Association of Legal Administrators

• Member of Messiah University's Law Professionals Council

• Mentor in the Entrepreneurial Leadership Program at Battle Ground Academy as well as the Williamson County Entrepreneurial and Innovation Center

He is an active member of the Middle Tennessee Association of Legal Administrators and the American Bar Association’s Law Practice Division.

John is the proud husband to Sarah Jane and they thrive in Franklin, TN, together with their daughter and son.

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Education

B.S. in International Business, Messiah University, 1999
             - International Business Institute, 1998

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Public Speaking

• Co-Presenter, "Surveying the Future," Association of Legal Administrators' Chapter Leadership Institute, July 17, 2026.
• Co-Presenter, "Holding Space Without Burning Out: Empathy Skills for Difficult Moments" Austin ALA Chapter, June 25, 2026
• Moderator, "Real Law Firm AI," Tennessee Association of Legal Administrators Statewide Retreat, March 6, 2026.
• Interviewee, "Not a Lawyer and That's the Point: The Case for Redefining the Law Firm," The Mostly Legal Podcast, June 17, 2025.
• Interviewee, "Understanding Neurodiversity in the Legal Field" Legal Management Magazine, May 2025.
• Co-Presenter, "Mental Well-Being in Professional Service Firms" GGI Global Alliance Best Practices and Developing Leaders Conference, January 31, 2025.
• Co-Presenter, "#LovedJennie - The Movement: Equal Access to Mental Health" Association of Legal Administrators' Chapter Leadership Institute, July 19, 2024.
• Moderator, "Summer Associate Programs" Middle Tennessee Association of Legal Administrators, June 20, 2024.
• Interviewee, “The Middle Tennessee Chapter Turns Grief into Action”‍Legal Management magazine, March 14, 2024.
• Interviewee, “Navigating the Multi-Generational Law Firm” Centerbase webinar, August 17, 2023.
• Moderator, “Quiet Quitting, Comp Comparisons, Benefits? Oh MY!!” Tennessee Association of Legal Administrators Statewide Retreat, February 17, 2023.
• Moderator, “The Office: Revisited,” Tennessee Association of Legal Administrators Statewide Retreat, February, 18, 2022.
• Interviewee, “Financial Controls for Law Firms: Accounting Policy” Legal Visionaries podcast, November 2, 2021.
• Co-Moderator, “Neurodiversity in the Courtroom: Supporting the Differently-Wired Brain,” Tennessee Bench/Bar Program, June 17, 2021.
• Presenter, “Law Firm Economics 101” National Association of Legal Secretaries Nashville Chapter, November 11, 2020.
• Moderator, “Great Minds Don’t Always Think Alike: Neurodiversity in the Practice of Law,” American Bar Association, August 18, 2020.

Publications

How You Can Help Advance Equal Access to Mental Health Support
April 2025 Association of Legal Administrators Just the Facts

How to Find Contentment Amid Career Ambitions
November 2024 Law Practice magazine

Book Reading is Fun[damental]
July 2024 Law Practice magazine

Just Power Through: Equal Access to Mental Wellness in Law
March 2024 Law Practice magazine

Social Modesty: Turning Down the Noise
December 2023 Law Practice magazine

Workplace Continuum: From Engagement to Moral Injury
July/August 2023 Law Practice magazine

‍Intergenerational Distractions: Previously Unpublished?
March/April 2023 Law Practice magazine

‍Confronting Low Unemployment in Legal: Retain Good People
November/December 2022 Law Practice magazine

‍Resolving Client Complaints
July/August 2022 Law Practice magazine

‍Elite Teams Chase Not the Star, but the Right Atmosphere‍

March/April 2022 Law Practice magazine

‍Financial Wellness: Your Secret Stress Deterrent
November/December 2021 Law Practice magazine

‍Planning for Client Transitions Is Not Just for Solos
July/August 2021 Law Practice magazine

‍Solos and Small Firms: What’s Your Endgame?
June 15, 2021 Law Practice Today

‍Fighting Financial Fraud in Legal
March 2021 Law Practice magazine

‍Changing Tech and Managing Change: Pandemic Agility and Empathy
Jan 15, 2021  Law Practice magazine

‍Neurodiversity in the Practice of Law: Great Minds Don’t Always Think Alike
Nov 15, 2020  Law Practice magazine

‍10 Reasons You Should Hire a Nonlawyer Administrator
Sep 2, 2020  Law Practice

‍Billing Policy: The Humdrum Profitability Conundrum
May 1, 2020  Law Practice magazine

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