Kathryn Ellis joined LAET's Knoxville office in March 2012 with a primary area of practice in domestic violence (Orders of Protection and divorces). Dr. Ellis also assisted with some housing law issues and some consumer law issues.

In July 2016, Dr. Ellis became the Pro Bono Director for LAET's Knoxville area offices and is responsible for recruiting and coordinating volunteer pro bono attorneys from the private bar to assist LAET clients through direct representation and at legal advice clinics.

Prior to joining LAET, she worked as a sole practitioner practicing both criminal and civil law, in areas including child support, DUI defense, misdemeanor defense, and as a firm attorney in areas including personal injury, workers"™ compensation, wrongful death, and products liability, with an emphasis on drafting appellate briefs.

Dr. Ellis graduated from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia in 1996 with a B.A. in History and Political Science. She then completed an M.A. (1998) and Ph.D. (2007) in History at the University of Tennessee. Dr. Ellis's dissertation, "Slipping Backwards: The Supreme Court, Segregation Legislation, and the African American Press, 1877-1920,” looked at the influence of the U.S. Supreme Court on the evolution of Jim Crow legislation. Finally, Dr. Ellis obtained her J.D. from the University of Tennessee College of Law in May 2010.