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Scott D. Carey

Shareholder

Scott D. Carey concentrates his practice in complex business and tort litigation, with a special emphasis on logistics and transportation-related litigation. He is the former leader of the Transportation Group and is the former managing shareholder of Baker Donelson's Nashville office.

Professional Biography


Mr. Carey is a seasoned litigator who represents clients across the United States and internationally in high exposure litigation. He is licensed in both Tennessee and Georgia and is a certified Rule 31 Mediator.

Mr. Carey defends motor carriers, logistics brokers, and shippers in serious tractor trailer accidents, as well as  a wide range of clients in other industries in catastrophic injury cases. He routinely advises clients on the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, and he is a member of the Firm's 24-Hour Emergency Response Team.

He represents transportation brokers, freight forwarders, warehouseman, other third-party logistics providers and shippers in a broad range of disputes, including breaches of transportation and logistics contracts; enforcement of non-compete agreements; high value cargo damage and loss claims under the Carmack Amendment; freight charge and rate controversies; insurance coverage disputes; and class action defense. Mr. Carey reviews, drafts, and negotiates all types of logistics and transportation agreements and counsels his clients on identifying and mitigating risks.

In addition to his 30 plus years of litigation experience, Mr. Carey also represents major manufacturing companies in their economic development incentive matters. He has served as the legal project manager for several of the largest foreign direct investments in Tennessee history. He is a member of the Firm's Electric Vehicle and Infrastructure Team (EVI), which supports EV manufacturers and suppliers, including software technology and charging system providers, in all legal and business matters.

Mr. Carey is engaged in the Nashville community, currently serving on the executive committee for the board of Nashville Public Television (NPT) and as an elder at Westminster Presbyterian Church. He was a member of the 2017 – 2018 Leadership Nashville Class and served as co-chair the next year. He is active in the Nashville Chamber, having been a board member and general counsel. Mr. Carey also counseled the Tennessee Republican Party for 15 years as its general counsel.

  • Successfully defended KLLM Transport Services, Inc. in a jury trial in state court, DRI™ The Voice.

  • Represented a U.S. subsidiary of a South Korean multinational electronics company in an investment to construct a new 829,000-square-foot home appliance manufacturing facility near Clarksville, Tennessee.
  • Successfully defended a multinational retail corporation in a wrongful death case involving a traffic accident. The client avoided paying tens of millions in damages, left to pay only medical costs that it had already agreed upon paying.

  • Represented a medical device manufacturer in a defective hip replacement litigation.

  • Represented various food producers in contamination cases.

  • Represented a natural gas company in fire/explosion cases.

  • Represented a large funeral and cemetery company in products liability cases involving burial containers.

  • Investigated and represented various clients in fire-related litigation, including fires in cars, buses, trucks, warehouses, homes, and businesses.

  • AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell
  • General counsel for the Tennessee Republican Party (2005 – 2020)
  • Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 31 Mediator
  • Listed in The Best Lawyers in America® for Commercial Litigation and Transportation Law since 2007; Personal Injury Litigation - Defendants since 2011
  • Named the Best Lawyers® 2025 and 2018 Transportation Law "Lawyer of the Year" in Nashville
  • Named the Best Lawyers® 2017 Personal Injury Litigation - Defendants "Lawyer of the Year" in Nashville
  • Listed in Mid-South Super Lawyers since 2007
  • Listed as among the top 50 Nashville attorneys and the top 100 Mid-South attorneys by Mid-South Super Lawyers (2014 – 2018)
  • "Most Admired CEOs" honoree by the Nashville Business Journal (2015)
  • "The Best of the Bar" honoree by the Nashville Business Journal (2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2023)
  • Member – Disciplinary Hearing Committee, Tennessee Supreme Court, District V
  • Member – Tennessee Business Court Rules Advisory Committee
  • Member – American Bar Association (House of Delegates, 2001 – 2004)
  • Member – Tennessee Bar Association (Board of Governors, 1999 – 2001; Chair-Judiciary Committee; Governmental Affairs Committee; Racial and Ethnic Diversity Committee; various positions in the Young Lawyers Division, including president)
  • Member – Nashville Bar Association (Board of Directors, 2001 – 2004; various positions in the Young Lawyers Division, including president) 
  • Fellow – The Nashville Bar Foundation
  • Fellow – The American Bar Foundation 
  • Member – Tennessee Economic Development Council
  • Member – Baker Donelson's 24-Hour Transportation Emergency Response Team

Transportation Organizations 

  • Member – Transportation Lawyers Association (Emeritus Chair, Commercial and Business Litigation Committee)
  • Member – Truckload Carriers Association
  • Member – Transportation Intermediaries Association
  • Member – Tennessee Trucking Association
  • Member – Association of Transportation Law Professionals
  • Member – DRI (Trucking Law committee)
  • Member – Trucking Industry Defense Association
  • Member – Conference of Freight Counsel

Political Organizations 

  • Member – Republican National Lawyers Association
  • Delegate – Republican National Conventions, 2016; Alternate Delegate, 2008 and 2012

Community Involvement

  • Board Member – Nashville Public Television
  • Leadership Nashville, Class of 2017 – 2018 (Co-Chair, Class of 2018 – 2019)
  • Past Board Member and General Counsel – Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce
  • Downtown Rotary Club
  • Past Board Member – Boys and Girls Club of Middle Tennessee
  • Member – Pi Kappa Alpha Alumni Board (Sigma Chapter)
  • Elder – Westminster Presbyterian Church
  • Moderator – "The Intersection of Technology and Transportation: Litigation Risks & Forecasting," 2024 TLA Transportation Law Institute (November 2024)
  • Panel Moderator – "Cybersecurity in Transportation and Logistics: A Ransomware Tale," 2024 TLA Annual Conference (May 2024)
  • "It's a Damages Case, Now What?," Transportation Lawyers Association Transportation Law Institute, Salt Lake City, Utah (October 2023)
  • "Avoiding Nuclear Verdicts in Catastrophic Accident Cases," NPTC National Safety 2021 Conference (September 2021)
  • Panel Moderator – "Accident Response Strategies that Mitigate Your Accident Liability," National Private Truck Council's 2014 National Safety Conference, Washington, D.C. (September 2012)
  • Panel Moderator – "Ethics: Are Lawyers Vanishing?," 2014 TLA Annual Conference (May 2014)
  • Panel – "The Vanishing Lawyer: What Might have Been," Tennessee Judicial Conference, Nashville, Tennessee (June 2013)
  • "Mediation and Settlement Negotiations," 2013 TLA Annual Conference and CTLA Mid-Year (May 2013)
  • Program Chair – Transportation Lawyers' Association's Transportation Law Institute, Nashville, Tennessee (November 2012)
  • "Target Defendants: Protecting Trucking Companies," webinar (October 2012)
  • "Mitigating Liability Exposure: What Take-Away Lessons Fleets Can Learn from the Courtroom," National Private Truck Council's 2012 National Safety Conference, Washington, D.C. (September 2012)
  • "Transportation Insurance Case Law Update," TLA Annual Conference (2012)
  • Panelist – "Defense Litigation Strategies for Handling Claims Based on Safety Regulations, Including CSA and Hours of Service," The 44th Transportation Law Institute, Washington, D.C. (November 2011)

Education

  • University of Tennessee School of Law, J.D., 1992
  • Vanderbilt University, B.A., 1989

Admissions

  • Tennessee, 1992
  • Georgia, 2023
  • U.S. Supreme Court, 1997
  • Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, 1995
  • Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, 1997
  • Federal District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, 1993
  • Supreme Court of Tennessee, 1992

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