Daniel L. Clayton

Daniel Clayton Best Lawyers "Lawyer of the Year" Awards: 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022, 2020, 2018, 2016, 2015, 2012


Professional Background - A Leader in the Law.

Daniel Clayton is certified as a Civil Trial Specialist and a Medical Malpractice Specialist.

He is a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers; Fellow in the International Academy of Trial Lawyers; and a Member of the American Board of Trial Advocates.

He is a much sought after speaker on the subject of trial practice. He has given presentations across the state of Tennessee, Florida and Georgia, not only to other attorneys, but also as a featured speaker at multiple seminars for Tennessee judges.

Daniel is a past President of the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association. He also serves on the Board of Governors for TTLA. He is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and a Fellow of the International Academy of Trial Lawyers. He is also a member of AAJ, the Circle of Advocates, the Southern Trial Lawyers Association, and the National Trial Lawyers Association. He is a past president and current Trustee of the Nashville Bar Foundation and a member of the Board of Directors for the Nashville Bar Association. He is Vice President of the Tennessee Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates, a member of the Tennessee Bar Foundation and was selected as a Senior Counsel member of the American College of Barristers. Daniel was also appointed by the Tennessee Supreme Court to serve as a hearing officer for the Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility and did so for two terms.

Daniel is a graduate of Lipscomb University (B.A. 1984) and the University of Tennessee College of Law (J.D. 1987). While in law school, he was a National Semi-Finalist member of the National Trial Moot Court Team. He is a past recipient of the Distinguished Service Award for his contributions to the legal community. He has an AV-Preeminent rating with Martindale-Hubbell.

Community Service - A Leader in the Community.

Giving back to the community is an important part of Daniel's life. "Shortly before my dad died from cancer, he asked me, 'Daniel, what will you do to serve?' I have used that question to help guide me in my life, not only in my law practice, but in my community and with my own family and children."

In 1994, Daniel was elected to the Franklin Special School District Board of Education. He served as Treasurer from 1994-1997. During his tenure, the Board received the 'Tennessee School Board of the Year' award.

Daniel has been involved as a team leader in missions work, not only on U.S. soil, but also in areas of Mexico and Jamaica. During a 20 year period of time, he and his wife served as foster parents to over 25 children including special needs and disabled children. Daniel also served as a youth basketball coach for 15 years.

Courtroom Success - A Commitment to Excellence.

Daniel has been a part of multiple record-breaking verdicts.

Daniel obtained a 5,000,000.00 medical malpractice verdict in Nashville, Tennessee involving the wrongful death of a 2 year old.

Daniel obtained what was reported by news outlet and the presiding judge as a record breaking automobile verdict in Rutherford County, Tennessee. The total verdict was in excess of $2,900,000.00.

At his former firm, Daniel was part of the trial attorneys who obtained a 23,000,000.00 verdict in a medical negligence case in Chattanooga, Tn., which was the largest medical malpractice verdict in Tennessee history for an individual person at the time.

Daniel has handled numerous high-profile cases that have received local and national media attention involving deaths and serious injuries of well-known families from automobile and tractor-trailer wrecks as well as medical malpractice and product liability claims. Daniel represented multiple families in the nationwide fungal meningitis disaster. Daniel has successfully handled multiple brain injury cases including birth trauma injuries.

Daniel has also obtained other jury verdicts in excess of 1 million dollars for clients and has secured numerous million and multi-million dollar settlements throughout his career.

His areas of practice include catastrophic and personal injury, automobile and tractor trailer litigation, wrongful death, medical negligence, and product liability.