Carolyn S. Wenzel

Carolyn S. Wenzel


Sherrard Roe Voigt & Harbison, PLC

Recognized since 2012

Nashville, Tennessee

Practice Areas

Litigation - Trusts and Estates

Litigation and Controversy - Tax

Nonprofit / Charities Law

Trusts and Estates

Lawyer of the Year Badge - 2022 - Litigation - Trusts and Estates Lawyer of the Year Badge - 2019 - Nonprofit / Charities Law Lawyer of the Year Badge - 2016 - Nonprofit / Charities Law
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Carolyn Wenzel represents companies, tax-exempt organizations, families and individuals in the areas of governance, tax, advocacy and estate planning.

She regularly counsels nonprofit entities and tax-exempt organizations, including public charities, private foundations, trade and professional associations, and religious and educational organizations in the areas of formation, investment decision-making, endowment fund establishment and modification, governance and business planning, regulatory compliance, tax-exemption qualification, dispute resolution, mergers and dissolution.

Carolyn also advises families and individuals in business succession, tax and estate planning, estate and trust administration, and fiduciary compliance. She regularly handles probate administration, conservatorship matters, estate and trust disputes, and probate litigation involving heirs, beneficiaries and fiduciaries.

Her experience includes helping national and Tennessee-based companies with tax planning and problem solving related to Tennessee state and local taxes, including refund claims, voluntary disclosures, audits, administrative conferences and hearings, and judicial appeals. Her representations include controversy work in sales and use tax, business tax, and local property tax for commercial and industrial property owners. Her experience includes counsel to companies in the transportation, communications and energy industries before state revenue agencies and local tax assessors.

Carolyn is a Rule 31 Listed General Civil Mediator by the Tennessee Supreme Court.

Contact & Links
Location
  • 1600 West End Avenue, Suite 1750
    Nashville, TN 37203
Education
  • Grand Valley State University, M.S. in Taxation, graduated 2002
  • University of Kansas, J.D., M.A. in Philosophy, graduated 1993
  • Hollins University, B.A., cum laude, graduated 1989
Bar Admissions
  • Tennessee, Tennessee Bar Association, 1994
  • Michigan, State Bar of Michigan, 1994
Affiliations
  • American Bar Association - Member
  • Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville - Board Member (2009 – 2017)
  • Calvary Young Children’s School - Board Member (2014 – 2016)
  • Community of St. Mary - Board Member (2014 – 2024)
  • FiftyForward - Board Member (2009 – 2015)
  • Immunization Action Coalition (Immunize.org) - Board Member (2021 – 2024)
  • International Women’s Forum - Member, Tennessee Chapter
  • Leadership Nashville - Member (Class of 2016)
  • Mayor’s Economic Inclusion Advisory Committee - Member (2016 – 2017)
  • Nashville Opera - Board Member (2011 – 2017), President (2015 – 2016)
  • Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce - Board Member, General Counsel (2020 – 2021)
  • Nashville Bar Association - Member
  • Nashville Bar Foundation - Fellow
  • Nashville Electric Service - Member, Electric Power Board (2015 – 2021)
  • Nashville Symphony - Board Member (2018 – 2024)
  • State Bar of Michigan - Member
  • Studio Bank - Founders’ Advisory Board Member (2018 – present)
  • Tennessee Bar Association - Member
  • Tennessee Board of Law Examiners - Member – appointed by the Tennessee Supreme Court (2022 – present)
  • United Methodist Church - Member, Board of Trustees, Tennessee-Western Kentucky Conference (2015 – 2024)
  • United Methodist Foundation - Board Member, Tennessee-Western Kentucky Conference (2012 – present)
Court Admissions
  • U.S. Tax Court
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit
  • U.S. District Court, Western District of Michigan
  • U.S. District Court, Middle District of Tennessee
  • Supreme Court of the United States
State Clerkships
  • Michigan - Trial Courts

Lawyer of the Year Badge - 2022 - Litigation - Trusts and Estates Lawyer of the Year Badge - 2019 - Nonprofit / Charities Law Lawyer of the Year Badge - 2016 - Nonprofit / Charities Law
Named "Lawyer of the Year" by Best Lawyers® for:
  • Litigation - Trusts and Estates, Nashville (2022)
  • Nonprofit / Charities Law, Nashville (2019)
  • Nonprofit / Charities Law, Nashville (2016)
Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® 2025 for work in:
  • Litigation - Trusts and Estates
  • Litigation and Controversy - Tax
  • Nonprofit / Charities Law
  • Trusts and Estates
Awards:
  • FiftyForward Harriet Foley Leadership Award (2015)

  • Martindale-Hubbell®, AV Preeminent Peer Review Rated

  • Nashville Business Journal “Best of the Bar” (2014 – 2015, 2018)

  • Nashville Business Journal “Women of Influence” Awards Finalist Finalist (2013)

  • Super Lawyers, Tax (2015)

  • Tennessee Supreme Court Attorneys for Justice Pro Bono Honor Roll (2014 – 2016, 2018 – 2020, 2023

Additional Areas of Practice:
  • Tax Law

Publications

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