Judge Snyder First Female To Receive Judges Conference Top Award

Chattanooga, Tenn.–History was made at the recent Tennessee General Sessions Judges Conference in Chattanooga, as Henry County General Sessions Court Judge Vicki S. Snyder became the first female judge to win the conference’s top honor.
 
This award is given out annually to a judge or judges who distinguish themselves through their outstanding service to the community, the conference, and the judiciary as a whole. Judge Snyder is the first woman to win the award, which has been handed out annually since 2013 and which is named after former Davidson County General Sessions Court Judge Leon Ruben.
 
Conference President and Hamilton County General Sessions Judge Gary Starnes introduced the Judge Leon Ruben Award by explaining that it “is not given out lightly” and is presented only to those who truly exemplify what it means to be a great judge.
 
“They do things differently,” he said. “They go above and beyond the call of duty.”
 
Judge Starnes said that Judge Snyder was wholly deserving of the historic honor.
 
“I’m proud to present this to you, Judge Snyder,” he said. “Thank you for your service to our conference.”
 
Accepting the award, Judge Snyder took the opportunity to speak of her love for her job and her respect for her colleagues.
 
“You know I count myself as privileged to work alongside each of you,” she said. “It’s  a special joy to be able to do  what we do on a daily basis, and I’m grateful for that.”
 
She said she was honored to win an award named after the late Judge Ruben, who she called “one of a kind” and the embodiment of the “fruits of the spirit” found in the Bible.
 
“Love, joy, peace patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control,” she said. “To be able to emulate that is what I hope for every day. Thank you so much.”
 
Judge Snyder worked in private practice and as both an assistant public defender and an assistant district attorney general in Tennessee’s 24^th Judicial District before winning election to the Henry County General Sessions Court bench in 2006.
 
She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Tennessee at Martin and her juris doctor from the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law.
 
The Judge Leon Ruben Award is not the first prestigious judicial award that Judge Snyder has won in recent years. In 2016, she was recognized with the McCain-Abernathy Award by the Tennessee Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges.