Bill Hall, a 40-year-old Chattanooga attorney who also served as an assistant district attorney, died in Arkansas, where he and his wife, Linda, had moved. He was also a Marine Corps veteran, police officer, and college professor.
Mr. Hall was a member of the U.S. Marine Corps from 1960 to 1966. After his military service, he went to work as a police officer in Aurora, Illinois, where during his 12 years in office he climbed up the ranks, going from a police officer to a shift commander.
While working as a police officer, he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Criminology and Corrections from Aurora College, a Master of Arts in Public Administration from Northern Illinois University; and began working on her law degree.
He received his Juris Doctor from Northern Illinois University College of Law in 1978 with a specialization in public law.
After graduating from law school, Mr. Hall moved to Chattanooga to teach in the criminal justice program at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. While at UTC, he served as head of the criminal justice department. He started his law practice in Chattanooga in 1979 and established his own law firm in Soddy Daisy in 1986. He spent the next four decades helping clients from all walks of life with their various legal issues.
In 1995, Mr. Hall accepted a position as Coordinator of what became, through his vision and leadership, the Legal Assistant Curriculum at UTC. From 1978 to 2000, he worked as a tenured associate professor at the School of Community and Social Services at UTC where he taught many students who later became members of the Chattanooga Bar.
After retiring from UTC in 2000, he taught in the Criminal Justice program for another four years as a post-tenured retired professor.
In 2005, he accepted a position as an assistant district attorney in Hamilton County, retiring in 2017. He worked for the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office in the Investigations and Fugitives Administration Department until in 2020, when he and his wife and legal partner of 27 years, Linda Hall, also a longtime Chattanooga attorney, moved to Arkansas to build his dream home on the banks of the White River.
In addition to his many legal and academic accomplishments and contributions, Mr. Hall was a gifted guitarist and singer. He was the founding member of a group of attorneys affectionately called “The Pro Boners” who performed at various Pro Bono and other events in Chattanooga. He was also a gentleman farmer and a brave and enthusiastic participant in countless Pilates and Barre classes with his wife and friend Sheri Fox.
Bill is survived by his wife Linda Hall; two sons, Brian Hall (Sandra Hall) of Mission Viejo, Calif., and Brock Hall of Chattanooga; two grandchildren; and three dogs, Beauregard, Fuzz and Abbie Tsu.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Hospice of the Ozarks or the American Heart Association.
