ABOUT MIKE
A Lifetime of Service
Michael “Mike” Roden is a native of Piggott, Arkansas, the proud youngest son of a cotton, soybean and wheat farmer. Working on the farm gave Mike an appreciation of the role agriculture plays in our country and the struggles of small business. After graduating from high school in 1977, Mike attended Harding University, where he wrote for the school newspaper and was president of the Pre-Law Club. He graduated early in May 1980 (cum laude) with a major in political science and a minor in journalism.
Accepted at several law schools, Mike chose Memphis State University (now the University of Memphis) School of Law, where he wrote for the Law Review. He graduated in December 1982, in the top 10% of his class and won the American Jurisprudence Award for the study of Conflicts. He served as law clerk to U.S. Magistrate Judge J. David Orlansky in Greenville, Mississippi from January 1983 to May 1984, after which he came to Nashville and clerked for U.S. Magistrate Judge Kent Sandidge, III from June 1984 to August 1987.
Mike with Attorney General Janet Reno, 1993
In August 1987, Mike became a trial attorney for the Solicitor’s Office, U.S. Department of Labor in Nashville, and handled cases involving black lung benefits, mine safety, and wage and hour violations. His most prominent case during that time was a wage and hour case against the Opryland Hotel. In October 1990, he fulfilled his life-long dream of becoming an Assistant U.S. Attorney, when he accepted a position in the Civil Division, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Middle District of Tennessee, where he served continuously until his retirement on December 31, 2022.
Mike with Attorney General John Ashcroft, 2002
While always serving in the Civil Division, Mike also prosecuted several criminal cases during the the first 10 years in the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Among the criminal cases he prosecuted were bank robbery, bank embezzlement, labor union embezzlement, false claims, immigration fraud, and video piracy. His most prominent criminal cases were the drug prosecutions of a notorious Nashville crack cocaine entrepreneur and his L.A. connection, which resulted in two trials and two Sixth Circuit appeals.
On the Civil side, Mike has done just about everything over the years, with the majority of his work being cases under the Federal Tort Claims Act [FTCA] and employment discrimination. He’s also handled constitutional torts under Bivens, land condemnation, environmental, FOIA, ADA enforcement, Immigration, ACE, forfeiture, and even Bankruptcy. For three years he headed up the FLU unit, during which time, the Middle District of Tennessee moved from the bottom third to the top third of offices around the country in collections. On the collateral duty side, Mike has been an EEO counselor and investigator, the prevention of sexual harassment coordinator, and the crisis management coordinator. He has argued at the Sixth Circuit at least 30 times, and twice earned Meritorious Service citations from the Department of Justice. His cases have been featured on CBS’ “60 Minutes” and NPR’s “All Things Considered.”
Mike’s father was a veteran of World War II and served in a tank destroyer battalion in General George Patton’s Third Army, earning a Bronze Star and Purple Heart. Because of his dad’s heroic service, Mike also felt the call to duty, and gained a direct commission to the U.S. Army Judge Advocate Corps. Mike spent 28 years in the U.S. Army Reserve, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel in 2018. He had two deployments during that time, in support of the Global War on Terror, for which he took leave from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, from January 2003 to August 2003, and again from December 2009 to June 2010. During the build up to Operation Iraqi Freedom, Mike taught Law of War and Rules of Engagement classes for deploying soldiers at Fort Benning, Georgia.
Mike with Brigadier General Charles Luckey,
Commanding General of the U.S. Army Reserve, 2007
With life-long friend, investigative journalist Jerry Mitchell, Mike has written six screenplays. The writing duo are are represented by influential agent Jon Levin in Los Angeles. One of their scripts was optioned by Amblin Pictures, the corporate home of director Steven Spielberg. Another script, an independent production, is currently in development and is expected to be filmed in 2023.
Mike has been married to Laura Payne Roden for over 40 years. They have two adult children and live in Franklin, Tennessee.