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Clinton P. Sanko

ESI/Contract Counsel Officer

Clinton Sanko, office managing shareholder in Baker Donelson's Chattanooga office and the Firm's eDiscovery and document review officer, is a seasoned commercial trial lawyer advocating for client value through proportionate eDiscovery.

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Professional Biography


Clinton Sanko is the office managing shareholder of Baker Donelson's Chattanooga office and the Firm's eDiscovery officer. He is an experienced commercial trial lawyer with substantial experience in high-stakes, complex commercial litigation. Clinton has extensive experience litigating employee mobility issues, including labor antitrust litigation, trade-secret disputes, and non-competition covenants. This includes defending a client in two large multidistrict antitrust class actions alleging wage and compensation fixing of thousands of employees. In trade secret misappropriation cases, Clinton navigates among forensic specialists, in-house IT, and client legal teams to identify key evidence and build (or defend against) a trade secret claim. Clinton also handles contract litigation disputes (particularly those involving technology), minority-shareholder rights cases, condemnation, and other commercial matters.

As the firm's eDiscovery officer, Clinton oversees the technology, process, and staffing supporting the firm's eDiscovery efforts. Appointed as a special master in a trade secret dispute, he applies a practical, case-specific approach. In class actions, Clinton has led certain Joint Defense Group discovery committees. He champions an efficiency-through-proportionality model, combining analytics with disciplined workflows to manage costs while maintaining defensibility. A frequent speaker on eDiscovery, he emphasizes collaboration among experienced lawyers, project managers, necessary document reviewers, and technologists through clear protocols and quality controls. His leadership ensures relevant data is preserved, collected, reviewed, and produced on time, within budget, and in a form that supports the merits.

Clinton also advises clients on the accelerating influence of artificial intelligence in litigation strategy. He views AI not as a replacement for advocacy but as an integrated accelerator that can rewire every stage of a dispute – from early risk assessment through trial presentation. By embedding responsible AI into search, review, deposition preparation, motion practice, and fact management, he helps clients harvest insights earlier, surface patterns humans might miss, and redeploy legal talent to higher-value analysis. Although mindful of privacy, privilege, and accuracy risks, Clinton believes that carefully governed AI will unlock powerful synergies – particularly in discovery and fact narrative development – that shorten timelines, sharpen arguments, and ultimately enhance outcomes for clients (and courts) alike.

Clinton is a member of the firm's Technology Steering Committee.

  • Listed in Mid-South Super Lawyers (2016 – 2018)
  • Listed in Mid-South Rising Stars (2013 – 2014)
  • AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell
  • Rule 31 Listed General Civil Mediator
  • Member – American Bar Association, Young Lawyers Division, Dispute Resolution Section (Vice Chairperson, 2006 – 2007)
  • Member – Chattanooga Technology Council
  • Member – DRI
  • Member – Federal Bar Association
  • Member – Tennessee Bar Association
  • Member – Chattanooga Bar Association
  • Instructor – University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Spring 2013, Digital Investigation of Crimes
  • Recipient – JD Supra Readers' Choice Award – Top Author in eDiscovery (2018, 2021, 2022)
  • Recognized in "The Gold Club 2018" as one of 30 influential business leaders by City Scope Magazine
  • Associate Member – Brock and Cooper Inns of Court (2006 – 2007)
  • Panelist – "AI in the Life of a Lawyer," 2025 Convention CLE Programming, Tennessee Bar Association (June 2025)
  • Panelist – "Intersection of the Law and AI," Project Voice 2025 Conference (April 2025)
  • "The Evolving World of Non-competes," 27th Annual Urgent Legal Issues for the Modern Business (April 2025)
  • "Fake Evidence: Deepfakes, Shallow Fakes, and the Liar's Dividend," 12th Annual UF Law E-Discovery Conference (February 2025)
  • "Bracing For The Impact Of GenAI On Litigation," Tennessee Bar Association's Conference on Artificial Intelligence & the Law (December 2024)
  • "ESI Case Law Session 1: Ethics, Discovery Process, Preservation, and Search," Sedona Conference (October 2024)
  • "eDiscovery for Litigators: When eDiscovery Intersect with the Merits of the Case," Navigating The Depths of E-Discovery, Louisiana State Bar Association (August 2024)
  • "eDiscovery Management in Bet the Company and Run the Company Cases (and in Between)," LEI's 2024 Lean Summit (April 2024)
  • "eDiscovery Meets the Merits: Preserving, Finding and Using Electronic Information," 56th Annual Midwest Labor and Employment Law Seminar, Columbus, Ohio (October 2019)
  • "Email – A Legal Affair," Association of Corporate Counsel, Alabama Chapter (September 2018)
  • Co-presenter – "Analyzing the Impact of Artificial Intelligence in Legal," Innovation to Add Value Webinar Series, Tennessee Commission on CLE and Specialization (September 2018)
  • "Lean Manufacturing Meets EDiscovery," 75th Judicial Conference of the Sixth Circuit (May 2018)
  • Panelist – "'Busting' Big Data With the 3 P's: People, Process + Platforms," ABA Corporate Counsel CLE Seminar, Scottsdale, Arizona (February 2016)
  • Moderator – "The Ethics of Taking Care of Your Documents and Email," Baker Donelson Long Term Care Symposium, Nashville, Tennessee (November 2014)
  • Co-presenter – "Cybersecurity Risks: Was the client's data breach your fault?," KBA's Law Practice Today Expo CLE session, Knoxville, Tennessee (April 2014)
  • Co-presenter – "What's Trending Now: Current Topics in e-Discovery and Social Media," International Paper, Memphis, Tennessee (November 2013)
  • Co-presenter – "eDiscovery Boot Camp," 7th Annual Labor and Employment Law Conference, New Orleans, Louisiana (November 2013)
  • "Email in 2013: a Perspective," off-site client presentation (July 2013)
  • Co-presenter – "Transparency in Discovery: Living in a Glass House," webinar sponsored by Recommind (June 2013)
  • "Campaigns/Technology/Social Media," Tennessee Judicial Conference and the Administrative Office of the Courts, Spring Conference (March 2013)
  • "Practical Tips on How to Request Social Media in Discovery," 6th Annual Law Conference for Tennessee Practitioners (2012)
  • Co-presenter – "Ediscovery in Employment Cases: Legal Issues, Best Practices & Practical Tips," Nashville Bar Association, Employment Law Institute (October 2012)
  • "Social Media: Discovery and Trial Impacts," Tennessee Clerks of Court Conference, Fall Conference (September 2012)
  • "Practical Tips for Requesting Social Media Discovery," TBA General Practice Sampler (June 2012)
  • "Social Media in the Courtroom," Tennessee Judicial Conference Spring 2012 (March 2012)
  • Co-presenter – "e-Discovery: Navigating the Industry and Its Players," CLE (December 2011)
  • Co-presenter – "Document Retention for Human Resource Professionals," Tennessee SHRM Conference (September 2011)
  • Co-presenter – "SharePoint and e-Discovery - Working Together," Virtual LegalTech (June 2011)
  • Co-presenter – "Document Review Best Practices for In-House Counsel," CLE (May 2011)
  • "e-Discovery for the Business Lawyer (and Electronic Privacy in the Workplace)," TBA CLE (March 2011)

Education

  • The Pennsylvania State University Dickinson School of Law, J.D., 2001, magna cum laude
  • Grove City College, B.A., 1998, cum laude, with honors in History

Admissions

  • Tennessee, 2004
  • Pennsylvania, 2001
  • United States District Court, Middle District of Tennessee, 2013
  • United States District Court, Eastern District of Tennessee, 2004
  • United States District Court, Western District of Pennsylvania, 2002

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