Jocelyn Wurzburg has been a pioneering figure in mediation and legal practice in Memphis. As the city’s first professional mediator, she has dedicated her career to advancing mediation practices and civil rights law. Ms. Wurzburg retired from active legal practice in 2005 but remains highly involved in the mediation field. Her law degrees were earned from the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law (J.D., 1979) and Rhodes College (B.A. in Sociology/Anthropology, 1965).
Her career highlights include over 600 hours of mediation training and serving as a solo mediation practitioner since 1984. Previously, Ms. Wurzburg practiced law independently from 1982 to 2005 and worked as an associate at Williams, Benham & McDaniel in 1981.
Ms. Wurzburg has been recognized with numerous honors, including the NAACP Lifetime Achievement Award and the Tennessee Human Rights Commission’s Jocelyn Dan Wurzburg Civil Rights Award. She has also received awards from the Woman’s Foundation of Greater Memphis, YWCA, and Shelby County for her diverse contributions to community service and human rights.
Her appointments are extensive, having been named to the Tennessee Human Rights Commission by Governor Bredesen and the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights by President Gerald Ford, among other significant roles. She also played a crucial part in drafting Tennessee’s first anti-discrimination law in 1972.
Ms. Wurzburg is the founder of the Mediation Association of Tennessee and the Memphis Chapter of the Panel of American Women. She remains active in various professional and human rights organizations, including NAACP, NOW, and ACLU.
As an educator, she has taught numerous courses and seminars on mediation, including a basic 40-hour course in mediation and student peer mediation training across Shelby County High Schools.
In her personal life, Jocie Wurzburg was born in 1940 in Memphis, TN, where she was also raised. She is a mother of three, a grandmother of two, and an enthusiastic musician, skilled in playing both the banjo and guitar.