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King & Ballow was formed in 1969 in Nashville, Tennessee by Frank S. King, Jr., and Robert L. Ballow. These founding partners have remained with the firm and continue to guide it into its fourth decade. Frank King began a solo practice in Nashville following his graduation from Vanderbilt Law School in 1952. He also served at various times as a magistrate and an assistant city attorney in Nashville and as city attorney for Brentwood, Tennessee. Bob Ballow started practicing with Frank King after graduating from the Nashville School of Law in 1963, but it was not until 1969 that the firm of King & Ballow was founded. Initially, King & Ballow consisted only of the two founding partners and engaged in a local general practice. Gradually, the firm added attorneys and began developing a concentration in labor law and attracting media clients, particularly from the newspaper industry. King & Ballow currently has a national practice and reputation for its representation of media clients. Although King & Ballow continue to develop its many other practice areas and to expand its client base beyond the media business, it is currently recognized as one of the nation's foremost law firms in the fields of media and labor law. King & Ballow gained national prominence in 1985 when it represented the Chicago Tribune in labor disputes, and again in 1990 and 1991 when it represented the New York Daily News in sensitive labor issues. These high-profile cases led to attorney profiles on 60 Minutes and articles about the firm published in Newsweek, Time, Fortune, The National Law Journal and The New York Times. The San Diego office was added in 1987. King & Ballow's San Diego office originally consisted of three attorneys who had been with a now dissolved local law firm. After a period during which they acted as King & Ballow's local counsel, they agreed to join King & Ballow and open its first office outside Nashville. Today, King & Ballow has grown to be one of the largest law firms in Nashville. Its roster of clients includes communications (BellSouth Mobility), transportation (American Airlines, Roadway Express, Star Transportation), entertainment (Gaylord Entertainment, the Oak Ridge Boys, MCA Music, SESAC), publishing and printing (Thomas Nelson, Inc., American Color), construction (CFW Construction Company), distribution (Ingram Industries), retailing (Dollar General), manufacturing (Link Electric & Safety Control Company), health care (National HealthCorp), and education (Vanderbilt University). King & Ballow also represents major media companies such as Tribune Company, Capital Cities/ABC, Knight-Ridder, Inc., MediaNews Group, and Lee Enterprises, Inc., as well as hundreds of individual newspapers and broadcasters such as the Chicago Tribune, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Denver Post, the San Diego Union-Tribune, the Kansas City Star, the Tulsa World, the Gillett Group, and Post-Newsweek Stations. King & Ballow is also counsel to many trade associations, including the Tennessee Association of Broadcasters.