Mayor Bill Haslam announced today that Debra C. Poplin has agreed to serve as the City of Knoxville's Law Director.

With the appointment Poplin - the city's deputy law director since 2001 - becomes the first woman to serve as law director in the city's history.

She succeeds current Law Director Morris Kizer who is leaving the city to return to private practice at the end of this month. Kizer has been the city's law director since Haslam first took office in 2003.

"I'm very pleased that Debbie Poplin will be our law director and I look forward to working with her in this new role, Haslam said. "I can't think of a better person for this job. She's already made significant contributions to the city and I know she will make an even greater impact as law director.

"She just brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to this job and we're very fortunate to have her with the city," he added. Poplin, 41, is a Knoxville native and has practiced law in the city since 1990.

She graduated with honors from the University of Tennessee in 1987 with a Bachelor of Arts degree where she majored in political science with a minor in business administration.

Poplin graduated with honors from the University of Cincinnati College of Law in 1990.

She joined the city as an assistant city attorney in late 1990 and was promoted to senior city attorney in 1996 before former Mayor Victor Ashe named her interim law director in 1998, a position she held until being named deputy law director later that year.

Poplin left the city in 1999 to join the firm of Ritchie, Fels & Dillard where her areas of practice included civil litigation, personal injury and corporate law.

She returned to the city as its deputy law director in 2001 and she has been responsible for representing the city, and all its departments and officials, in a wide range of civil cases.

Poplin is married to Rick Poplin and they have two children a daughter, Kendall, and a son, Preston. The family resides in Knox County.