Lori Phillips-Jones

This encyclopedia article is about a living person.

Lori Phillips-Jones is an Oneida attorney who currently serves as the town’s mayor. She was elected in 2023.

See Also: Mayors of Oneida

Preceded By: Jack E. Lay

Early Life

Born Nov. 25, 1973, Lori Phillips is the daughter of Thomas Phillips and Dorothy Mills Phillips. Her father is a retired federal judge, who was appointed to the U.S. District Court of Eastern Tennessee by President George W. Bush in 2002.

Phillips-Jones graduated from Oneida High School. She married Phillip Jones in 1996. They have two children: Daughter Claire and son Alex.

She graduated from the University of Tennessee School of Law in 1999.

Professional Career

Phillips-Jones served as an assistant district attorney from 1997 to 2012. She was appointed district attorney general for Tennessee’s 8th Judicial District in 2012, when Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam named her to replace her uncle, William Paul Phillips, who was retiring. She served in that capacity until 2014.

Phillips-Jones has also served multiple stints on the Oneida Special School District Board of Education, and was later appointed to the Oneida Board of Aldermen. She is a past Scott County coordinator for the Imagination Library, has served on the board of the Appalachian Life Quality Initiative (ALQI) and on the board of S.T.A.N.D.

Oneida Mayor

Phillips-Jones won a three-way race to replace Jack E. Lay in November 2023. She served on the town’s board of aldermen at the time. She received more than 60% of the vote in a race that included former city employee Bruce Mays and Oneida businessman Harold Brooks.

Phillips-Jones assumed office later in November 2023.