School field trip to Cades Cove with daughter Kaiya
End of a long day of yard work with daughter Natasha
About Van Irion (pronounced "ear-ee-on")
I’m a grateful Christian - God has blessed me with a wonderful wife, two sweet daughters, and the opportunity to live in the best part of this country, East Tennessee. I strive to live my life in a manner that honors God and my family.
I’m also a patent attorney with my own law firm, Law Office of Van R Irion PLLC. My practice includes patents, business transactions, contract disputes, civil litigation, and constitutional law. But my favorite legal work is to help clients start new businesses. East Tennessee is blessed with all the ingredients for great business ventures: intelligent and creative people, a low tax burden and amazing resources for business development. It is gratifying to be a part of our region’s economic development.
At the age of 18 I joined the US Air Force and served for four years as an Air Traffic Controller in the Little Rock AFB control tower. After being honorably discharged, I earned a degree in Biochemistry from the University of California. I worked for several years as a researcher for the UC Davis School of Medicine, then started my own biotech company to develop a novel treatment for acute injury and stroke. During these years, I was also a volunteer firefighter/EMT for my local fire department, donating more than 2000 hours to my community.
I’ve always been interested in law and government so I returned to school to pursue a Juris Doctorate. I graduated with honors and then moved to Tennessee within 24hrs of the ceremony, eager to return to my Tennessee roots.
My family spent several generations in Tennessee. In 1762, the first Irion came to America from Germany. He fought for America in the Revolutionary war, then moved to what would become Tennessee. His son William Irion married Amelia Cade and gave birth to Van Rensallier Irion, for whom I’m named. My ancestor, Van Rensallier Irion, signed the Constitution of the Republic of Texas and was the first Secretary of State for the Republic of Texas.
