Forty Under 40: Carl Frazier-Sparks

After 10 years working for a large Kentucky law firm — the last three as a partner — Carl Frazier-Sparks sought a change.

“In private practice, I felt like a legal mercenary,” said Frazier-Sparks, who grew up in rural Kentucky. “I didn’t get to work for the same client enough to take on any systemic or business problems.”

Frazier-Sparks moved to Arkansas in 2017 to join Walmart’s legal department, where he manages a portfolio of high-exposure and high-visibility class action and commercial litigation in various areas. He’s responsible for all aspects of the litigation lifecycle and advises C-Suite executives on strategy, risk and priorities.

Notably, Frazier-Sparks is one of the lawyers managing Walmart’s defense in a civil suit brought by the Justice Department, which alleges the company unlawfully dispensed and distributed prescription opioids.

Frazier-Sparks does not come from a family of attorneys. Growing up in rural Kentucky, he recalled that all the leaders were often lawyers and that influence appealed to him.

“They could argue for something and make things happen,” he said. “I was interested in doing that, too.”

Frazier-Sparks graduated magna cum laude from Transylvania University in 2004 with a political science degree. He earned a law degree in 2007 from the University of Kentucky College of Law, where he was editor-in-chief of the Kentucky Law Journal. He’s expected to graduate with an MBA from the University of Iowa in December.

Frazier-Sparks is a Symphony of Northwest Arkansas board member and a Transylvania University Board of Regents member. In 2019, the National LGBT Bar Association named Frazier-Sparks to its 40 Under 40 class. Earlier this year, the Lawyers for Civil Justice, a nonprofit trade group, named him a fellow.