• Mississippi State University 1977 B.S. - Banking and Finance

    • University of Mississippi 1983 J.D.; Member of the Moot Court Board; Member of Phi Delta Phi Honor Fraternity

    • Admitted to the Mississippi Supreme Court; Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals; and U.S. District Court for the Northern and Southern Districts of Mississippi; United States Tax Court

    • Member of the Mississippi Bar Association, past President of the Coahoma County Bar Association and Member of Lafayette County Bar Association

    • Approved member of the Court of Neutrals for the U.S. District Court for the Northern and Southern Districts of Mississippi

  • Approved member of the Mississippi Bar Association list of Mediators


Upon graduating from Mississippi State University, I spent three years farming before returning to law school. After graduating from the University of Mississippi law school in 1983, I went to work with Merkel & Cocke Law Firm in Clarksdale, MS where I practiced law for twenty-four years. In 2004, I moved from Clarksdale to Oxford, MS, but continued to practice law with Merkel & Cocke until the end of 2006 at which time I decided to withdraw from Merkel & Cocke Law Firm.

 

My legal career began with handling a variety of cases including title work, wills and estates, bankruptcy, and various run of the mill legal issues. For the last 27 years, I have been engaged almost exclusively in litigation. During that time I have appeared in not only state and federal courts in the State of Mississippi, but I have also handled cases in Tennessee, Arkansas, New York, Michigan, California, Nebraska, Utah, Texas, Virginia, and Colorado.

I have held my private pilot’s license with an instrument rating since 1974. Over the years I have been involved in a number of different business ventures including farming, timber, river transportation, construction, fast food corporations, and commercial real estate. I am a past president of the Lee Academy School Board in Clarksdale, MS, and a member of the Board of Directors for Citizens Bank & Trust.