hale@freelandshull.com

States of Admission: Mississippi and Tennessee

Education: Bachelor of arts degree in History from the University of Mississippi in 1979 and a juris doctorate degree from The University of Mississippi School of Law in 1986.  While in law school Hale won the trial advocacy competition and served on the National Trial Competition Team. Hale is a qualified mediator pursuant to the applicable Mississippi Supreme Court Rules. 

Legal Experience: Hale’s Mississippi and West Tennessee practice includes insurance, personal injury, products liability, and coverage defense; representation of creditors in bankruptcy cases; representing individuals and businesses as both plaintiffs and defendants in contract, real property, corporate, trust and estate litigation, and transactional and estate work for local clients. Hale is a member of the National Academy of Elder Lawyers (NELA). Prior to entering private practice, Hale clerked for Presiding Justice Armis Hawkins on the Mississippi Supreme Court and United States District Judge Neal Biggers. Hale began private practice in 1986. While practicing full time, he has also taught appellate advocacy as an adjunct professor of law at the University of Mississippi.

Military Service: Hale served on active duty with the United States Navy onboard the USS Ainsworth (FF-1090) where he received three sea service awards and two naval expeditionary awards for service in the Persian Gulf. He left the Navy as lieutenant.

Legal Service: Previously served as President of the Young Lawyers Division of the Mississippi Bar; was a member of the Mississippi Bar Commission’s Executive Committee; served as Editor of The Mississippi Lawyer Magazine. He has served as a faculty member for various continuing legal education seminars on attorney ethics, bankruptcy, church property litigation, estate planning and protecting the interests of elderly.  Hale has published several articles on various legal topics and the practice of law.  For several years, Hale has represented St. Andrews' Presbytery and recently began representing the Presbyterian Church of the United States relating to church property, litigation and transactions.  In 2007, Hale presented a program to Presbytery attorneys throughout the country concerning church property litigation as it applies to the church constitution and state law. 

Awards/Professional Recognition: In 1995, Hale was selected as the outstanding Young Lawyer in Mississippi. He has been selected as a Bencher of the American Inns of Court, a litigation honorary. In recognition of Hale's public service, the Oxford Rotary Club awarded him the Annual Four Avenues of Service Award.

Publications: “Overreaching and The Elderly”, The Mississippi Lawyer, VOL. LV, No. 2 (2009), which can be found here on page 36; "Fertile Soil, Why Mississippi Lawyers Write," The Mississippi Lawyer, Vol.XLIV, No. 2, (1997); "Competition and the Changing Climate of the Legal Profession," The Mississippi Lawyer, Vol.XLV, No. 4 (1999); "Credibility and the Limits of Zealous Advocacy: The Prohibition Against Ex-Parte' Communications," The Mississippi Lawyer, Vol. XLVI, No.2 (1999); "Identifying Conflicts Before They Identify You," The Mississippi Lawyer, Vol.XVIX, No. 3 (2002); "Solo and Small Firm Practioner Handbook," The Mississippi Bar (contributing editor).

Reported Cases:  South Carolina Ins. Co. v. Keymon, et al., 2006-CA-02051-SCT (Miss. 2008); In Re  Kennington, 393 B.R. 430 (Bankr. N.D. Miss. 2008); Esmark Apparel, Inc. v. James, 10 F.3d 1156 (5th Cir. 1994); Bailey v. Estate of Kemp, 955 So. 2d 777 (Miss. 2007); Lend Lease Asset Management, L.P. v. Cobra Security, Inc., 912 So. 2d 471 (Miss. 2005); Pulliam v. Chandler, 872 So. 2d 752 (Miss. Ct. App. 2004); Walker v. Delta Steel Bldgs. and Builders, 878 So. 2d 113 (Miss. Ct. App. 2003); Ford v. Emhart, Inc., 755 So. 2d 1263 (Miss. Ct. App. 2000).

Community Service: Locally, Hale is actively involved in his church session and serves as an elder, an adult Sunday school teacher and attorney for St. Andrews Presbytery. Hale serves on the board of Oxford Medical Ministries which provides local indigent health care.

Family: Hale resides in Oxford with his wife, Cynthia, CCRN, a nurse in the intensive care unit of Baptist Memorial Hospital - NM, and his two teenage children, Catherine, a Hanover College student, and Jason, a dedicated high school swimmer.