J. Thomas Ash

Ben focuses his practice on Corporate/LLC Law, Securities Law, Mergers and Acquisitions and Business Planning and Operations. He has served multiple tenures on the Mississippi Secretary of State’s Business Law Reform Committees for LLCs, Corporations and Securities Laws.

Clifford B. Ammons, Jr. was admitted to the Mississippi Bar in 2008. His practice is dedicated to the areas of workers' compensation, tort and general litigation and appellate advocacy. During law school, Clifford was a member of the Law Review and Moot Court Board and served as an intern for the Honorable T. Kenneth Griffis, Mississippi Court of Appeals. He received Am Jur awards for Workers' Compensation, Wills and Estates, and Law Office Management.

Margaret Oertling Cupples writes briefs and motions, and manages other lawyers who write them, in civil appeals and commercial litigation. As litigators and their clients know, a vanishingly small percentage of cases actually get to trial; for the rest, a great brief is the way to win. As national legal writing counsel in major litigation for 3M Company, Margaret’s individual contributions and her strong collaboration with colleagues have brought significant value to 3M for two decades....

Mark Davis is a partner in the Corporate Practice Group. He focuses on real estate. Mark draws on his more than 35 years of experience to help clients coordinate real estate developments and orchestrate transactions, including acquisition, leasing, and financing matters, as well as zoning issues. His practice spans the development of shopping centers, office buildings, hotels, mixed-use facilities, hospital facilities, medical office buildings, and manufacturing facilities. He also represents...

Betty Ruth Fox is Counsel with Watkins & Eager focusing in the areas of environmental law and bankruptcy. From 1993 to 2002, Betty Ruth was a Senior Attorney with the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality and worked in regulation and enforcement in every MDEQ Program Area, coordinating with appropriate federal, state and local agencies and/or governing authorities. Beginning in 2002, Betty Ruth worked as a Trial Attorney with the Department of Justice/U. S. Trustee Program in ci...

Mark D. Jicka was admitted to the Mississippi Bar in 1991. He is currently on the Steering Committee for DRI's Products Liability Committee and serves as the Expert Witness Chair for that Committee. His practice focuses on defending manufacturers at trial and on appeal. He has handled cases for clients in Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Arkansas, Louisiana and Kentucky. His cases of note include Bailey v. Lockheed Martin Corp., 261 Fed. Appx. 713, 2008 U.S. App. LEXIS 1006, January 17, 2008;...

Troy focuses his practice on municipal bonds, public finance, economic development incentives, and government relations. He has represented cities, counties, schools, community colleges, hospitals, universities, developers, companies, economic development agencies, and other entities to assist them in constructing and developing projects statewide.

William Lucien Smith, Jr. is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Government Relations Practice. William Lucien, who practices law in Jackson, Mississippi, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which William Lucien is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Steve Wilson is an experienced corporate transactional lawyer providing legal counsel to clients on acquisitions, tax, economic development and finance transactions. Steve is a member of the firm's regional Corporate and Securities practice and is on the Economic Development Team and State and Local Tax Team in the Jackson, Mississippi office. Steve has more than 20 years of experience handling corporate transactional and state and local tax matters, including business acquisitions, state and...

Gary practices within Butler Snow’s Regulatory and Government group. Gary’s experience as an engineer and attorney in both the public and private sectors provides him with a unique perspective when advising clients on a myriad of complex environmental issues.