Michael N. Watts

PRACTICE AREAS

Estate Planning
Probate
White Collar Criminal Defense
Complex Civil Litigation
Insurance Defense

GOVERNMENT SERVICE

Hearing Officer, MS Personnel Board, 2010-2018
City of Cleveland, MS Police Department, 1975-1980
Criminal Investigator, 11th Circuit District Attorneys, 1980-1981
Attorney for U.S. Department of Defense, 1987-1988

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES AND COMMUNITY SERVICE

Mississippi Board of Bar Commissioners, 1995-1998
Fellow, Mississippi Bar Foundation
Listed in The Best Lawyers in America

BAR ADMISSIONS

Mississippi (State and Federal courts)
U.S. District Courts in Arkansas
Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals
United States Supreme Court

ABOUT

Mike’s primary areas of practice are criminal defense, complex civil litigation, and insurance defense. Mike is a 1984 honor graduate of the University of Mississippi School of Law.

Mike has been retained as counsel in several high profile white collar criminal cases as well as serious felony indictments and homicides in Mississippi. Prior to attending law school, Mike served his community for six years as a police officer and criminal investigator in Cleveland, Mississippi. Mike also served as Criminal Investigator for the District Attorney’s office of the Eleventh Circuit District for the State of Mississippi from 1980 to 1981. In addition, Mike worked as a Correctional Officer at the Mississippi State Penitentiary in Parchman, Mississippi.

He is admitted to practice in all Mississippi State Courts, the U.S. District Courts for the Northern and Southern Districts of Mississippi, the Eastern and Western Districts of Arkansas, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and the Supreme Court of the United States.

Mike has successfully been peer review rated A/V, by Martindale-Hubbell for 26 consecutive years. Mike was recently selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2015.

While attending the University of Mississippi School of Law, Mike was selected as Student Representative to the National Order of Barristers and was a Division Chairman as well as a Division Vice Chairman of the Moot Court Board. He is also a member of Delta Theta Phi legal fraternity.

He received his B.S. from Delta State University in 1976 and his J.D. from University of Mississippi School of Law, cum laude, in 1984. Mike was also on the Mississippi Board of Bar Commissioners in 1995-1998.

ASSOCIATIONS

- Mississippi Bar Association
- Defense Research Institute
- Bar of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals
- Federation of Defense and Corporate Council (FDCC) (Mississippi representative)