MC Law Hits a Homerun! Hires Randy Pierce as Dean of Advancement

MC Law has been making waves in the professional community lately. They announced a facelift coming to the Law School, new logos and marketing efforts, a new permanent Dean and now made a hire for Assistant Dean of Advancement that has turned the Mississippi legal community on its ear.

Randy Pierce, former Supreme Court Justice, Chancellor, executive director of the Mississippi Judicial College, and acclaimed author, has accepted the position of Assistant Dean of Advancement at MC Law.

Justice Pierce is no stranger to MC Law having taught hundreds of students as an Adjunct Professor.

Justice Pierce likely knows every lawyer in the state of Mississippi and will now put those relationships to work.

Justice Pierce will be in charge of strategic advancement efforts, promoting the great things happening at MC Law, responsible for engagement of public relations and spearhead fundraising campaigns; advancing the brand of the law school.

Justice Pierce’s reputation in the professional and legal community precedes him and is beyond reproach. He is mutually respected by peers, colleagues, the judiciary, the public, politicos from all sides of the aisle and even fans from all Universities in the State!

MC Law has hit a homerun with hires of late and great things are happening.

Matthew Thompson is the unabashed cheerleader for all things MC Law, a 2005 graduate, current Law Alumni president, adjunct professor and even has a brick with his name on it at the law school.

Sometimes You’re Just Not Ready…

Family law is tough. It is tough to go through, deal with, and be involved in.

It can also be unfair. But wait, the Judge has to be fair, right? Yes, but the Judge’s definition of fair and yours will be different.

Also, the whole circumstance may be unfair. You can live your best life and still find yourself in the divorce attorney’s office.

The handful of times that I have seen even good results feel bad is when one party is just not ready. They did not want a divorce. They did not want to be in my office. And, they did not do anything (or any one thing) to result in needing a divorce.

These are often the hardest circumstances. The client may be right. This may all be unfair, but it nonetheless is happening.

So what do you do if you realize it’s too soon and you’re not ready? Get an experienced lawyer. Confer with experts; a counselor, a CPA or financial planner, your pastor, your trusted family and friends.

Get prepared and be intentional, even if you don’t want to.

Matthew Thompson is a child custody and divorce lawyer in Mississippi and knows when it’s too soon. However, the law doesn’t always allow for the mental processing necessary for all clients.

MC Law announces permanent Dean of Law School

Dr. John P. Anderson

MC Law Alumni,

The Board of Trustees has approved the appointment of Dr. John Anderson as permanent dean of the law school, effective immediately.

Mississippi College President, Dr. Blake Thompson, announced the great news. “MC Law has enjoyed a productive year under Dean Anderson’s leadership as interim dean. He has continued the school’s pursuit of academic excellence, managed the administrative duties inherent in running an academic organization, recruited several important additions to the law school team, and made significant plans for the future of MC Law. Dean Anderson’s character and values match those of our institution, and his energy is infectious.”

Dr. Blake Thompson continued, “I am confident that the great progress of MC Law will continue under his leadership. Please join me in congratulating Dr. Anderson on his well-earned appointment, and continue to keep MC Law in your prayers.”

On a personal note and as MC Law Alumni President, I am very excited about Dean Anderson and the direction the law school is heading. I am excited about the relationship between the law school and main campus. From my limited view, this relationship is stronger now than ever and both institutions are moving in very positive directions.

MC Law has a lot to offer potential and current students. Not only from a location in the very epicenter of Mississippi’s legal community, but also to a qualified, caring faculty and a family environment for students.

  • Matthew Thompson is a 2005 graduate of MC Law, adjunct Professor of Law and Alumni President in addition to managing a private law practice and employing a number of MC Law grads.

Mississippi College School of Law
151 E. Griffith Street, Jackson, MS 39201
601.925.7100

In Memoriam: Judge Tom Broome

Judge Tom Broome has passed away after a period of hospitalization.

Judge Broome, a long-time staple of the Rankin County Youth Court.

He touched many lives while serving as a Youth Court Judge and worked daily to have a fair and just judicial system. He surrounded himself with good people and genuinely had a servant’s heart.

Broome was a graduate of MC Law and was a part of one of the most distinguished graduating classes. His career added to the prestige.

Prayers and condolences for the family and colleagues.

Matthew Thompson is a family law practitioner and enjoyed practicing in Rankin Youth Court.

Equitable Maxims and Principles to Live By

Equity is about fairness, but does not require exact equality. All things being equal could very well not be fair or equitable. 22 maxims of Equity are below and while some are archaic or narrow in their application, many are relevant and applicable in today’s society and legal arenas.

1. One who seeks equity must do equity. This requires that if you are seeking relief of the Court you must have done all that was required of you by the Court Order.

2. Equity will not suffer a wrong to be without a remedy. This provides that the Court may grant relief even if there is not necessarily a clear remedy at law.

3. Equity regards as done what ought to be done. This holds that if you agree to do something then it is assumed you will have done it and done it well.

4. Equity is a sort of equality. Equity means fair, but does not = equality, hence “a sort of equality.” Think equal in opportunity, though there may not be equal outcomes.

5. Equity aids the vigilant, and not those who slumber on their rights. Equity requires you to act reasonably and diligently. You cannot wait an unreasonably long time to seek justice.

6. Equity imputes an intent to fulfill an obligation. An act consistent with a promise to act demonstrates an obligation and may well satisfy same.

7. Equity acts in personam. Equity is about the obligations of people, not objects.

8. Equity abhors a forfeiture. Fairness does not require a total loss even if you did not meet all obligations on time.

9. Equity does not require an idle gesture. Fairness does not require the Court to declare a hollow victory.

10. He who comes into equity must come with clean hands. Similar to #1, this requires that if you are seeking relief of the Court you must enter Court having not committed a violation.

11. Equity delights to do justice, and not by halves. If you are entitled to full restitution, then equity requires that you receive full restitution.

12. Equity will take jurisdiction to avoid a multiplicity of suits. Equity requires that all parties and all issues which could have been decided be decided and you are later prevented from seeking relief for the same issues.

13. Equity follows the law. An equitable result does not violate the law.

14. Equity will not assist a volunteer. This one needs explanation about a “volunteer.” In this instance it is not a do-gooder, instead it is one who received a benefit though they did not deserve it. Fairness does not require the “volunteer” be entitled to such benefit.

15. Equity will not complete an imperfect gift. A person that confers a benefit on a third party may not be relied upon if the first person did not have the right to do so in the first place.

16. Where equities are equal, the law will prevail. If both parties are equal in benefit/wrongdoing, equity does not apply.

17. Between equal equities the first in order of time shall prevail. If two persons have an equitable claim/right the person that had the claim/right first, wins.

18. Equity will not allow a statute to be used as a cloak for fraud. Fairness will not allow the presence or absence of a particular law be used for an unjust result.

19. Equity will not allow a trust to fail for want of a trustee. Merely because a Trustee is unable or unwilling to serve does not terminate a Trust.

20. Equity regards the beneficiary as the true owner. Again related to Trusts, while the Trustee may have the property or use there of, the beneficiary is the person entitled to the use or benefit thereof.

21. Equity will not allow a wrongdoer to profit by a wrong. Fairness does not provide the bad actor to win due to his bad actions.

22. Equity does not punish. Fairness restores one to where they should have been, it does not punish the wrongdoer.

Stop Writing on Exhibits and Pictures

(Attorney hands witness a document)

Q:  Is this a true and accurate copy?

A: Yes…uhm, no…I don’t know whose writing this is. I don’t know what this means…

Opposing Attorney: Objection. It’s obviously not a true copy, as the original does not have writing and marks on it.

Court: Objection, sustained.

Court rules on Evidence do not always make sense. Something that is obvious to you and most reasonable persons may very well violate the requirements of authentication of documents.

In almost every case witnesses write on documents and pictures. You think highlighting where he called you a “piece of work” adds emphasis. It may just render that email useless. Yes, even circling the curse words and disparaging comments can render that exhibit not authentic.

Do not write on the email chain, do not use sharpie on the photographs (certainly not the actual photograph). So how do you show empahsis?

Use Post-It notes. Use as many as your heart desires. Use multiple per email. Use different colors of Post-It notes. Use different sizes. Have at it!

Matthew Thompson is a civil trial lawyer and wants you to be able to use ALL of your exhibits.

Thompson Addison, pllc. (601)850-8000

Children Should NOT Pay for Adult Mistakes

We all mess up. It happens. However, when our mess up negatively affects others, merely fixing the mistake is not enough, especially when it’s a child.

Being an adult can be hard. Being a parent is hard. Being an adult that has to deal with children is hard. Making mistakes is inevitable. However, how those mistakes are dealt with is the difference between showing a true servant’s heart and being a cold, unapologetic robot.

As a parent, we have all messed up. A quick, heartfelt apology is always best. To the extent you can fix your mess up, you do it. When the correction causes more trauma, you don’t.

A child does not need to learn from an Adult’s mistake – even an honest mistake. That isn’t teaching the child a lesson. That’s actually showing adults are not accountable for their actions.

“My bad, but you suffer…”

Also, admitting your mistake is good. But the way its handled thereafter matters too. A heavy-hand is not always the best. Being respectful never goes out of style and attempts to deescalate problems is the #1 priority when dealing with these situations.

A wise man once said the referee could throw a flag on every play, wisdom is not doing so. Also, sometimes picking that flag up and waving it off is the right thing to do.

The lesson here is ultimately do the right thing. Protect the child, be honest, but don’t make that child suffer because of your mistake.

Also, it’s NEVER too late to do the right thing!

Matthew Thompson is a family law attorney in Mississippi and advises parents/adults to not make a child suffer because of your mistake.

TN Law Makes DUI Driver of Fatal Wreck Pay Child Support

Ethan’s, Hailey’s, and Bentley’s Law1 requires a sentencing court to order a defendant who has been convicted of vehicular homicide due to intoxication, and in which the victim of the offense was the parent of a minor child, to pay restitution in the form of child maintenance to each of the victim’s children until each child reaches 18 years of age and has graduated from high school.

Cecilia Williams , grandmother of, Bentley Williams, 5, and Mason Williams, 3, is raising her grandchildren after their parents were killed April 13, 2021, in a drunk-driving accident in Missouri.

Since her family members’ deaths, Williams has worked to get legislation called Bentley’s Law passed in Tennessee and several other states, including attempts in Missouri, that requires those convicted of driving while intoxicated to pay compensation to families affected by a drunk-driving death.

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee signed the bill on May 25, 2022.

Along with Tennessee, Bentley’s Law has also been introduced in Missouri, Louisiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Illinois, Alabama, South Carolina and Oklahoma. Vermont, Massachusetts, Hawaii, Kansas, Arkansas, Delaware, Wisconsin, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Michigan, Texas and Utah have stated plans to introduce similar laws during 2023 sessions.

David G. Thurby, 26, of Fenton, TN was charged and convicted of three counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the fatal accident in Byrnes Mill, Missouri.

After the fatal accident on April 13, 2021, Thurby was arrested and told a Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper that before the crash, he had seven shots of Crown and water, and a preliminary breath test showed Thurby’s blood-alcohol content was .192 percent, more than twice the legal limit, according to the probable-cause statement in the case.

A jury found Thurby guilty following a trial in front of Jefferson County Circuit Judge Victor Melenbrink.

In March, Judge Melenbrink sentenced Thurby to four years in prison on each of the three counts. Two of the counts are to be served consecutively with the other to be served concurrently, meaning Thurby is to serve eight years in prison.

Williams has set up a Facebook group called “Bentley’s Law” to share updates about the law’s progress in each state.

Matthew Thompson is Child Support lawyer in Mississippi and supports a law such as this in Mississippi.

  1. The law is named after children whose parents were killed in crashes caused by drunk drivers.

Divorce, Child Custody & Support, Alimony, Contempt, Modification, Adoption, Appeals, Corporate Counsel, Professional Licensure Issues, and Civil Litigation.

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