W. Edward Hatten, Jr.

Biography

W. Edward Hatten, Jr. (Ed) joined the firm in 1995 and is now a Director, Officer and Shareholder. Ed received his undergraduate education at the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, where he was a member of the Kappa Sigma Fraternity. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Construction Engineering Technology in l987, and he serves as a Member of the Industry Advisory Council for the School of Construction at the University of Southern Mississippi. Ed has also previously served on the Industry Advisory Council for USM’s Center for Logistics, Trade and Transportation.

Ed attended the University of Mississippi School of Law in Oxford, Mississippi, where he served as a Member of the Moot Court Board (1989-1990) and obtained his Juris Doctor degree in 1990. He has since been admitted to practice before the Mississippi Supreme Court; all state trial and appellate courts in the State of Mississippi; the United States District Courts for both the Northern and Southern Districts of Mississippi; and the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Prior to joining the firm over 29 years ago, his legal career included service as Special Assistant Attorney General for the State of Mississippi from 1991 to 1993. He then went into private practice in Jackson, Mississippi with a focus on civil litigation.

Professional memberships that Ed currently holds include The Mississippi Bar; The Harrison County Bar Association; the Russell-Blass-Walker Chapter of the American Inns of Court; the Mississippi Defense Lawyers Association (MDLA); the Claims and Litigation Management Alliance (CLM); the Defense Research Institute (DRI); and the Professional Liability Defense Federation (PLDF). He has also served on the Board of Directors of the International Alumni Association of the University of Southern Mississippi (2000-2003), and has for several decades now been actively involved in the University of Southern Mississippi Eagle Club. Ed and his wife, Karen, have three children and two grandchildren. Ed and his wife are members of and actively involved in Trinity Methodist Church in Gulfport, Mississippi, where Ed has served on the Board of Trustees, the Church Council, the Family Life Committee, the Lay Leaders Committee, Nominations Committee, and the Youth Ministries Advisory Council.