BY DON B. JAMISON DBJ Contributing Writer

Why the Delta?
When the phrase “legal center” or “government center” comes to mind, few would initially consider the Delta a part of that world. But for an increasing number of lawyers in the state, the Delta is more than home, it’s the place where practices thrive without the personal sacrifice of home life and family life that careers in larger markets sometimes demand.
Charles S. Tindall, III, of Lake Tindall, LLP, in Greenville summarizes the opinions held by many attorneys: “I believe that in practicing law in the Delta, I have the best of all worlds. I am able to practice law in major litigation and transactions throughout the United States from a small town setting.” In numbering his benefits, he counts relationships high on the list. “I often tell my friends and lawyers from other areas that I am one of the luckiest people in the world to practice with the lawyers I practice with and to be able to practice this type of law from Greenville, Mississippi.”

Technology
His ability to practice law on a regional and national level from Greenville is due, in part, to advances in technology. “Our firm focuses on corporate and business matters, but offers full service to its clients in almost all areas of the law,” Tindall says. “We find that in today’s networked world, through the use of technology, we can provide an excellent legal product, achieve good results for our clients in a prompt fashion, and do so at a reasonable cost. We realize the practice of law is, in fact, a service industry and we strive to service our clients with that home town service and attitude.”
Mayo Mallette, based in Oxford, Mississippi is another firm that uses technology to represent clients across the United States. “Because of the vast changes in technology in the last three to four years and with Internet access and WestLaw access, fax machines and telephone—there’s not much we’re not capable of doing,” says Cal Mayo. “We’re not limited, as used to be the case in small towns, of practicing only in a particular area. We practice all over the state of Mississippi. I’ve been admitted to the bar in Tennessee; we have legal work in Alabama. It’s really much more of a regional practice for us. That’s made vastly easier because we have the same communications equipment and the same capabilities as bigger law firms.”
Pointing to trends in demographic growth of the country, Mayo uses one partner’s practice as a solid example of a national practice in a small town. “One of our law partners is Tommy Rosser, who practices primarily in immigration law. He represents people from all over the United Sates from here in Oxford. For clients who are seeking to come to the US, he prepares their paperwork and prosecutes their applications with the INS and with other folks. He’s working to satisfy labor demands for various businesses—not just in North Mississippi, but all over the United States.”

The lLifestyle difference:
A different kind of fast lane
Despite the national presence that can be enjoyed via technology, Mayo distills his reason for being in Oxford to one word: lifestyle. And that’s true for many attorneys. “Take Donna Gurley,” says Mayo. “She finished law school second in her class at Ole Miss. She had numerous opportunities offered to her. Yet, she chose to stay in Oxford and work at Mayo Mallette. Donna wanted to remain an integral part of her son’s life. She knew that by going with a larger firm she would not have that luxury.”
Mayo had similar reasons himself for choosing Oxford after a stint in Jackson. “I came to Oxford because of the small town environment and because of the wonderful public education available for our four children,” says Mayo. “I have found that the practice of law here is as challenging and as demanding intellectually as practicing in Jackson. But the advantage is I live less than a mile from my office. I spend a large amount of quality time with my family.”
Gerald Jacks, senior partner of Jacks, Adams & Norquist in Cleveland, expresses agreement. “We have enjoyed the multitude of benefits afforded us by living in Cleveland, such as time with our families, the opportunity to become actively involved in community affairs, and the long term support and companionship of close friends,” says Jacks. “This entire town is like family to us. The lawyers and staff have been able to take time from our busy schedules to attend school programs and other events involving our children and to attend to other personal matters without having to be out of the office for a long period of time. If we were located in a large city, this would not be possible.”
“It’s nice to be able to go home at noon, eat with your family and get all that done in less than an hour and be back at work,” says Pope Mallette. But Mallette, while acknowledging the lifestyle issues, mentions another facet to a law practice in a smaller setting. “The bar is different in the smaller community. You know the lawyers you’re practicing with or against,” says Mallette. “Especially in small towns and the Delta. There is a level of cordiality that you get to enjoy when you practice in a small town.”

Still a challenge
Does small mean less? According to these attorneys, the answer is an unqualified no.
“While we have some of our practice here in Oxford, we still represent national and regional clients,” says Mayo. “So our practice involves legally and intellectually challenging types of issues. But with those challenges is the advantage of practicing law from a small town environment where I can walk out of my office, walk up to the Square and have lunch, and do it in a relaxed environment.”
“Our firm has been fortunate in the sense that the quality of our practice has not been affected by our location,” says Jacks. “We have been fortunate that we have been able to develop a law practice that provides the same practices found in the large firms in a metropolitan area.”

A new threat? Out of state firms & large in-state firms
As economic strength slowly returns to the Delta, there is a concern that the wave of mega-mergers that is impacting other areas of the state will sweep North Mississippi. “Actually it’s an area of concern to all law firms—not just in Mississippi, but all over the country,” says Mayo. “Mississippi is seeing a lot of law firms come in from other states and I think the issue is that growing law firms are having to decide whether they become a part of a very large law firm or remain independent by finding their own niche in the legal market. They may do well and keep themselves small instead of going in with the large firms. Or they may find the partnering with the larger firm attractive. You find practices dealing with that in very different ways all over the state.”
Currently there are a number of firms from Tennessee, Louisiana, Alabama and other states with offices serving Mississippi. Most of the out-of-state penetration is focused on Jackson and the Coast. “It’s a question primarily for large law firms presently,” says Mayo. “It’s not an issue for us right now—but it could become a big issue for us in the future.”
This trend, seen most clearly in the banking industry cannot be ignored. “It’s part of the globalization of the service economy,” says Pope.
Steve Rosenblatt, with Butler Snow O’Mara Stevens and Cannada, PLLC, a multi-state law firm based in Jackson, is familiar with the issue. “While we have clients in the Delta, we’d really like to have more,” says Rosenblatt. “With our Memphis office we can serve the upper Delta, and out of our Jackson office we serve the lower Delta area.” And Rosenblatt sees growth in this area. “With Mike Espy in our firm we are starting to get more and more involved in agricultural issues, also in estate planning, or labor/employment issues or other business issues that maybe smaller firms in the Delta don’t have the expertise or the breadth or depth to handle,” he explains. “A lot of time we’ll work with other law firms or other businesses on more sophisticated or complicated matters.”
Rosenblatt sees the Delta in the midst of a paradigm change, and he wants his firm present. “My sense is that the Delta is changing from being so heavily dependent on agriculture to a more commercial and industrial economy,” says Rosenblatt. “I think economic incentives are going to help bring the Delta back—and that’s another area where our firm can offer some possibilities—access to public funding and grants and so forth–to help jump start some of the areas up in the Delta.”

Enough potential for all
“My view is that the Delta is a sleeping giant,” says Rosenblatt. “There is a lot of potential in the region but I think it’s just a shift in the mindset from being agriculturally oriented to an industry and commercially–oriented economy. A good example is a company like Delta Pine & Land. More and more business needs to be attracted to the Delta. Hopefully the Nissan plant in Madison County will help stimulate growth in the lower Delta and provide more jobs and opportunity there.”

Small by design
Even as out-of-state and larger firms eye the legal market of North Mississippi, many established firms are satisfied with their place in the economy and community. “It’s a decision making process firms go through in determining what kind of firm they’ll have,” says Mayo. “Our view is that when your partners are happy, your clients ultimately benefit. We’re all a bunch of happy folks. We don’t want to be anywhere else.”
Cleveland’s Jacks points out that a small firm size is not a weakness, but perhaps a strength. “While our firm provides a broad range of legal services to our clients, a substantial part of our practice is in the area of civil litigation throughout North Mississippi. By design, we have attempted to remain small so that we can provide our clients with the individual attention they need.”
Providing top notch legal advice and personal service in a friendly, home-style fashion just boils down to a way of life that has many merits. And lifestyle remains an important issue in today’s society.

Some things are just “Definitely Superior”
And back to that important issue: lifestyle. Perhaps Andrew M. W. Westerfield, of Westerfield & Janoush in Cleveland, hits on the most indisputable point about law in the small town versus Jackson or Memphis: “The hunting is definitely superior,” he laughs. DBJ