Treva L. McInnis

Treva L. McInnis joined the Brunini  firm 2022.  She brings with her over 18 years of experience in commercial and real property transactions, estate planning, and estate administration.  Treva practices in our Commercial Law Division where she assist clients with commercial transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, entity formation, purchase and sale of real estate, commercial loans, as well as giving clients day to day business counsel.

Breland joined Brunini in September of 2021 as an Associate in the firm’s litigation department. Breland received his Juris Doctor from the University of Mississippi School of Law in 2021, graduating summa cum laude. In law school, Breland was an Executive Articles Editor for the Mississippi Law Journal and member of the Negotiation Board. Prior to law school, Breland received his Bachelor of Accountancy from the University of Mississippi.

Alston Ludwig joined the Firm in 2019 returning to practice in Mississippi after practicing in North Carolina for the previous seven years. Alston is a business litigator who focuses his practice on the construction industry.

He handles a wide variety of construction matters including contract preparation and negotiations, payment disputes, lien and collection matters, claim preparation and evaluation, construction-defect and design-defect matters, and dispute resolution.

Alston has successfully represented clients in state and federal court litigation, mediation, arbitration, and before the United States Civilian Board of Contract Appeals.

 

Jake joined Brunini in 2018 after a one-year federal clerkship with the Honorable Rhesa H. Barksdale on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Before that, Jake graduated summa cum laude from the University of Mississippi School of Law, won the American Board of Trial Advocates Trial Advocacy Award, and served as the Mississippi Cases Editor for the Mississippi Law Journal. Jake also earned a Bachelors and Masters of Arts degree from the University of West Florida, where he lettered on the Men’s Golf Team.

Jake handles a wide array of litigation matters in both federal and state courts. Jake’s primary focus is general commercial and business litigation, constitutional litigation, and appellate litigation, but his litigation practice is broad. Jake has assisted the firm’s clients in construction litigation, class action banking litigation, class action prison litigation, civil rights litigation, shareholder disputes, voting rights litigation, challenges to the Mississippi Constitution, toxic exposure cases, products liability litigation, premises liability litigation, will contests, trustee litigation, annexation litigation, ad valorem tax appeals, and general business disputes. Among other things, Jake helped the firm’s clients prevail at trial in a will contest and another case alleging breach of fiduciary duty by a trustee. He assisted another client, an owner of a multi-family housing complex, in obtaining a favorable verdict in a week-long construction arbitration matter against the architect and general contractor. He has been successful in several appeals, including successfully arguing for the Court to affirm summary judgment for one client and affirm a jury verdict for another. Jake was successful in obtaining the denial of an injunction in a constitutional challenge that would have altered Mississippi’s election process on the eve of an election. He also assisted the firm’s clients in obtaining denial of multiple injunctions in constitutional rights litigation.

Jake was the president of the Jackson Young Lawyers. He serves as Vice Chair of the Board for Goodwill Industries of Mississippi. He received the Capital Area Bar Association 2021 Service Award for his service as Golf Tournament Committee Chair. He served on the board of the Phoenix Club of Jackson and the Capital Area Bar Association and is involved in various other civic and professional organizations. Jake lives in Jackson with his wife, Arianna, and his children, Brooks and Kennedy Jane.

Lane Bobo joined Brunini Law Firm in August, 2016, after graduating magna cum laude from the Mississippi College School of Law. Prior to law school, Lane earned a Bachelor’s of Arts degree in History from the University of Mississippi, where he was named to the Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges for the Class of 2011-2012.

Lane has a broad litigation practice, representing clients in both state and federal courts. In terms of medical malpractice defense, in which he has been consistently recognized by Super Lawyers as a Rising Star, he has successfully litigated claims involving wrongful deaths, permanent injuries, medication errors, and birth injuries. More specifically, he has counseled and defended hospitals, nursing homes, physicians, nurses, and other healthcare providers against these types of claims. In addition to litigation, he has assisted medical clients with the development of internal policies and procedures, employee contracts, insurance disputes, and general business negotiations. Lane also has extensive experience in Conservatorship and Guardianship matters and similarly advises medical clients pertaining to these issues.

Lane is also involved in handling a wide range of construction matters including construction-defect and design-defect cases, payment disputes, lien and collection matters, general construction litigation, and alternative dispute resolution, including mediation and arbitration. Lane represents owners, general contractors, subcontractors, and material suppliers in these efforts.

Lane also has extensive experience in representing clients in premises liability lawsuits, motor vehicle accident lawsuits, and other personal injury litigation.

Lane is a graduate of the Mississippi Bar’s Leadership Forum and received the Jackson Young Lawyer’s Outstanding Service Award in 2019. He is active in the Capital Area Bar Association, the Federal Bar Association, and the Mississippi Defense Lawyers Association.

Lane has enjoyed previously serving on the boards of various organizations, including Jackson Young Lawyers, the Phoenix Club of Jackson, and Galloway United Methodist Church Children’s Center. Lane and his wife, Maggie Kate, live in Jackson with their two children—Anna Lee and Sam–and attend Christ United Jackson.

Kyle focuses his practice on general and commercial litigation, state and local government relations, and appellate law. He has litigated complex commercial disputes to trial in state and federal courts. As part of his practice, Kyle routinely litigates contract disputes, high-stakes ad valorem tax appeals, insurance coverage disputes and regulatory compliance, defense of claims brought under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, and other matters. He has successfully represented clients before Mississippi’s appellate and trial courts and the federal district courts of Mississippi.

Kyle has been included in the list of Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America in the areas of appellate law and government relations, and he has been recognized for numerous years as a Super Lawyers® Mid-South Rising Star in appellate practice.

Kyle routinely interacts on behalf of clients with elected and appointed officials of local governments, the Mississippi Legislature, and Mississippi state agencies, boards, and commissions. Throughout his career, Kyle has fostered relationships with public officials across the state. His prior role as a member of Attorney General Lynn Fitch’s executive team—as Director of Legislative Affairs and Policy, and later, as Director of Opinions and Policy—deepened his understanding of how Mississippi state government functions. In these roles, Kyle served as the Attorney General’s liaison to the Mississippi Legislature, advising her on matters pending before the Legislature and advocating on behalf of her legislative and budgetary priorities. He also worked closely with county boards of supervisors, mayors, municipal governing authorities, and other state and local elected and appointed officials who sought legal guidance from the Attorney General. Kyle’s government relations practice also draws on his experience as a Policy Assistant to the Speaker of the Mississippi House of Representatives and his work on various federal, state, and local campaigns.

A native of Meridian, Kyle serves on the Board of Directors of the Greater Jackson Chamber Partnership and the Madison County Business League and Foundation’s Young Professionals Steering Committee. He also serves on the Mississippi Bar’s Professionalism Committee and the Hinds County Republican Executive Committee. Kyle is a member of Pinelake Church, the Federalist Society, and the Federal Bar Association.

Based in Nashville, Patrick McDowell is licensed to practice in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, and Tennessee.  His practice focuses on complex litigation in federal and state trial and appellate courts, including antitrust, contract, business tort, unfair competition, RICO, trademark, securities, product liability, drug and medical device, toxic exposure, and environmental litigation.  He has successfully prosecuted and defended commercial disputes on behalf of entertainment, environmental, financial, food, insurance, manufacturing, technology, telecommunications, and television services providers.  He has also successfully defended manufacturers, producers, and licensors against product liability, negligence, and toxic tort claims.

Patrick concentrates much of his practice on the defense of multi-state and federal multidistrict litigation, class actions, mass torts, and attorney general civil litigation.  He has represented healthcare insurers and food producers in multidistrict antitrust class actions; telecommunications and technology services providers in multidistrict securities and ERISA class actions; employers, insurers, banks, and television service providers in federal class actions; drug, device, and other product manufacturers in multidistrict and multi-state mass tort actions; and drug and device manufacturers, healthcare insurers, and financial service providers in attorney general civil litigation.

Patrick has been recognized by Chambers USA© for Litigation: General Commercial; by Mid-South Super Lawyers® for Business Litigation; by Benchmark Litigation© as a Litigation Star for Appellate, Commercial, Environmental, and Intellectual Property; by Best Lawyers© for Appellate Practice, Bet-the-Company Litigation, Commercial Litigation, Communications Law, Litigation–Healthcare, Litigation–Securities, Mass Tort Litigation/Class Actions–Defendants, Personal Injury Litigation–Defendants, Product Liability Litigation–Defendants, and Trade Secrets Law, including recognition as Litigation–Securities Lawyer of the Year for 2019 and 2021; by The Appellate Lawyers© as a Featured Mississippi Attorney; and by Attorney Intel as a Top 25 Attorney of Tennessee for 2024.

Patrick is a past president of the Mississippi Chapter of the Federal Bar Association and a past member of the national FBA’s Constitution and Bylaws Committee.  He is chair of the IADC Business Litigation Committee, a past chair of the IADC Class Actions and Multi-Party Litigation Committee, and a recurring member of the IADC Corporate Counsel College Advisory Board.  He previously served on the ABA Class Actions and Derivative Suits Committee newsletter editorial board, and he currently serves on the DRI Commercial Litigation Committee steering committee as 2025 program chair.  He is also serves DRI’s Center for Law and Public Policy as a member of its Class Action/MDL Task Force. He is a fellow of the American Bar Foundation and Litigation Counsel of America.  He is the immediate past president of the Belmont University College of Law American Inn of Court and is the Litigation Group Coordinator for the Southern Law Network.

Before joining the Brunini firm, Patrick served as a law clerk for the Honorable William H. Barbour, Jr., Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi.

Jody Varner joined the Brunini Firm in 1990. He concentrates his practice in federal income and transfer tax issues, including transactional tax planning, estate and gift taxation and entity formation. Jody also has experience in mergers and acquisitions and private placements of equity and debt securities. He has been involved in tax planning for corporate acquisitions, including tax-free reorganizations, mergers, and purchases of stock and assets. Jody has assisted clients in planning for both large and small estates and in developing methods effectively to transfer family businesses and investments from one generation to the next. He has experience in structuring and managing issues involving trusts, family limited partnerships, limited liability companies and closely held corporations. Jody has also assisted clients in charitable giving and asset preservation issues.

Jody has been recognized by Best Lawyers® in America in the field of Trusts and Estates.

Johnny Wade joined the Brunini Firm in 1983. He has extensive civil litigation experience in state and federal trial and appellate courts in Mississippi and before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Johnny has represented both businesses and individuals in the defense of a wide variety of lawsuits, with a special emphasis on medical malpractice, long term care insurance coverage, and products liability. He has been routinely named a Mid-South Super Lawyer® and a Best Lawyer® in America in several fields. Johnny was named Lawyer of the Year for Healthcare Litigation by Best Lawyers® in America in 2022 and has been selected as one of the Top 50 Lawyers in Mississippi by  Mid-South Super Lawyers®.

Johnny has been elected to membership in the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) and the Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel. Johnny regularly earns an AV rating in Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory.

Leadership positions Johnny has held in professional and civic affairs include Past President of the Jackson Young Lawyers, and Past President of the Central Mississippi Chapter of the University of Mississippi Alumni Association. Johnny has also served on the Boards of Directors of the Hinds County Bar Association, the Jackson Metropolitan YMCA, the University of Mississippi Alumni Association and has been a member of Jackson Preparatory High School’s Board of Trustees. He is also a member of the Mississippi Defense Lawyers Association and the American Bar Association’s Litigation, Torts and Insurance Practice Sections. Mr. Wade previously served on the Mississippi State Bar’s Professionalism Program Panel.

Gene Wasson joined the Brunini Firm in 1991. He concentrates his practice primarily in the areas of environmental law and energy law, and also handles large agricultural, timber and recreational land transactions and related natural resource matters such as conservation easements.

Gene’s environmental practice has included numerous cases involving cost recovery under CERCLA, citizen suit claims under RCRA and CWA, and common law claims related to environmental contamination. Gene has also represented clients in enforcement actions before state and federal authorities, including MDEQ, USDOJ, USEPA, and USACE under RCRA, EPCRA, CAA, and CWA. In addition, Gene advises clients on all aspects of environmental compliance, permitting, due diligence, and contracting.

Gene’s energy law practice includes energy infrastructure projects such as natural gas storage facilities, interstate natural gas pipelines, electric transmission easements, power plants, solar projects and carbon sequestration, including preparing and negotiating utility easement agreements, solar leases, gas storage leases, and other transactional documents, overseeing right-of-way acquisition projects, and litigating right-of-way and property disputes. Additionally, Gene has extensive experience with all aspects of oil and gas exploration and production, including title opinions, transactions, and representing clients before the Mississippi Oil and Gas Board. He has also dealt with coal, lignite, bentonite, carbon dioxide, hydrogen and other minerals.