Michael L. Jackson's Profile
Since Michael Jackson joined Wallace, Jordan, Ratliff & Brandt in 1994, his practice has grown to cover many legal areas. His labor-and-employment-law work includes employment litigation, discrimination, contracts, drug-free workplaces, drug testing, litigation prevention, employee policies, employee benefits, and ERISA. He represents parties in appellate and other post-judgment proceedings. His practice in the area of election law and constitutional law includes First Amendment free-speech, voting, civil-rights, and religion issues. In addition, he is experienced in construction law, general business law, commercial litigation, insurance litigation, arbitration, and other methods of alternative dispute resolution.
As the attorney of record in more than eighty appellate cases and more than fifty reported appellate decisions, his record includes challenges to federal jurisdiction, competitive-bid disputes, liens, civil-rights claims, tort claims, challenges over the enforcement of arbitration agreements, discovery and venue disputes, and claims under consumer-credit laws. Michael has handled fraudulent-misrepresentation, fraudulent-suppression, and negligence claims, as well as derivative and minority-shareholder “squeeze-out” claims. He has also worked on cases concerning the powers of local governmental entities. Michael was directly involved in the election-related disputes concerning the 1998 race for Sheriff of Jefferson County, Alabama, the 1996 race for a Jefferson County Circuit Court judge, and the 1994 race for chief justice of the Supreme Court of Alabama.
Michael was born in Birmingham, Alabama. He graduated summa cum laude from Auburn University in 1990 with a B.A. in political science. Michael attended law school at the University of Texas in Austin, Texas, where he graduated with honors in 1993. While at the University of Texas, he served as an associate editor of the Texas Law Review and as a member of the Legal Research Board. He also received the Best Brief Award.
Following his graduation from law school, Michael served as a law clerk to the Honorable Hugh Maddox, associate justice of the Supreme Court of Alabama. Michael is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, all Alabama state courts, and all Alabama federal district courts. He is a member of the Alabama State Bar (including the appellate-law and the labor-and-employment-law sections), the Birmingham Bar Association, the Federalist Society, the Christian Legal Society, and the Defense Research Institute.
Michael’s personal interests include computers, technology, college football, college basketball, and church activities, including teaching children’s Sunday school. He is a CASA volunteer through the Alabama CASA Network and advocates for abused and neglected children in Jefferson County Family Court. He especially enjoys family activities with his wife and children.
Education
- The University of Texas School of Law, Austin, TX, J.D., with Honors, 1993
Honors: Texas Law Review, 1991-1993 - Auburn University, Auburn, AL, B.A., Political Science, summa cum laude, 1990
Bar Addmissions
- U.S. Supreme Court, 1999
- U.S. District Court Southern District of Alabama, 1999
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, 1995
- U.S. District Court Northern District of Alabama, 1994
- U.S. District Court Middle District of Alabama, 1993
- Alabama, 1993
Previous Positions
- Alabama Supreme Court, Law Clerk to the Honorable Hugh Maddox, 1993-1994
