Morris

Anna’s law practice includes defending manufacturers in product liability, personal injury, and breach of warranty cases; defending government entities and private correctional institutions against negligence and Constitutional claims; and representing clients in complex commercial disputes concerning breach of contract and business torts.

• Products, Catastrophic & Industrial Litigation
• Correctional Litigation
• Commercial Litigation

• Served on trial team for a media-monitored, three-week-long federal bench trial in class action lawsuit seeking injunctive relief, funded by several nationwide special interest groups against state juvenile justice department.
• Represented nationwide private correctional institutions in multiple capacities, including defending lawsuits involving Constitutional rights, defending wrongful termination employment claims, and providing strategic advice concerning public records requests following prison incidents.
• Upon being retained to defend private correctional client just before jury trial, obtained dismissal two weeks before trial on grounds that prisoner failed to properly exhaust administrative remedies.
• Obtained early dismissal of state health department executive individually named in class action lawsuit alleging violation of Constitutional claims arising from the presence of lead in city’s drinking water.
• Worked on legal team serving clients across various industries to develop strategies for OSHA compliance and to defend clients throughout OSHA investigations arising from workplace incidents, including fatalities.
• Served on litigation team for oil and gas industry client in multi-jurisdiction litigation in state and federal courts involving catastrophic personal injury, wrongful death, and commercial damages.
• Served in lead investigative and discovery role for highway products manufacturer in product liability and personal injury litigation across the U.S.
• Obtained early dismissal on jurisdictional grounds for global manufacturer of commercial and industrial lift products in case alleging defective design and failure to warn.
• Obtained early dismissal of multi-defendant lawsuit involving property damage claims stemming from transport and alleged spill of pipeline byproduct.
• Successfully represented healthcare provider client before state regulatory board and in judicial appeal to overturn multi-year licensure suspension.
• Represented nationwide commercial landlord in a variety of landlord-tenant disputes and debt collection / judgment execution efforts.
• Represented multiple clients named as defendants in adversary proceedings in various U.S. Bankruptcy Courts, where claims ranged from actual and constructive fraud to U.C.C. violations.
• Represented electrical distributor and utilities company in breach of contract actions and post-judgment debt collection efforts in jurisdictions including Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Arkansas.
• Currently representing county government in landowner’s judicial appeal of ad valorem tax assessment.
• Currently representing nationwide owner/operator of RV/campground resorts in litigation stemming from alleged E. coli outbreak from campground’s recreational water facilities.
• Currently representing municipal client in lawsuit alleging premature labor and subsequent wrongful death of pregnant plaintiff whose vehicle was rear-ended by law enforcement SUV.
• Before becoming an attorney, Anna had multiple years of experience in the private and public sectors, where she served in various roles including a state legislative advocate for Mississippi’s largest healthcare trade organization, finance director for a candidate for U.S. Congress, and an associate manager in the communications office of the state’s economic development agency. Additionally, Anna earned Series 7, 6, and 63 securities licenses while working for one of the nation’s top broker/dealer firms servicing the investment needs of institutional investors. 

• Best Lawyers in America®
  • Ones to Watch, Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants, 2021-2025
  • Ones to Watch, Product Liability Litigation – Defendants, 2021-2025
• International Association of Defense Counsel Trial Academy, 2023
• National Association of Securities Dealers General Securities Representative, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. Series 7 license, 2008 (inactive)
• Investment Company and Variable Contracts Products Representative, North American Securities Administrators Association Series 6 license, 2008 (inactive)
• Uniform Securities Agent, North American Securities Administrators Association Series 63 license, 2008 (inactive)

• Mississippi, 2016

• Mississippi College, J.D., summa cum laude, 2016
  • Executive Editor, Mississippi College Law Review
  • President, Health Law Society
  • Hearin Scholar
  • Recipient, Mississippi Bar Foundation Award (chosen by faculty as the second-year law student who best exemplifies attributes of a successful attorney)
    
• Mississippi State University, B.A., Communication, 2006

• Defense Research Institute (DRI)
• Mississippi Bar Association
• Mississippi Defense Lawyers Association
• Capital Area Bar Association
• Mississippi Women Lawyers Association
• American Bar Association

• Co-Author, “Chapter 19: Strategies for Co-Defending Product Actions," Current Law, Strategies and Best Practices in Product Litigation 2d (Practicing Law Institute, 2023 Update).
• Co-Presenter, “Product Liability 101: An Introduction to Basic Concepts,” DRI Webinar (Jan. 2023).
• Co-Presenter, “An Overview of Colorado’s Enhance Law Enforcement Integrity Act,” Presentation to Munich Reinsurance America, Inc. (Dec. 2022 and Jan. 2023).
• Co-Author, "LAW ELEVATED — Long-Term Care Facilities: OSHA monitors employer weekly reports to CMS," Mississippi Business Journal, January 26, 2021.
• Co-Author, "LAW ELEVATED — EMPLOYERS BEWARE: OSHA ‘Coronavirus-related’ inspections, citations on the rise in late 2020," Mississippi Business Journal, October 14, 2020.
• Presenter, “Ethics in E-Discovery,” University of Mississippi School of Law Tool Box Series CLE, June 5, 2020.
• Co-Author, “Does Spoliation Spoil a Product Liability Claim? Analyzing and Defending Product Liability Claims of the Product-less Claimant,” IADC, Product Liability Committee Newsletter, December 2017.
• Co-Author, “Drone Laws and Drone Regulation: A Primer,” Mississippi Defense Lawyers Association, MDLA Quarterly, Summer 2017.
• Co-Presenter, “Alternative Dispute Resolution: What It Is, Why You Want It, and How to Get It,” Mississippi Society of Certified Public Accountants, Spring Management Conference, 2017.

Having had several years of professional experience prior to her legal career, Anna relies on her diverse background to counsel clients on a variety of legal issues. Her law practice includes:

• defending municipalities, counties, and private correctional institution clients against negligence, employment, and Constitutional claims (such as excessive force, illegal search/seizure, cruel and unusual punishment, restriction of religious freedom, and violation of due process);
• representing business owners in lawsuits and government investigations arising from premises or workplace accidents, including catastrophic incidents;
• defending product manufacturers against breach of warranty, personal injury, and wrongful death claims; and
• negotiating and litigating on behalf of business entities in commercial contract disputes and business torts.

Anna is recognized for her legal skills and professionalism by Best Lawyers in America® in the areas of Personal Injury Litigation – Defendants, and Product Liability Litigation – Defendants. She has authored articles and has presented to client and attorney audiences in the areas of product liability litigation fundamentals, evidence spoliation, ethics in e-discovery, and law enforcement liability risk. She is a member of the Defense Research Institute (DRI), Mississippi Bar Association, Mississippi Defense Lawyers Association, Capital Area Bar Association, Mississippi Women Lawyers Association, and the American Bar Association.