Edward (Ted) P. Connell, Jr., is a partner with the law firm of Merkel & Cocke, P.A. Mr. Connell received his Bachelor of Arts from the University of Mississippi in 1994, graduating cum laude. This was followed by receipt of his Juris Doctor from the University of Mississippi School of Law in 1997. While attending the University of Mississippi School of Law, Mr. Connell authored “Mississippi Casinos and the Detention of a Patron: What are the Parameters of a Casino’s Powers in Detaining a Patron and the Subsequent Liability Which Can Follow?” which was published in the National Gaming Law Review. He was also a member of Phi Kappa Phi, Phi Eta Sigma, Omicron Delta Kappa, and Phi Delta Phi.
Mr. Connell is admitted to practice before all state courts in Mississippi and Tennessee, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and the U.S. District Courts for the Northern and Southern Districts of Mississippi. He is a member of the Mississippi and Tennessee State Bars, Mississippi Trial Lawyers Association, Association of Trial Lawyers, and the Coahoma County Bar Association. He was Coahoma County organizer for the Mississippi Bar’s program “Lawyer in Every Mississippi Classroom” (2007), and assisted with the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project in conjunction with North Mississippi Rural Legal Services when they hosted a “Know Your Rights Summit” in 2009.
His practice includes general litigation, negligence law, workers’ compensation, gaming law, real estate, and wills and trusts.
Mr. Connell is a member of St. George’s Episcopal Church and has served two terms on the vestry (1997 to 2000 and 2006 to 2009) as well as the Board of its Day School (2003 to 2006 and 2008 to 2010) and its long-range planning committee. He was also a member of the Rotary Club (1998 until 2016) where he has served as President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer, and on the Board of Directors for Clarksdale Area Habitat for Humanity (2003 till 2015). He also serves as pro bono General Counsel for Clarksdale Area Habitat for Humanity, and served in this same position for St. George’s Episcopal Day School until its closing. Mr. Connell served on the board of directors of Covenant Bank from 2011 until it merged with Planters Bank and Trust in 2016, was on the board of directors of Delta Council (2007-2008), was a previous member of the Board of the Clarksdale/Coahoma County Chamber of Commerce (1999-2002), and was an active fund raiser for the local chapter of Boy Scouts of America from 1997 until 2007. He also served as President of the North Delta Ole Miss Alumni Club for 2005 and 2006.
Published Works
“Mississippi Casinos and the Detention of a Patron: What are the Parameters of a Casino’s Powers in Detaining a Patron and the Subsequent Liability Which Can Follow?”, National Gaming Law Review, 1996.
Professional Associations and Memberships
- The Mississippi Bar Association, 1997 – Present
-- Litigation Executive Committee, Member, 2008–¬14
-- Litigation Executive Committee, Chair, 2014
-- Board of Directors of the Young Lawyers Division, 2006-08,
-- Young Lawyers Assistance Committee, 2006–07
-- High School Mock Trial Committee, 2007–08
- Coahoma County Representative on the Disaster Legal Relief Committee: Coahoma, Quitman, and Tunica Counties, 2001–04
- Tennessee State Bar
- Coahoma County Bar Association, 1997 – Present
-- President, 2005-06
- Mississippi Association for Justice
- Mississippi Bar Foundation, 2007 – Present
-- Named a Fellow in in 2017
- American Trial Lawyers Association
- The University of Mississippi Alumni Board, 1998–2001
- The University of Mississippi Law Alumni Board, 1997– 2000 and 2014–16
- University of Mississippi Young Alumni Board, 2002–05
- Litigation Counsel of America, Fellow, 2017–Present
Honors and Awards
- Super Lawyers, 2011–13 and 2015 – Present
- Super Lawyers and Mid-South Super Lawyers “Rising Star,” 2008–10
- Mississippi Business Journal, “Leaders In Law,” 2012
- Delta Business Journal, “Top 50 Under 50 in the Delta,” 2003
References
- Delta Regional Authority
- North Delta Development and Planning District
- Planters Bank and Trust
