Chris H. Deaton

Education and Training

• Juris Doctorate, University of Mississippi School of Law, Oxford, Mississippi (Magna Cum Laude, May 1991); Mississippi Law Journal; Mississippi Supreme Court Briefing Service; Moot Court Board; Phi Kappa Phi Fraternity; Phi Delta Phi Fraternity.
• Bachelor of Arts, Mississippi State University, Starkville, Mississippi (Cum Laude, 1982); Computer Science major; Engineering and Mathematics minors
• Mississippi Fire Investigators Association training in fire cause and origin (1997-2005; 280 hours)
• International Association of Auto Theft Investigators training in vehicle theft investigation (2004; 16 hours)
• IAAI Seminar - "Investigation of Electrical Appliance Related Fires" (1999, 20 hours)

Publications

• Insurance Coverage Law in Mississippi, Chapter 1 - "The Insurance Contract;" Chapter 2 - "First Party Coverage;" and Chapter 3 - "Third Party Coverage." (National Business Institute 2004)
• The Moeller Muddle (Co-Author), 22 MDLA Quarterly No. 2, p. 3 (Sept. 1998)
• Mississippi Supreme Court Review - Civil Procedure, 60 MISS. L.J. (1990)

Reported Decisions

• Mississippi Department of Transportation v. Johnson, 873 So. 2d 108 (Miss. 2004)
• American National General Insurance Co. and State Farm Fire and Casualty Co. v. L. T. Jackson, 203 F. Supp. 674 (S. D. Miss. 2001)
• State Farm Fire and Casualty Co. v. Brewer, 914 F. Supp. 140 (S. D. Miss. 1996)
• Dominguez-Cota v. Cooper Tire & Rubber Co., 396 F.3d 650 (5th Cir. 2005)

Presentations

• "Courtroom Testimony" - (Mississippi State Fire Academy, February 2005)
• "Statements" - Evidence Gathering for the Fire Investigator (Mississippi State Fire Academy, February 2005)
•  "NFPA 921 - Tricks and Traps" (Mississippi Fire Investigators Association, November 2004) 
• "Ding Dong Daubert" - Courtroom Testimony for the Fire Professional (Mississippi Fire Investigators Association, November 2004)
• "Insurance Coverage Law in Mississippi" (May 2004)
• "How to Prepare Your Case for Submission to the Grand Jury" (2002 Mississippi County Fire Investigators In-Service, August 2002)
• Guest Speaker - Mississippi State Fire Academy (August 2002)
• "How to Burn Your Home and Get Away With It" (Mississippi Fire Investigators Association, June 2002)
• "Mississippi Law Update - The Ten Crash Landings" (Mississippi Claims Association, January 2001)
• "Spoliation - Don’t Throw Your Case Out With the Trash" (Mississippi Fire Investigators Association, April 2000)
• "The Daubert Challenge to Fire Investigators" (Mississippi State Fire Academy, February 2000)
• "Mississippi Law Update" (Mississippi Claims Association, March 1999)
• "Current Developments in Fire Litigation Evidence" (Mississippi Fire Investigators Association, Spring Meeting 1998)
• "Mississippi Legal Topics" (State Farm Fire and Casualty Company Regional Claims Seminar, 1997)
• Counsel in bad faith - arson - insurance fraud mock trial (Mississippi Fire Investigators Association, Fire and Arson School 1997)
• "Duty to Defend Under Mississippi Law" (Mississippi Claims Association Education Seminar, July 1997)
• "Bad Faith in Light of Mississippi Insurance Regulations" (University of Mississippi Insurance Symposium, February 1997)
• "Preparing Your Case for Submission to the Prosecuting Attorney, Grand Jury, and for Trial" (Mississippi County Arson Investigators Recertification Training)

Professional Memberships

• Mississippi State Bar Association
• Lee County Bar Association
• Bar Association of the Fifth Federal Circuit
• Mississippi Defense Lawyers Association
• Mississippi Claims Association
• International Association of Arson Investigators, Inc.
• National Fire Protection Association
• Mississippi Fire Investigators Association (legal counsel)
• Association of Certified Fraud Examiners

Other Memberships and Affiliations

• Commanding Officer, 182d MP Co. (MSSG)
• American Legion (U. S. Army, active duty; Mississippi Army National Guard 1984-1990)
• District Appeals Judge, United States Selective Service, Region II
• Mississippi Economic Council
• Mississippi Manufacturers Association
• Community Development Foundation
• Tupelo Main Street Association
• U.S.A. Certified Stroke and Turn Official
• Calvary Baptist Church - RA Leader
• Cub Scout Den Leader - Pack 85

Practice Venues

• United States Supreme Court
• United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
• United States District Courts for the Northern and Southern Districts of Mississippi
• All Mississippi state courts

Primary Practice Areas

• Arson and Fraud Investigation and Litigation
• Property Insurance
• Insurance Defense
• Insurance Coverage
• Products Liability Defense
• Asbestosis Defense