Current Bar Memberships:
State Bar of Mississippi
State Bar of Texas
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EVELYN TATUM PORTIE, JD
Evelyn Tatum Portie has over 38 years of experience representing both individuals and businesses across a broad and diverse spectrum of legal matters and issues. Her practice includes extensive experience with business litigation encompassing diverse, complex, multi-party commercial and general civil litigation in the areas of employment law, personal injury, product liability, construction defects, premises liability, real estate leases, landlord/tenant matters, and insurance.
Evelyn received her B.B.A. from the University of Mississippi in 1979 and her Juris Doctorate from the University of Mississippi School of Law in 1981 at the age of 23. Upon admission to the Texas and Mississippi Bars, Evelyn Tatum served as a Texas Assistant Attorney General under Attorneys General Mark White and Jim Maddox. While serving as a Texas Assistant Attorney General, Evelyn handled cases involving constitutional questions and employment matters, including age, sex and race discrimination claims, representing numerous State Agencies and Universities. During her tenure, Evelyn was privileged to represent the University of Texas, University of Houston, North Texas State University, and Texas Southern University, among other Universities and State Agencies, as lead counsel in various matters including Employment Discrimination claims, Constitutional Civil Rights Cases. Litigation included primarily Federal trials, including oral argument before the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and a State Appeal. Beyond her general work with the Attorney General’s office, Evelyn was specifically requested by The University of Texas to represent them in important cases, including a case won at trial and successfully defended in oral argument before the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.
She then moved to Tandy Corporation (owner of Radio Shack, among other companies), a Fortune 500 company, in Fort Worth, Texas, where she served as a Supervisor of Litigation on the national level. During her tenure at Tandy Corporation, Evelyn worked closely with Senior and Executive Management, selecting and supervising outside counsel, partnering with outside counsel as she deemed necessary in numerous and varied cases across the Country as well as the oversight of fees and expenses of Outside Counsel. She handled issues pertaining to Tandy Center with its two commercial towers and retail shopping mall. Evelyn left Tandy Corporation to enter private practice, working for law firms in Dallas and Houston, Texas, most having multi-city offices within Texas. Her experience includes from first chair general civil and commercial litigation, including large, high profile, multi-party cases where she was lead counsel. These cases involved claims of Negligence, Wrongful Death, Product Liability, Premise Liability, Bad Faith, Insurance Policy Construction, Construction Defect, and Employment Cases.
In 1996, Evelyn Tatum Portie established Tatum & Portie, P.C., in Dallas, Texas. She returned to her home state of Mississippi in 1999, where she has continued her civil and commercial litigation practice. Licensed in both Mississippi and Texas, Evelyn has practiced in numerous State Courts in both Mississippi and Texas as well as the United States Federal District Courts in the Northern, Southern, Eastern and Western Districts of Texas and the Southern District Court of Mississippi. She has also been privileged to appear and argue before the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. When relocating to her home state, She decided she wanted the even more personalized, client-oriented approach of a hometown lawyer coupled with the experience and expertise of the larger multi-city law firms for which she had worked. This approach allowed her to control her time and choices, occasionally taking a case that tugged at her heart regardless of the outcome, while still enjoying the thrill of representing clients in complex litigation personal injury and business litigation.
MICHAEL G. PORTIE, MPA, JD
Michael’s forty years of business experience, including more than 27 years as an attorney, allows him to provide sound guidance to business owners and entrepreneurs on matters that include, but are not limited to, business entity formation; real estate matters, including, but not limited to, IRC Section 1031 Like-Kind Tax Free Exchanges; drafting, review and revision of contracts; Confidentiality, Non-Disclosure, Non-Competition, Non-Solicitation and Non-Circumvention Agreements, and advice on Human Resource issues, among other areas.
Michael Portie received his B.B.A. in Accounting from Texas A&M University, an M.P.A. in Budget & Finance from Golden Gate University in San Francisco, California and his Doctor of Jurisprudence from South Texas College of Law in Houston, Texas. He is licensed with both the State Bar of Mississippi and the State Bar of Texas. Upon completion of his undergraduate studies, Michael Portie served for 6 years in the United States Air Force attaining the rank of Captain and serving as a Squadron Executive Officer and an ICBM Combat Crew Commander. He received the Air Force Organizational Excellence Award, was twice awarded the Air Force Commendation Medal, as well as the Meritorious Service Medal.
After leaving the United States Air Force, Michael entered the investment business, having been licensed with Merrill Lynch, Bache Halsey Stuart Shields, and Paine Webber. He later became President of a broker-dealer headquartered in Dallas, Texas area. Michael Portie then served for 10 years as President and CEO of an investment securities due diligence organization with Broker-Dealer member firms from across the country that was focused on alternative investment offerings structured for accredited investors. Subsequently, he has represented multiple issuers regarding capital formation on the national level for their Private Placement investment offerings. Michael holds FINRA licenses Series 7 and 24.
Michael’s approach is to focus on the preparation and/or review of comprehensive and effective agreements between employers and employees, as well as contracts between businesses and their clients. When agreements and contracts are drafted in a clear and well-defined manner, the prospect of misunderstandings and litigation are substantially reduced. Contracts and agreements presented to your business by third parties should always be reviewed by your attorney and revised where necessary to protect your interests. Clear, comprehensive and explicit agreements aid in litigation and the defense of litigation arising out of contractual disputes. Michael is available to draft and/or review your business and employment contracts and agreements whenever the occasion arises.
Current Bar Memberships:
State Bar of Mississippi
State Bar of Texas
United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi