Experience. Reputation. Results.

Attorney Christopher G. Dunnells

Practice Areas

  • Insurance Defense
  • Trucking Defense
  • Personal Injury
  • Transportation Law
  • Commercial Trucking
  • Premises Liability
  • Professional Malpractice
  • Professional E&O (Architects, Engineers, Realtors, Brokers)
  • Commercial Litigation
  • Business Law
  • Labor and Employment
Martindale-Hubbell | AV Preeminent | Peer Rated for Highest Level of Professional Excellence | Since 2020
Rated By Super Lawyers
Best Lawyers
TIDA | Trucking Industry Defense Association
The Gavel | Your Claims Defense Network

Biography

Christopher G. Dunnells is admitted to practice before all state and federal courts in Mississippi as well as the United States Courts of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, Sixth Circuit, and the United States Supreme Court.

Christopher was a Centennial Scholar and member of the Ina E. Gordy Honors College at Mississippi University for Women, where he received his Bachelor of Arts in 2011, double majoring in Psychology and Legal Studies. He received his Juris Doctorate from Mississippi College School of Law in 2014 and his Master of Business Administration from Mississippi College in 2015.

Christopher has received a specialization in "Negotiation, Mediation, and Conflict Resolution" from Essec Business School and is a graduate of the National Institute of Trial Advocacy, where he later obtained the designation of "NITA Advocate" in 2023. In 2020, Christopher became the youngest attorney in Mississippi to be awarded Martindale-Hubbell's highest rating from both his peers, AV-Preeminent, and his clients, Client Champion Platinum. In 2021, he became the youngest attorney member of the Trucking Insurance Defense Association.

He has been named a "Rising Star" in Transportation Law, Personal Injury Defense, and Employment Law by Mid-South Super Lawyers and named in "Ones to Watch" by Best Lawyers in America® in Transportation Law and Personal Injury Defense. He has been named a Top 40 Under 40 by the Mississippi Business Journal and Top 35 Under 35 by RISE Professionals. In 2022, Christopher was selected to the Mississippi Bar Leadership class of 2022-2023.

Christopher is a member of the Charles Clark American Inn of Courts, National Asian Pacific American Bar Association, and Pro Football Writers of America, among others. He holds leadership positions in multiple transportation committees of national legal organizations, including the Defense Research Institute and Claims Litigation Management Alliance, and he serves on the board of directors for the Mississippi Defense Lawyers Association. He coaches the American Association for Justice's moot court team for Mississippi College School of Law, and he received the Daniel E. Ruhl '04 Memorial Award from Mississippi College School of Law in 2021, awarded to "an attorney competition coach who not only selflessly mentors and trains student competitors to be formidable and exemplary advocates, but who also teaches students by example what it means to be an exceptional, well-regarded, and well-respected lawyer."

Christopher's practice focuses on general insurance defense, including trucking defense, premises liability, personal injury, and professional malpractice.

He lives in Madison, Mississippi with his wife, Caylan, and their two children.

Bar Admissions

  • Mississippi
  • U.S. District Court Northern District of Mississippi
  • U.S. District Court Southern District of Mississippi
  • U.S. Court of Appeals 5th Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit
  • U.S. Tax Court
  • U.S. Supreme Court

Education

  • Mississippi College School of Law, Jackson, Mississippi
    • J.D. - 05/2014
    • Honors: cum laude
    • Honors: National Appellate Advocacy Competition Team
    • Honors: Finalist, Closing Argument Competition
    • Honors: Best Advocate, Internal Trial Competition
  • Mississippi College, Clinton, Mississippi
    • M.B.A. - 05/2015
    • Honors: cum laude
  • Mississippi University for Women, Columbus, Mississippi
    • B.A. - 05/2011
    • Honors: cum laude
    • Honors: Ina E. Gordy Honors College
    • Honors: Centennial Scholar
    • Major: Psychology
    • Major: Legal Studies

Professional Associations

  • Trucking Insurance Defense Association
  • Charles Clark American Inn of Courts
  • National Asian Pacific American Bar Association - Litigation Committee
  • Defense Research Institute - Transportation Law Committee
  • Transportation Lawyers Association
  • Claims Litigation Management Alliance - Transportation Law Committee
  • Mississippi Defense Lawyers Association - Young Lawyers Division
  • Capital Area Bar Association - Young Lawyers Division
  • American Bar Association - Law Practice Division
  • Mississippi Bar Association - Litigation Section
  • National Sports Media Association
  • Pro Football Writers of America

Published Works

  • The hidden pitfalls of the FMCSA’s 18-20-year-old pilot program and how to navigate them, The Transportation Lawyer, TLA, October 2022
  • Knockout Negotiating, CLM The Magazine, CLM, June 2022
  • The Magic of “That’s Right,” CLM The Magazine, CLM, February 2022
  • How to Address the CDL Manual in a Trucking Case, For the Defense, DRI, February 2022
  • Anchors Away: Using Psychological Biases as a Tool in Negotiations, MDLA Quarterly, MDLA, Winter 2021
  • [Co-Author] Combating the use of the CDL manual and federal safety regulations in litigation, American College of Transportation Attorneys, April 2021
  • [Co-Author] Fifth Circuit rejects “fairly lenient” conditional certification standard in FLSA claims, The Transportation Lawyer, TLA, April 2021
  • [Co-Author] Risk Mitigation: Limiting Exposure to Sleeper Berth Claims Under the FLSA, The Transportation Lawyer, TLA, February 2020

Representative Cases

  • Coakley v. Cole, 2022 WL 2911660 (S.D. Miss. 2022)
  • Rose v. GEICO Cas. Co., 2022 WL 1438551 (S.D. Miss. 2022)
  • Swales et al. v. KLLM Transport Services, LLC, 985 F.3d 430 (5th Cir. 2021)
  • Holland v. Murphy Oil USA, Inc., 290 So. 3d 1253 (Miss. 2020)
  • Swales et al. v. KLLM Transport Services, LLC, 410 F. Supp. 3d 786 (S.D. Miss. 2019)
  • Rasdon v. E 3 Trucking, Inc., 2019 WL 4346576 (N.D. Miss. 2019)
  • Evans v. Roger’s Trucking, Inc., 2019 WL 5295198 (S.D. Miss. 2019)
  • Knoth v. Apollo Endosurgery, Inc., 425 F. Supp. 3d 678 (S.D. Miss. 2019)

Classes & Seminars

  • “The Rule Against Hearsay (and its Exceptions),” National Business Institute, April 2023
  • “The Art of Fair, Unbiased, and Equitable Claims Negotiation” Workshop, CLM Annual Conference, March 2023
  • 30(b)(6) Deposition Workshop (attorney coach), TIDA Skills Seminar, March 2023
  • “Legal Ethics of Social Media and ESI in Mississippi,” National Business Institute, July 2022
  • “What to do once you get assigned a trucking file” (On Demand), LawPracticeCLE, July 2022
  • “Defending Truck Cases: De-Weaponizing the CDL Manual and Challenging Adverse Testimony,” Strafford Publications, May 2022

Pro-Bono Activities

  • Back Bay Mission - Advisory Board, the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project