Charlie Ross started practicing law at Wise Carter after he graduated from Harvard Law School in 1988. His practice has concentrated on litigation and regulatory matters, in a variety of contexts.

He is lead litigation counsel for The Kansas City Southern Railway Company in Mississippi, and over the years, has handled many crossing accident cases and Federal Employer Liability Act cases. He has also served as litigation counsel for Entergy Mississippi in various matters, including electrical contact cases. In addition to railroad and utility matters, he has represented the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians in litigation and regulatory matters for over 20 years. He is currently the senior counsel for the Choctaw Gaming Commission.

Within the past ten years, and currently, Charlie’s practice has involved defending antitrust and Consumer Protection Act claims brought by the Mississippi Attorney General in the fields of pharmaceuticals, automotive parts, electronics, and utilities.

Charlie is a former State Senator and the former Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. For Charlie’s leadership and spearheading legislative legal reform in Mississippi, Charlie was awarded the Legislative Achievement Award in 2007 from the U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform.

Based upon his knowledge of state government and his litigation/regulatory experience, he has often been retained by the Mississippi Department of Insurance on regulatory and litigation matters. He also serves as a governmental relations strategist for several of the firms current clients.

Before deciding to pursue law, Charlie was an Air Force officer and pilot. He is a 1978 distinguished graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy.

Charlie has served as a Director on the firm’s board, and for the past four years, he has served as the President (i.e., managing partner) of the firm.

Over the years, and currently, Charlie has been active in various community endeavors. He currently serves on the Advisory Board of the University of Mississippi MIND Center. He and his wife, Sharon, are active members of Lakeside Presbyterian Church, where Charlie has served as an elder and as a Sunday School teacher.

• United States Air Force Academy, 1978, B.S. - Distinguished Graduate
• Harvard Law School, 1988, J.D., cum laude
• Harvard Negotiation Institute Mediation Training, Harvard Law School, 2014

• Wise Carter, Shareholder, 2003-present, Associate, 1988-2003
• United States Air Force, 1978-1985
• Mississippi House Representative, 1997
• Mississippi State Senate, 1997-2007, Chairman, Judiciary A (Civil Justice), 2004-2007

• United States Supreme Court
• Mississippi State and Federal Courts

• American Bar Association
• American Legislative Exchange Council, Former Civil Justice Task Force Chairman
• America's Best Lawyers
• American Legion
• Federalist Society
• Air Force Association
• Veterans of Foreign Wars

• Named The Best Lawyers in America® 2016 & 2022: Jackson, MS - Railroad Law "Lawyer of the Year"
• Listed in The Best Lawyers in America® 2007-2025:
  - Insurance Law
  
  - Railroad Law
  
• Selected to the Mid-South Super Lawyers List, 2006-2018
• Ranked in the top 10 of the recognized "Top 50 Leaders in Law" for Mississippi in 2010

• Lakeside Presbyterian Church
• University of Mississippi Medical Center, MIND Center Advisory Board

• Winning the Tort War in Mississippi: Keys for Success in Other States, American Tort Reform Association, Washington, D.C., 2004
• Experience Is the Life of the Law, Miss. C.L. Rev., Spring 1996, Volume 16, Issue 2
• Train Up a Child in the Way He Should Go: State Regulation of Private Religious Education, Miss. C.L. Rev., Fall 1988, Vol. 9, Issue 1

• Kanza v. Kansas City Southern Railways [sic] Company, 311 So.3d 1246 (2021)
• State of Mississippi v. Yazaki North Am., Inc., 294 So.3d 1178 (2020)
• Shawn T. Ezell v. Kansas City Southern Railway Comapny, 866 F.3d 294 (5th Cir. 2017)
• McSwain v. System Energy Res., Inc., 97 So.3d 102 (Miss. Ct. App. 2012)
• Rencher v. Kansas City Southern R. Co., 2012 WL 1921709
• Gannett River States Pub. Co., Inc. v. Entergy Mississippi, Inc., 940 So.2d.221 (2006)
• Mabus v. St. James Episcopal Church, 884 So. 2d 747 (Miss. 2003)
• Elam v. The Kansas City So. Ry Co. & Ronald L. Michael, 635 F. 3d 796 (5th Cir. 2001)
• Rushing v. Kansas City Southern Ry. Co., 185 F. 3d 496 (2001)