Clifford K. (Ford) Bailey, III

AWARDS AND HONORS

Member

Ford Bailey has a general civil litigation practice with an emphasis primarily in the defense of direct actions against insurance companies. Ford has represented insurance carriers at the trial and appellate level for over 40 years in a wide variety of insurance disputes involving all lines of insurance, including life, health, disability, property, casualty, automobile, and workers’ compensation policies. These include claims involving ERISA, misrepresentation in the procurement of various types of policies, disability, conditional receipts, accidental death, suicide, interpleaders, annuities, health insurance disputes, coverage disputes, uninsured motorist, hurricane, fire and other property/casualty claims, assigned risk coverage, employers’ liability, and workers’ compensation.

Ford has extensive experience at the trial and appellate level defending bad faith actions filed against insurers arising out of all types of insurance claims. Through his practice, Ford has developed a wide-ranging knowledge of the internal operations of insurance companies and has conducted in house training on the good faith handling of insurance claims and how to avoid bad faith. His clients are major national and international carriers and third party administrators. Ford also has twenty years of experience defending railroads in actions involving crossing accidents, FELA, derailments, and flood claims

Areas of Practice

Bad faith claims (all lines of insurance)
Life, health and disability insurance
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)
Automobile and uninsured motorist insurance
Property/casualty insurance
Coverage opinions and coverage actions
Railroad defense
Drainage/flood claims
Civil litigation in state and federal trial & appellate courts

Bar Admissions

Mississippi, 1979
U.S. District Court – Northern District of Mississippi, 1979
U.S. District Court – Southern District of Mississippi, 1979
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, 1979
U.S. Supreme Court

Education

J.D., University of Mississippi School of Law
- Mississippi Law Journal, 1977 – 1978, Articles Editor
B.B.A., University of Mississippi
- With Distinction
- Major: Economics

Honors and Awards

American Board of Trial Advocates- 2020- present
Martindale-Hubbell AV Rating
Best Lawyers in America (Insurance Law, Litigation- ERISA) – 2013- present
Best Lawyers in America “Lawyer of the Year” 2021, 2023- Litigation-ERISA
Mid-South Super Lawyer – 2006- present and is recognized as a 15 year+ Mid-South Super Lawyer
The Top 50 Mississippi Super Lawyers List for 2011-2023
Benchmark Litigation “Local Litigation Star”- 2013- 2023

Reported Cases

Appellate Court Decisions

Samson v. Unum Life Ins. Co. of America, 300 So.2d 930 (Miss. 2020)
Liberty Insurance Corp. v. Tutor, — So.3d —, 2019 WL 5566235 (Miss. Ct. App. 2019)
Liberty Mutual Ins. Co. v. State ex rel. Hood, 277 So.3d 542 (Miss. 2019)
Safeco Insurance Co. of America v. State ex. rel. Hood, — So.3d —, 2019 WL 3955084 (Miss. 2019)
Williams v. Liberty Mutual Fire Ins. Co., — So.3d —, 2018 WL 6061017 (Miss. Ct. App. 2018)
Williams v. Liberty Mutual Fire Ins. Co., 187 So.3d 166 (Miss. Ct. App. 2015)
Walls v. Franklin Corp., 177 So.3d 1156 (Miss. Ct. App. 2015)
Knights Marine & Indus. Services, Inc. v. Lee, 110 So.3d 795 (Miss. Ct. App. 2012)
Casey v. Liberty Mut. Ins. Co., 308 F. App’x. 743 (5th Cir. 2009)
Essinger v. Liberty Mut. Fire Ins. Co., 534 F.3d 450 (5th Cir. 2008)
Essinger v. Liberty Mut. Fire Ins. Co., 529 F.3d 264 (5th Cir. 2008)
McCord v. Healthcare Recoveries, Inc., 960 So. 2d 399 (Miss. 2007)
Confer v. UNUM Life Ins. Co. of Am., 221 F. App’x 304 (5th Cir. 2007)
Hand v. UNUM Provident Corp., 202 F. App’x 689 (5th Cir. 2006)
McDonald v. Entergy Operations, Inc., 167 F. App’x 373 (5th Cir. 2006)
Lynch v. Liberty Mut. Ins. Co., 909 So. 2d 1289 (Miss. Ct. App. 2005)
Means v. UNUM Life Ins. Co. of Am., 115 F. App’x 301 (5th Cir. 2004)
Woodmen of the World Life Ins. Co. v. Lewis, 118 F. App’x 826 (5th Cir. 2004
Pulmonary Advisory Servs., Inc. v. Aetna Life & Cas. Co., 58 F. App’x 597 (5th Cir. 2003)
Keszenheimer v. United Servs. Auto. Ass’n, 78 F. App’x 333 (5th Cir. 2003)
Green v. Wausau Ins. Co., 31 F. App’x 836 (5th Cir. 2002)
Provident Life & Accident Ins. Co. v. Goel, 274 F.3d 984 (5th Cir. 2001)
Hollis v. Provident Life & Accident Ins. Co., 259 F.3d 410 (5th Cir. 2001)
Bigelow v. United Healthcare of Miss., Inc., 220 F.3d 339 (5th Cir. 2000)
USAA Life Ins. Co. v. Keszenheimer, 209 F.3d 719 (5th Cir. 2000)
Brien v. Equitable Assurance Soc’y of the U.S., 211 F.3d 593 (5th Cir. 2000)
West v. First Allmerica Fin. Life Ins. Co., 167 F.3d 538 (5th Cir. 1998)
Delta Pride Catfish, Inc. v. Home Ins. Co., 697 So. 2d 400 (Miss. 1997)
Bailey Mortgage Co. v. Minn. Mut. Life Ins. Co., 723 So. 2d 1247 (Miss. Ct. App. 1996)
McPherson v. UNUM Life Ins. Co. of Am., 68 F.3d 469 (5th Cir. 1995)
Ill. Cent. R.R. Co. v. White, 610 So. 2d 308 (Miss. 1992)
Davis v. Ill. Cent. R.R. Co., 921 F.2d 616 (5th Cir. 1991)
CFC Fabrication, Inc. v. Dunn Constr. Co., 917 F.2d 1385 (5th Cir. 1990) (split decision)
Gladney v. Paul Revere Life Ins. Co., 895 F.2d 238 (5th Cir. 1990)
Mitcham v. Ill. Cent. Gulf R.R. Co., 513 So. 2d 880 (Miss. 1987)
Ford v. Lamar Life Ins. Co., 513 So. 2d 880 (Miss. 1987)
Lamar Life Ins. Co. v. Shaw, 502 So. 2d 323 (Miss. 1987)

District Court Opinions (excluding above cases)

Palmer v. Liberty Mut. Ins. Co., 2011 WL 284495 (S.D. Miss Jan. 25, 2011)
Lowery v. UNUM Life Ins. Co. of Am., No. 2:07cv254-KS-MTP, 2008 WL 1805747 (S.D. Miss.Apr. 18, 2008)
Kilgore v. Peoples Bank and Trust Co., No. 1:04CV374, 2006 WL 1984603 (N.D. Miss.July 12, 2006)
Sansone v. Liberty Mut. Ins. Co., No. 3:04CV-886BN, 2006 WL 286779 (S.D. Miss. Feb. 3, 2006)
McArthur v. Provident Life & Accident Ins. Co., No. 4:04CV186LN, 2005 WL 3502057 (S.D. Miss.Dec. 20, 2005)
Toney v. Lowery Woodyards, 278 F. Supp. 2d 786 (S.D. Miss. 2003)
Blue Diamond, Inc. v. Liberty Mut. Ins. Co., 21 F. Supp. 2d 631 (S.D. Miss. 1998)
Employers Reinsurance Corp. v. Martin, Gordon & Jones, Inc., 767 F. Supp. 1355 (S.D. Miss. 1991)
Freeman v. Mowdy, 743 F. Supp. 475 (S.D. Miss. 1990)

Associations and Memberships

The Mississippi Bar
Bench Bar Relations Committee
- Former Member and Chairman
Task Force on Judicial Discipline (2005-06), Chairman
American Board of Trial Advocates
Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel
Defense Research Institute
Mississippi Defense Lawyers Association
Bar Association of the Fifth Federal Circuit
National Association of Railroad Trial Counsel

Past Employment Positions

Wells Marble & Hurst, PLLC- Attorney/Partner, 1979 – 1989
Wise Carter Child & Caraway, Attorney/Shareholder, 1989 – 2003
Wells Marble & Hurst, PLLC- Attorney/Member, 2003- Present

Fraternities / Sororities

Phi Delta Phi
Phi Kappa Phi

Birth Information

1954, Grenada, Mississippi

Other

First Baptist Church Madison
- Member
Madison Ridgeland Academy
- Board Member (1990-1996, 1999-present)
- Chairman (1993-1996, 2009-2011)
Metro Jackson Young Life
- Former Board Member, Chairman
Madison-Ridgeland Youth Club
- Former Board Member
Madison MS Airport Commission
- Former Board Member