Trey Copeland is a lifelong Mississippian, being born in Jackson on January 29, 1970.  He attained his Bachelor’s degree from Baylor University, cum laude, in 1992, majoring in Political Science with a secondary emphasis in both Russian language and general business administration.  While at Baylor, Trey was honored by being invited to join both the Omicron Delta Kappa and Phi Beta Kappa societies.  After spending a year living in Washington D.C., and working the Republican National Committee as a liaison to the Office of the Second Lady, Trey enrolled in law school at Washington and Lee University School of Law, where he earned his Juris Doctor in 1996.  In that same year, Trey returned to Mississippi was admitted to the Mississippi bar, and in 1997, the Alabama bar.  Currently, Trey is licensed to practice law in all of the state and federal courts in the states of Alabama and Mississippi.  Trey is a partner with the law firm of Jernigan Copeland Attorneys, PLLC, in Ridgeland, where he practices general commercial and corporate law, specializing in the areas of construction law and commercial insurance coverage litigation.  He is also a trained and practicing mediator, and is a trained arbitrator as well as a registered lobbyist.
Trey has been rated as a “Super Lawyer” in the area of Construction and Insurance law, and enjoys an “AV” Peer-Reviewed rating through Martindale-Hubblle.  In 2015, Trey was selected for listing by The Best Lawyers in America, 2016, 22nd Edition for his work in Insurance Law.  Also in 2015, Trey was named a “Top 10 Finalist” by the Mississippi Business Journal as one of Mississippi’s “Top 40 Leaders in Law”.  In 2011, Trey was named by the Mississippi Business Journal as being one of Mississippi’s “Top 50 Leaders in Law”.  Trey is a Member the American Bar Association=s Forum on the Construction Industry, and Section on Tort and Insurance Law, the DRI’s section on the Construction Industry, and is a Member of the CLM, Committee on Construction.  Trey is also a member of the American Subcontractors Association, the Mississippi Subcontractors’ Alliance, the Home Builders Association of Jackson, the National Association of Credit Managers and the Mississippi Homebuilders Association.
Trey currently serves as Chairman of the Education Committee for the Home Builders Association of Jackson, he is also a current member of the Board of Directors of the Home Builders Association of Jackson and a past member of the Board of Directors of the Home Builders Association of Mississippi.  Trey serves the HBAM as its general counsel, sitting on its Legal Action Committee and Government Affairs Committee.  Trey is also general counsel for the Mississippi Chapter of the National Association of Credit Managers, an association of material suppliers for the construction industry.
In 2014, Trey was asked to act as one of the primary drafters, negotiators and lobbyists for the revised Mississippi Construction Lien bill, which passed both houses of the Mississippi Legislature and was signed by the Governor on April 11, 2014.  Since that time, Trey has taken an active lead in promoting the statute and providing a primary source of education to the construction industry on the particulars of the statute.  He also co-authored an article published by the Mississippi Law Journal on the statute, entitled, Clyde X. (“Trey”) Copeland, III & Robert P. Wise, Expansion of Mississippi’s Construction Lien Laws to include Mississippi Subcontractors, Materialmen, Consulting Engineers, and Surveyors, 84 Miss.L.J.905 (2015).
Trey serves on the Diaconate at Highlands Presbyterian Church, PCA, in Ridgeland, Mississippi, where he is the Chairman of the Buildings & Grounds Committee.  Trey, an Eagle Scout, also serves as a Den Leader for Cub Scout Pack 164, and an Adult Volunteer for Troop 164, in Madison Mississippi.
Trey speaks at seminars, both public and private, on topics that include construction law, construction defect litigation, and insurance coverage litigation involving construction projects.