Cyril T. Faneca Jr.

Cy is chief legal counsel for the Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport; the Harrison County Sheriff; the Harrison County Emergency Communications/Operations Commission; Trent Lott Airport; The Long Beach Water Management District; and the Gulfport Stevedoring Association. He was formerly Chief of Staff and Judiciary Committee Adviser to United States Representative Larkin Smith. Cy has also taught Insurance and Business Law at Embry-Riddell Aeronautical University.

Cy's extensive trial experience includes more than a dozen reported cases in state and federal courts, and more than one hundred unreported cases of all types. In addition, Cy has considerable experience in drafting legislation at the local, state, and federal levels. Cy is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, the Mississippi Supreme Court and all inferior Mississippi courts. Cy is a Fellow in the Mississippi Bar Foundation, an honor bestowed only on attorneys among the top ten percent of the Bar. He earned a listing in the publication, Outstanding Lawyers of America. Cy earned the coveted "AV" rating from Martindale-Hubbell, reserved for those attorneys recognized by their peers and judges as having "preeminent" legal ability and "very high" ethics.

Prior to graduating near the top of his class from the University of Mississippi School of Law, Cy was selected for the prestigious Moot Court Board on which he served for two years. He was tapped into Omicron Delta Kappa and was selected Research Assistant for the law school Dean. Additionally, Cy was selected as Editor of the law school newspaper and a columnist for The Daily Mississippian. In undergraduate school at Ole Miss, the student body elected Cy Chairman of the Student Judicial Council.

Service to his country also distinguishes Cy and includes the Marine Corps Reserve and Vietnam duty along the Cambodian border of the Mekong Delta. Cy earned his Airborne Jump Wings; earned the Prestigious Black Palm Award for excellence in his advanced training in Guerilla/Counter-Guerilla and Jungle Warfare in Central America. Cy conducted Small Boat Special Operations on the Mekong and Bassac Rivers and worked as a MACV advisor.

Impressive community activities include: Paul Harris Rotary Fellow; Association of Administrative Assistants U.S. House of Representatives (1989); Republican Executive Committee; Youth Baseball League President; Fleet Captain of Gulfport Yacht Club; and Senior Warden of St. Peter's Episcopal Church. He has also served on the Board of Directors for the following: Westminster Elementary School (President); Homes of Grace; County Development Commission; County Community Action Agency; and Gulfport Yacht Club.

Cy is married to Georgia Anne Thatcher. They have two sons, Robert and Michael. The family resides in their native city of Gulfport and attend St. Marks Episcopal Church.

Year Joined Firm

• 1988

Litigation Percentage

• 50% of Practice Devoted to Litigation

Representative Cases

• Southern Life & Health Ins. Co. v. Kemp, 300 So. 2d 782 (Miss. LEXIS 1634 1974)
• Corrugated Industries, Inc. v. Chattanooga Glass Co., 317 So. 2d43 (Miss. LEXIS 1728 1975)
• Plum v. Commercial Credit Corp., 323 So. 2d 743 (Miss. LEXIS 1568 1975)
• Dixie Contractors, Inc. v. Ashmore, 349 So. 2d 532 (Miss. LEXIS 2159 1977)
• Munford, Inc. v. Peterson, 368 So. 2d 213 (Miss. LEXIS 2227 1979)
• Allen v. Jefferson Lines, Inc., 610 F. Supp. 236 (U.S. Dist. LEXIS 19139 1985)
• Thatcher v. Brennan, 657 F. Supp. 6 (U.S. Dist. LEXIS 20342 1986)
• South Cent. Bell Tel. Co. v. MerrittDredging Co., 726 F. Supp. 1061 (U.S. Dist. LEXIS 15187 1989)
• U.R.S. Company, Inc. d/b/a U.R.S. Company P.A. v. Gulfport-Biloxi Regional Airport Authority, McDaniel Brothers Construction Company of North America, 544 So. 2d 824 (Miss. LEXIS 253 1989)
• Matheson v. Fawe, 586 So. 2d 833 (Miss. LEXIS 676 1991)
• Estate of Stevens v. Wetzel, 762 So. 2d 293 (Miss. LEXIS 46 2000)

Representative Clients

• Gulfport-Biloxi Regional Airport Authority
• Harrison County Emergency Communications
• Harrison County, Mississippi Sheriff
• Long Beach Water Management District

Classes/Seminars

• Insurance, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
• Airport Management, Embry-Riddle University

Honors and Awards

• Fellow, Mississippi Bar Foundation
• Outstanding Lawyers of America

Past Employment Positions

• Office of U.S. Congressman Larkin Smith, Chief of Staff, 1989 - 1990
• Central Intelligence Agency, Clandestine Services Officer, 1967 - 1971

Pro Bono Activities

• Board of Directors, South MS Legal Services
• Harrison County Community Action Board of Directors

Ancillary Businesses

• Governmental Affairs in U.S. Senate and House of Representatives

Fraternities/Sororities

• Beta Theta Phi
• Omega Delta Kappa