Edward Russell McNees ("Russ") was born in 1980 in Jackson, Mississippi. Russ graduated, summa cum laude, from Mississippi State University with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in 2003, and obtained his law degree from the University of Mississippi in 2006, graduating magna cum laude. While in law school, Russ was a member of the Moot Court Board, serving on the Membership Competition Committee. He also received the Outstanding Student Award for Insurance in the Spring of 2006.

Following graduation from law school, Russ served a one-year term as judicial law clerk for Hinds County Circuit Court Judge W. Swan Yerger, gaining experience in civil and criminal litigation from behind the scenes.

Associations

• Mississippi Bar Association, Bar Admissions Ceremony Committee
• American Bar Association
• Mississippi Association for Justice
• American Association for Justice
• Lafayette County Bar Association