About Michael L.
Michael L. Jackson has spent more than three decades in lawrooms and court corridors across Alabama and beyond. He built his foundation in political science at Auburn University, earning a B.A. in 1986. He went on to receive a J.D. from the University of Texas at Austin in 1990, then returned to the Southeast to begin a legal career that has ranged from judicial chambers to private practice.
Early in his career Jackson served as a law clerk to Justice Hugh Maddox of the Supreme Court of Alabama in 1993. The year in chambers gave him direct exposure to appellate decision-making and the mechanics of state supreme court practice. It was a formative period that shaped how he approaches legal research, brief writing and oral argument.
In 1994 he joined Wallace, Jordan, Ratliff & Brandt, L.L.C. as an associate. He remained with the firm through the late 1990s and into the 2000s, and records show he held membership in the firm by 2001. Over time he handled matters that took him beyond trial courts and into appeals, reflecting the early experience he gained in the Supreme Court of Alabama.
Jackson is admitted to practice in Alabama and holds admissions that allow him to appear before federal appellate courts, including the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, and the U.S. Supreme Court. Those credentials have informed his work on matters that require appellate briefing and argument. Colleagues describe him as methodical in preparing records and persuasive in court, traits that suit appellate practice.
His career blends public and private work. The clerkship gave him a close view of judicial reasoning. Time in private practice exposed him to client-facing litigation and firm dynamics. He has navigated procedural and substantive issues at multiple levels of the judicial system and has experience drafting briefs and presenting oral argument in appellate settings.
Jackson maintains an office in the First Commercial Bank Building. He continues to practice at Wallace, Jordan, Ratliff & Brandt, L.L.C., where his work includes appellate advocacy and civil litigation matters.
