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    Sarah Beth Wilson photograph

    Sarah Beth Wilson

    Partner

    Jackson
    601-360-9706
    sarah.beth.wilson@phelps.com
    Areas Of Focus
    Bankruptcy and ReorganizationBusinessLitigation

    Sarah Beth is a creative problem-solver with an extensive track record of leading clients through complex transactions, financings and restructuring projects both in and out of court. Regarded as a strategist and skilled tactician, Sarah Beth is a national board-certified specialist in business-bankruptcy law who specializes in representation of direct and institutional lenders, private equity and other key stakeholders in large commercial transactions, unique and distressed asset acquisitions and dispositions, real estate development projects involving special situations financings, intercreditor and interlender issues, collateral rights and priorities enforcement and secured creditor and bankruptcy rights.

    Sarah Beth regularly advises committees, boards, lending institutions and entities on issues impacting structuring of real estate and business transactions involving secured and unsecured financing facilities. Handling a wide range of real estate, business and asset sales transactions, Sarah Beth’s practice involves structuring and negotiating agreements involving real estate acquisition, development and operation. With extensive experience negotiating and litigating lien perfection and priority disputes in the context of commercial real property, Sarah Beth is also a licensed issuer of real property title insurance policies.

    A pragmatic solver of clients’ most complex financial and contractual dispute problems, Sarah Beth thrives in working as a team with clients, approaching solution identification always from a business-perspective first.

    Recently completing her tenure as Chairman of the Board of Banking Review for the State of Mississippi, a position to which she was elected after being appointed by Governor Phil Bryant and unanimously confirmed by the senate, Sarah Beth continues to serve in legislative and policy advising roles including in her role on the Bank Attorneys Committee of the Mississippi Bankers Association, a position to which she has been appointed every year since 2018 by each incoming president of the state’s banking association. Sarah Beth also played a leading role on the official transition team for Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch from her prior office as Treasurer for the State of Mississippi.

    The leader of the firm’s Bankruptcy and Creditor’s Rights group, Sarah Beth’s practice spans all industries and has led her to represent clients in sectors including banking, aviation, health, oil and gas, agricultural, telecommunications and information technologies, construction, real estate, and retail. 

    Sarah Beth also serves as a member of Phelps' Operations Committee.

    A pragmatic solver of clients’ most complex financial and contractual dispute problems, Sarah Beth thrives in working as a team with clients, approaching solution identification always from a business-perspective first.

    Recently completing her tenure as Chairman of the Board of Banking Review for the State of Mississippi, a position to which she was elected after being appointed by Governor Phil Bryant and unanimously confirmed by the senate, Sarah Beth continues to serve in legislative and policy advising roles including in her role on the Bank Attorneys Committee of the Mississippi Bankers Association, a position to which she has been appointed every year since 2018 by each incoming president of the state’s banking association. Sarah Beth also played a leading role on the official transition team for Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch from her prior office as Treasurer for the State of Mississippi.

    The leader of the firm’s Bankruptcy and Creditor’s Rights group, Sarah Beth’s practice spans all industries and has led her to represent clients in sectors including banking, aviation, health, oil and gas, agricultural, telecommunications and information technologies, construction, real estate, and retail. 

    Sarah Beth also serves as a member of Phelps' Operations Committee.

    Insights

    • November 21, 2024

      18 Phelps Lawyers Named to 2024 Mid-South Super Lawyers Lists…

    • November 15, 2024

      MBC Presents Views from the Bench…

    More +
    • October 29, 2024

      Benchmark Litigation Names Eight Phelps Lawyers in 2024 Edition …

    • October 29, 2024

      What Lenders Need to Know: Perfecting and Maximizing Nontraditional Collateral…

    • August 15, 2024

      185 Phelps Lawyers Chosen for Best Lawyers in America, 20 Named "Lawyer of the Year," 26 Added to “Ones to Watch” List…

    • June 6, 2024

      Chambers USA Guide 2024 Ranks 24 Phelps Practice Areas and 69 Lawyers…

    • May 8, 2024

      How Banks Can Preserve Value Amid Corporate Default Surge…

    • April 04, 2024

      Working Through Special Assets…

    • November 28, 2023

      Sixteen Phelps Lawyers Honored on 2023 Mid-South Super Lawyers Lists…

    • August 17, 2023

      Best Lawyers in America Selects 208 Phelps Lawyers, Names 12 "Lawyer of the Year," Adds 47 to "Ones to Watch" List…

    • July 20, 2023

      Southeast Bankruptcy Workshop…

    • March 31, 2023

      Local Bankruptcy Rules: Mississippi (N.D./S.D. Miss.)…

    • January 27, 2023

      Phelps Dunbar Has Been Mississippi’s Go-to Litigation Firm for Over 30 Years…

    • December 5, 2022

      Local Bankruptcy Rules: Mississippi (N.D./S.D. Miss.)…

    • November 29, 2022

      Super Lawyers Names 22 Phelps Lawyers to 2022 Mid-South Lists…

    • October 27, 2022

      Phelps Partner Appointed as New Mississippi Director of the Gulf Coast IWIRC Network Board…

    • September 7, 2022

      Sarah Beth Wilson Appointed to Bank Attorneys Committee by Mississippi Bankers Association …

    • August 18, 2022

      Best Lawyers in America Selects 158 Phelps Lawyers, Names 10 "Lawyer of the Year," Adds 40 to "Ones to Watch" List…

    • July 21, 2022

      Southeast Bankruptcy Workshop…

    • May 18, 2022

      Strafford Publications Presents Protecting Cash Collateral in Chapter 11 Bankruptcy…

    • December 10, 2021

      “Can Someone Please Tell Me What to Do?” How Best to Sell Your Assets…

    • November 30, 2021

      Super Lawyers Names 23 Phelps Attorneys to 2021 Mid-South Lists…

    • October 21, 2021

      Alabama Bankers Association Bank Counsel Conference…

    • May 19, 2021

      Sarah Beth Wilson Elected as new Chairman of the State Board of Banking Review in Mississippi…

    • November 30, 2020

      15 Phelps Lawyers Honored by 2020 Mid-South Super Lawyers and Rising Stars…

    • November 26, 2024

      Lawline Presents Third Party Releases - Did the Supreme Court Get it Right or Not?…

    Recognition

    • Asset Sale of the Year Award, American Bankruptcy Institute (2023)
    • Appointed by federal court to represent official examiner (Albert Altro of Traverse (CA)) in grain facility litigation concerning largest agricultural Ponzi Scheme in region’s history
    • Board Certified Business Bankruptcy Lawyer, The American Board of Certification
    • AV Preeminent Peer Review Rated, Martindale-Hubbell
    • Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business - Up and Coming: Bankruptcy/Restructuring (2024)
    • Litigation - Bankruptcy, The Best Lawyers in America (2020-2025)
    • Mid-South Super Lawyers Rising Stars list, Super Lawyers (2014-2023)
    • Mississippi Under 40 Hotlist (2018, 2024), Future Star (2024), Benchmark Litigation 
    • Madison County Young Professional of the Year, Madison County Business League & Foundation and Madison County Economic Development Association (2018)
    • Mississippi's Leading Attorneys (2017), Rising Business Star, Mississippi's 50 Leading Businesswomen (2016), Top 50 under 40 (2015), Mississippi Business Journal
    • Outstanding Program Award, Charles Clark Inn of Court National Inn (2015)
    • Asset Sale of the Year Award, American Bankruptcy Institute (2023)
    • Appointed by federal court to represent official examiner (Albert Altro of Traverse (CA)) in grain facility litigation concerning largest agricultural Ponzi Scheme in region’s history
    • Board Certified Business Bankruptcy Lawyer, The American Board of Certification
    • AV Preeminent Peer Review Rated, Martindale-Hubbell
    • Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business - Up and Coming: Bankruptcy/Restructuring (2024)
    • Litigation - Bankruptcy, The Best Lawyers in America (2020-2025)
    • Mid-South Super Lawyers Rising Stars list, Super Lawyers (2014-2023)
    • Mississippi Under 40 Hotlist (2018, 2024), Future Star (2024), Benchmark Litigation 
    • Madison County Young Professional of the Year, Madison County Business League & Foundation and Madison County Economic Development Association (2018)
    • Mississippi's Leading Attorneys (2017), Rising Business Star, Mississippi's 50 Leading Businesswomen (2016), Top 50 under 40 (2015), Mississippi Business Journal
    • Outstanding Program Award, Charles Clark Inn of Court National Inn (2015)

    Education

    • Mississippi College School of Law, J.D., magna cum laude, 2010
    • Millsaps College, B.B.A., Accounting and Economics, cum laude, 2007
    • Mississippi College School of Law, J.D., magna cum laude, 2010
    • Millsaps College, B.B.A., Accounting and Economics, cum laude, 2007

    Credentials

    • Mississippi
    • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
    • U.S. District Court, Northern District of Mississippi
    • U.S. District Court, Southern District of Mississippi
    • U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of Mississippi
    • U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of Mississippi
    • Mississippi
    • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
    • U.S. District Court, Northern District of Mississippi
    • U.S. District Court, Southern District of Mississippi
    • U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of Mississippi
    • U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of Mississippi

    Memberships and Affiliations

    Professional

    • U.S. Bankruptcy Courts for the Northern & Southern Districts of Mississippi, Local Rules Advisory Committee for the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure - Chairman (2018-2020), Member (2017-2019)
    • The Mississippi Bar
    • Mississippi Bankruptcy Conference Annual Seminar - Chairman (2016), Co-Chair (2015)
    • Mississippi Board of Banking Review – Chairman, Governor-Appointed Member Representing Supreme Court District 1 (2017-2022), Mississippi Department of Banking and Consumer Finance (2021-2023) 
    • Fifth Circuit Bankruptcy Bench-Bar Conference – Committee Member (2018, 2020, 2024)
    • Madison County Business League and Foundation, Legislative Advisory / Policy and Planning Committee (2017-2019), Ad Hoc Committee: State Flag (2018)
    • Madison County Young Professionals (MCYP), Steering Committee – Chairperson (2017-2018), Co-Chairperson (2016-2017), Member (2020-2021)
    • Mississippi Bankers Association, Bank Attorneys Committee (2017-2019, 2022-2023)
    • International Women's Insolvency & Restructuring Confederation - Gulf Coast Network Board Member, Mississippi Director
    • American Bankruptcy Institute
    • Federal Bar Association
    • Mississippi Young Bankers Association
    • Mississippi Corporate Counsel Association
    • Mississippi Women Lawyers Association
    • Jackson Young Lawyers Association
    • Fifth Circuit Bar Association
    • Madison County Bar Association
    • Charles Clark American Inn of Court – Barrister (2018-2023)

    Civic

    • Lynn Fitch Mississippi Treasurer to Attorney General of Mississippi Transition Team - Legislative, Policy and Legal Transition Team Leader
    • Millsaps College Else School of Management - Advanced Business Law II Adjunct Professor
    • Mississippi College School of Law - Appellate Advocacy Adjunct Professor, Litigation and Appellate Moot Court Teams Competition Coach
    • Millsaps College Mock Trial Team - Head Attorney Coach

    Professional

    • U.S. Bankruptcy Courts for the Northern & Southern Districts of Mississippi, Local Rules Advisory Committee for the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure - Chairman (2018-2020), Member (2017-2019)
    • The Mississippi Bar
    • Mississippi Bankruptcy Conference Annual Seminar - Chairman (2016), Co-Chair (2015)
    • Mississippi Board of Banking Review – Chairman, Governor-Appointed Member Representing Supreme Court District 1 (2017-2022), Mississippi Department of Banking and Consumer Finance (2021-2023) 
    • Fifth Circuit Bankruptcy Bench-Bar Conference – Committee Member (2018, 2020, 2024)
    • Madison County Business League and Foundation, Legislative Advisory / Policy and Planning Committee (2017-2019), Ad Hoc Committee: State Flag (2018)
    • Madison County Young Professionals (MCYP), Steering Committee – Chairperson (2017-2018), Co-Chairperson (2016-2017), Member (2020-2021)
    • Mississippi Bankers Association, Bank Attorneys Committee (2017-2019, 2022-2023)
    • International Women's Insolvency & Restructuring Confederation - Gulf Coast Network Board Member, Mississippi Director
    • American Bankruptcy Institute
    • Federal Bar Association
    • Mississippi Young Bankers Association
    • Mississippi Corporate Counsel Association
    • Mississippi Women Lawyers Association
    • Jackson Young Lawyers Association
    • Fifth Circuit Bar Association
    • Madison County Bar Association
    • Charles Clark American Inn of Court – Barrister (2018-2023)

    Civic

    • Lynn Fitch Mississippi Treasurer to Attorney General of Mississippi Transition Team - Legislative, Policy and Legal Transition Team Leader
    • Millsaps College Else School of Management - Advanced Business Law II Adjunct Professor
    • Mississippi College School of Law - Appellate Advocacy Adjunct Professor, Litigation and Appellate Moot Court Teams Competition Coach
    • Millsaps College Mock Trial Team - Head Attorney Coach
    • Overview
    • Insights
    • Recognition
    • Education
    • Credentials
    • Memberships and Affiliations

    Related Services

    • Bankruptcy and Reorganization
    • Finance and Lending
    • Business
    • Real Estate
    • Commercial Litigation
    • Banking and Financial Services
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