Wesley C. Jackson

Partner

Atlanta, GA | Nashville, TN
D 770.818.4246
wjackson@fmglaw.com

Education

  • J.D., Vanderbilt University Law School
  • B.A., B.B.A., University of Georgia, High Honors

Interdisciplinary Teams

Education

Transportation

Overview

Wes Jackson practices in the Government and Tort and Catastrophic Loss National Practice Sections of the firm in the Atlanta Office. Mr. Jackson is also Vice-Chair of the firm's Government Law national practice section. Mr. Jackson focuses his practice on defending local governments and their officers against federal civil rights claims and related state-law claims.

Mr. Jackson has tried cases in state and federal courts in Georgia. He has argued appeals before the Georgia Court of Appeals and Eleventh Circuit concerning issues of qualified immunity, sovereign immunity, Fourth Amendment claims, and negligent road maintenance.

Mr. Jackson has defended many cities, counties, sheriffs, deputies, and police officers in a variety of high-profile cases involving excessive force, false arrest, malicious prosecution, false imprisonment, high-speed pursuits, and conditions of confinement in local jails. He has also defended businesses against a variety of tort claims including premises liability, negligent security, dog bites, defamation, and products liability.

Wes Jackson received a B.A. in English and a B.B.A. in Finance from the University of Georgia, where he graduated with High Honors from the Honors Program. He then received his J.D. from Vanderbilt Law School. While in law school, Mr. Jackson served as an Articles Editor for the Vanderbilt Law Review and a teaching assistant for the Legal Research and Writing program.

After graduating from law school, Mr. Jackson worked for one year as a public defender in Nashville, Tennessee. He then clerked for the Honorable Lisa Godbey Wood in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia.

Bar Admissions

Georgia

Tennessee 

Publications & Engagements
  • Jackson, Wesley. “The Future of Qualified Immunity: An Examination of Federal and State Proposals.” For The Defense, Apr. 2021.
  • “Qualified Immunity in Section 1983 Litigation,” Dana K. Maine, Sun S. Choy, Wesley C. Jackson, Practical Law: The Journal (June/July, 2017)
Representative Cases & Clients
  • City of Alpharetta v. Vlass, 360 Ga. App. 432, 861 S.E.2d 249 (June 30, 2021) [road design, municipal sovereign immunity]
  • Sharma v. City of Alpharetta, 361 Ga. App. 692, 865 S.E.2d 287 (October 28, 2021) [wrongful death, municipal sovereign immunity]
  • Smith v. City of Roswell, 361 Ga. App. 853, 864 S.E.2d 175 (October 18, 2021) [road maintenance and wrongful death, municipal sovereign immunity]
  • City of Albany v. Stanford, 347 Ga. App. 95, 815 S.E.2d 322 (June 26, 2018) [wrongful death, municipal sovereign immunity]
  • Cantrell v. McClure, 805 F. App’x 817 (11th Cir. March 5, 2020) [excessive force, qualified immunity]
  • Green v. City of Lawrenceville, 745 F. App’x 881 (11th Cir. Aug. 20, 2018) [malicious prosecution, qualified immunity]
  • Vistein v. Henson, 746 F. App’x 937 (11th Cir. Sep. 27, 2018) [malicious prosecution, qualified immunity]
  • Lemontree Properties, LLC v. Samples, 357 Ga. App. 410, 850 S.E.2d 849 (2020) [Civil Procedure, premises liability, Dog Bite]
  • YES Companies, Exp2, LLC v. Rodriguez, Georgia Court of Appeals Case No. A20A1522 (2020) (unreported) [Civil Procedure, premises liability, Dog Bite]
Client Successes
Awards and Recognition

Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch

  • 2024 Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in America