Tom Stewart Lee
Judge Lee no longer hears cases. This profile is preserved as a historical record of how they ruled.
How Judge Lee decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
What persuades
In Title VII suits naming a state governing board alongside the actual employing institution, he applies Fifth Circuit precedent holding that the single-employer and joint-employer doctrines do not extend to governmental subdivisions, and dismisses the board where the complaint alleges no direct involvement by the board in the challenged employment decisions.
“given that the Fifth Circuit has repeatedly expressed the view that these theories do not apply to governmental subdivisions, this court finds that IHL cannot be found to be an "employer" under either the single employer or joint employer test.”
On a bank's guaranty claim, he separates a straightforward liability question (which he will decide on summary judgment once the contract terms are clear) from a genuinely contested damages calculation, staying only the amount-owed portion of the motion for supplemental briefing rather than deferring the whole ruling.
“The motion is granted as to defendants' liability under their guaranty agreement and the motion is stayed, in part, so that the parties may submit further evidence and argument on the issue of the amount of defendants' liability.”
On motions to compel arbitration, he consistently enforces arbitration clauses added to consumer credit or cardholder agreements by unilateral amendment, so long as the customer received notice and an opportunity to opt out and continued to use the account.
“the arbitration provision contained in Beneficial's 1996 Notice to Cardholders became part of Payton's contract with Beneficial.”
Procedural preferences
He adopts unopposed magistrate-judge recommendations promptly and without independent elaboration once the objection period lapses, in both habeas and prisoner civil-rights referrals.
“Pro se petitioner Larry James Blaylock has failed to file an objection and the time for doing so has since expired. Having considered the report and recommendation and the motion, the court concludes that it is well taken and should be adopted as the opinion of this court.”
In multi-defendant prisoner suits he tailors the dismissal to each defendant separately -- with prejudice where the claim fails on the merits, without prejudice where it is a pleading defect or a failure to prosecute -- rather than issuing one blanket dismissal.
“plaintiff's claims against defendants Scott and Strong are dismissed without prejudice, that his claims against defendant Chambers are dismissed with prejudice and that plaintiff's claims against Dr. Unknown Martiner are dismissed without prejudice based on his failure to prosecute”
He scrutinizes diversity jurisdiction closely at the pleading stage, dismissing multi-plaintiff diversity suits for want of the amount-in-controversy requirement when the complaint's own damages figures, examined claim by claim, cannot support it -- even where plaintiffs argue for aggregation of a lump-sum punitive-damages demand.
“the court finds that plaintiffs have failed to establish that the amount in controversy exceeds $75,000. Therefore, it is ordered that defendants' motion to dismiss is granted.”
Cautions
In his best-known ruling, a 2007 bench-trial judgment in a Justice Department Voting Rights Act suit against the Noxubee County Democratic Party chairman, he made detailed findings on absentee-ballot practices and notary recruitment before reaching a liability conclusion -- a signal that in vote-dilution and election-administration cases he expects a fully developed evidentiary record on how ballots were actually collected and processed, not just the aggregate outcome.
“Although not a candidate, Ike Brown was plainly heavily involved in an absentee ballot program. The uncontroverted evidence showed that from 1999 to 2004, but principally in late 2002 and 2003, a corporation owned by Brown, RMB Enterprises, paid the notary application fees of more than fifty persons, nearly all of them residents of Noxubee County.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that petitioner's habeas corpus petition is denied.”
“In conclusion, based on all of the foregoing, the court concludes that IHL's motion to dismiss is well taken. Accordingly, it is ordered that the motion is granted.”
“plaintiff's motion for summary judgment is denied”
“the government's motion to affirm is granted, such that the action will be dismissed with prejudice”
“each of the following motions is granted to the extent it seeks dismissal of plaintiff James Alexander's federal claims”
“plaintiff James Alexander's "Motion for Relief" is denied”
“the various motions to strike plaintiff's "Motion for Relief" are denied as moot”
“defendant's motion to dismiss is granted and that plaintiff's claims against defendants Scott and Strong are dismissed without prejudice, that his claims against defendant Chambers are dismissed with prejudice and that plaintiff's claims against Dr. Unknown Martiner are dismissed without prejudice based on his failure to prosecute”
“The motion is granted as to defendants' liability under their guaranty agreement and the motion is stayed, in part, so that the parties may submit further evidence and argument on the issue of the amount of defendants' liability.”
“Based on the foregoing, it is ordered that plaintiff's motion to remand is denied.”
“it is ordered that defendants' motion to dismiss and their alternative request to transfer and/or consolidate are denied.”
“defendant's motion to dismiss is denied”
“plaintiffs' motion for an order compelling arbitration pursuant to Section 4 of the FAA and their accompanying request pursuant to Section 3 of the FAA for an order staying litigation by defendant against them pending binding arbitration are granted.”
“the court, having considered the memoranda of authorities, together with attachments, submitted by the parties, concludes that defendant's motions should be denied, and that Bank One's motion should be granted, for reasons that follow.”
“Accordingly, it is ordered that defendants' motion for summary judgment is granted.”
“it is ordered that plaintiff's motion for partial summary judgment is denied, and that defendant's motion for summary judgment is granted as to plaintiff's claim under the ADA, and her claims for negligence, and for negligent infliction of emotional distress. It is ordered that defendant's motion is denied as to plaintiff's claims under the Rehabilitation Act and for breach of contract.”
Caseload & timing
From public federal docket records for this judge.
Of the 13 sampled dockets, several (Mills v. AXIS Insurance, McLeod v. Ethicon, Higginbotham v. Madison Community Care Center via stipulated dismissal) ended by summary judgment, judgment on the pleadings, or stipulated/agreed dismissal without a quotable retained order; Origin Bank v. Haven Campus Communities-Starkville produced a lengthy contested guaranty-liability dispute over an 18-month life. Two 2024-filed cases (LAD (Aviation), Inc. v. Booker and Wells v. TK Elevator) remain pending; Booker was later consolidated with a related, earlier-filed case.
A historical record
Judge Lee no longer hears cases. This profile stays available as a record of how they ruled. If you're preparing for a matter, start from the court's current bench.