Charles A. Mathis Jr. was an artful litigator who turned the courtroom into his canvas. When he spoke, a clearer picture emerged of the issue at hand.
"He was a joy to watch as he litigated," said the Rev. Dr. Howard Creecy Jr., president/CEO of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which Mr. Mathis represented the past three years. "He laid the background with witness after witness and when he finished, he had painted a masterpiece. He was for the SCLC what Thurgood Marshall was for the NAACP. He guided us and shepherded us, and nurtured us through our toughest moments."
On Friday, Mr. Mathis died from heart complications at Piedmont Hospital. He was 57. A memorial service was held Tuesday at Jackson Memorial Baptist Church. Willie Watkins Funeral Home, Inc., handled arrangements.
Mr. Mathis was a senior partner of the Mathis Law Firm in Atlanta who was experienced in criminal, personal injury, entertainment, medical malpractice and tort litigation. His clients included R&B artists Keith Sweat, Jermaine Dupri and Johnny Gill, among others. Usher was a family friend. He often mixed with well-heeled athletes, executives and artists, and entertained them at his Buckhead residence.
"He was the attorney for the rich and famous of the darker hue," Rev. Creecy said. "They knew he could litigate with the best of the best, and would not rob them and cheat them out of what was rightfully theirs."
CoCo Mathis, a daughter from Atlanta, planned most of the extravagant forays hosted at her father's home.
"It was always fun working with dad," she said. "I got the opportunity to meet interesting people through his business contacts."
This jurist grew up in the historic Pleasant Hill community of Macon, where he attended a Baptist church pastored by the Rev. Julius Caesar Hope, a former state NAACP president now in charge of religious affairs for that group's national arm. Mr. Mathis earned his juris doctorate from the Mercer University Walter F. George School of Law where he and friends tried to recruit other black students. He was admitted to the State Bar of Georgia in 1978.
Mr. Mathis was the city attorney for Milledgeville in 1981-1993. He was the first black attorney to serve as president of the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association. He was a two-time recipient of the Wiedemann Wysocki Citation of Excellence awarded by the Association of Trial Lawyers of America.
He represented the SCLC, the 54-year-old civil rights organization, during recent leadership struggles.
"His final masterpiece was to lead the SCLC out of the wilderness and darkness, and back to the marvelous light," Rev. Creecy said.
Survivors include his wife, Cynthia W. Mathis, of Atlanta; another daughter, Allison Mathis, of Atlanta; a son, Charles A. Mathis III, of Atlanta; two brothers, Tony C. Mathis and Milton A. Mathis, both of Tifton, and four grandchildren.
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