Butler Snow is proud to announce that attorney Tray Hairston has been selected as one of Our Mississippi Magazine’s Most Influential African Americans for 2025-2026. Honorees are chosen through a highly selective advisory review process that recognizes individuals whose leadership and body of work reflect measurable impact and enduring significance throughout the state. Hairston will be formally recognized at the 2026 Our Mississippi Honors Gala, scheduled for Saturday, July 18, 2026, at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson, Mississippi.
Tray Hairston
Tray Hairston is a member of the firm’s Public Finance, Tax Incentives & Credit Markets group and concentrates his practice on public finance and economic development matters. He has served as bond counsel for various cities and counties and as incentive counsel to developers and companies working on transactions totaling more than $3 billion. Hairston was recently spotlighted by the National Association of Bond Lawyers in April 2026.
Prior to his time at Butler Snow, Hairston served as counsel and economic development policy advisor to Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant. He was also a member of the Business Development Division at the Mississippi Development Authority, where he provided project management assistance to companies and consultants looking to locate new businesses in Mississippi. Hairston regularly publishes scholarly legal articles. The Bond Buyer also recognized Hairston as a Rising Star. The publication’s Rising Stars program honors municipal finance professionals under 40 nationwide whose leadership, collaborative spirit, and innovative work with issuers have positively impacted their communities.
Hairston is a Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) through the International Economic Development Council. In his role as a CEcD, Hairston provides economic development consulting advice to communities and site selection consulting to companies throughout the U.S. Hairston has been recognized by BL Rankings, The Best Lawyers in America® for Economic Development Law, Thomson Reuters Mid-South Super Lawyers® for Government Finance, Mississippi College School of Law as Young Lawyer of the Year, and the Mississippi Business Journal as one of its Top 40 under 40 (2012-2013).
Board of Directors Work
Hairston is a member of the Board of Directors of the International Economic Development Council where he is positioned at the intersection of national economic development policy and practice, with direct access to the foremost thought leaders, legislative developments, and deal structures shaping the filed, all of which deepens the strategic counsel he brings to clients navigating complex public finance transaction, tax incentive programs, and economic development initiatives.
Hairston is also a member of the Board of Directors of Deep South Today which connects him to the pulse of regional storytelling, policy, and civic dialogue across the South, reinforcing his platform as a thought leader who understands the meaningful economic development is inseparable from the communities, histories and voices it is meant to serve.
Finally, Hairston is a member of the Board of Trustees at Tougaloo College, his alma mater and one of the nation’s most storied historical Black colleges. In this capacity, Hairston brings full circle a journey he began on that campus, now lending his expertise in public finance and economic development to steward the institution’s future while honoring the legacy that first shaped his own.
Organizations and Educational Background
Hairston is a member of the National Association of Bond Lawyers, the International Economic Development Council, the Southern Economic Development Council, the Mississippi Economic Development Council, and the Mississippi Bar Association. He earned his undergraduate degree from Tougaloo College, his MBA from Belhaven College, and his Juris Doctor from the Mississippi College School of Law.
