David F. Gates, 58, of the Reservoir area, Brandon, died Tuesday, February 13, 2007, at his home.

Services were held Thursday, February 15, from Pinelake Baptist Church, 6071 Highway 25 (Lakeland Drive), Brandon, at 10 a.m. Dr. Chip Henderson, his pastor, will officiate.

A private interment service will follow in the Burge Family Cemetery in McNeill. Ott and Lee Funeral Home of Brandon is in charge of arrangements.

Pallbearers are Christopher Van Cleave, Mike McMahan, Chuck McRae, Jay Boling, Paul Scott and Roberts Wilson. Honorary Pallbearers are the president and past presidents and lifetime members of the Mississippi Trial Lawyers Association.

Born March 3, 1948, in Plaquemine Parish, La., Mr. Gates was the son of the late Thomas L. Gates, Sr. and Mrs. Cora Lee Slaughter Gates of Picayune and Jackson. He was a member of Pinelake Baptist Church where he served as an usher and a small group leader. Mr. Gates was an Air Force veteran of the Vietnam War. He was a graduate of Pearl River Community College where he was a member of the football team, and a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi. He was a member of Sigma Nu fraternity.

Mr. Gates served for 25 years as Executive Director of the Mississippi Trial Lawyers Association. He was a past president of the National Association of Trial Lawyer Executives, having served from 1990-1991. He was often sought as a speaker on civil justice matters because of his expertise and long tenure in the field.

Survivors include his wife, Sandy Burge Gates and his daughter Summer Lauren Gates, both of Brandon; his sisters, Jackie Lynn Gates Bilbo and her husband Larry Joe of Picayune, and Patricia Ann Gates Horrell and her husband Fred of Missouri; and his brother, Thomas L. Gates, Jr. of Jackson.

Persons wishing to make memorial donations may do so to the American Heart Association.