Edward O. Lee serves the firm as of counsel, bringing nearly five decades of legal experience.
Ed graduated with honors from Oklahoma City University School of Law in 1978, where he was inducted into the Phi Delta Phi legal honor society. He earned his undergraduate degree from Oklahoma State University. After law school, he clerked for two Oklahoma district court judges before joining the Municipal Counselor’s Office of the City of Oklahoma City.
Originally assigned to the city’s criminal sector, he was soon appointed to the Planning and Zoning Division, where he rose to lead the department as its chief land use trial counsel. He also served as legal advisor to the Oklahoma City Police Department and to the City’s Planning Commission and Board of Adjustment.
In 1982, Ed joined Pate & Payne, P.C., a firm focused on real estate and banking litigation. He became a partner within a year and developed into one of the firm’s principal litigators. When he joined, the firm had three attorneys. When he left in 1992, it had grown to a team of twenty, including eight lawyers.
Mr. Lee went on to build an independent practice centered on real estate transactions and litigation, expanding into the acquisition and development of commercial properties — including three Class A office complexes in Edmond that he continues to own and manage.
Over the course of his career, Ed has been involved in several reported Oklahoma Supreme Court opinions covering trial procedure, due process, and the interpretation of Oklahoma’s Real Property Condition Disclosure Act, a topic on which he has occasionally lectured to Bar members.
Ed holds an AV Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell, the highest peer-review rating in the legal profession, and has been a member of the Oklahoma Bar Association for 48 years. He is admitted to practice in all Oklahoma state courts, the U.S. District Courts for Oklahoma, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.