Administrative Office of Courts
Justice Leslie King admitted to U.S. Supreme Court Bar Mississippi Supreme Court Justice Leslie D. King of Greenville was admitted to the Bar of the Supreme Court of the United States during a ceremony in Washington, D.C., on May 29. Mississippi College School of Law arranged the bar admission for seven of its alumni. MCSOL Dean Jim Rosenblatt invited Justice King, who is not an MCSOL alumnus, to join the group seeking admission. Justice King said, “It’s indeed a privilege to obtain admission as a member of the bar of this nation’s highest court. It was a very solemn ceremony and certainly impresses on everybody again the duties and responsibilities we have as members of the legal community.” The admission to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court does not signal any change for Justice King, who is unopposed for election to his seat on the Mississippi Supreme Court. Justice King said, “I am appreciative of the privilege of serving as a member of the Mississippi Supreme Court and intend to continue that service.” The bar admission was done before six members of the U.S. Supreme Court convened for the regular business of the court, including the announcement and reading of a court opinion. U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. administered the oath to practice to several groups of lawyers. Dean Rosenblatt, who is admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court, made the motion to accept Justice King and seven alumni as members of the Bar of the Supreme Court of the United States. Admission requires two recommendations by lawyers already admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court. Dean Rosenblatt and Justice James W. Kitchens of Crystal Springs, who is also admitted to practice law before the U.S. Supreme Court, recommended Justice King for admission. Justice King graduated from the University of Mississippi in 1970, and from the Texas Southern University School of Law in 1973. He began practicing law in Greenville in 1973. He served in the Mississippi House of Representatives from 1980 through 1994. He was elected to the Mississippi Court of Appeals in 1994, and began hearing cases in January 1995. He served as Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals from April 30, 2004, through March 1, 2011. Gov. Haley Barbour appointed him to a vacancy on the Mississippi Supreme Court. He took the oath of office to serve on the Mississippi Supreme Court on March 1, 2011. #### |
