State of Mississippi Judiciary

The Mississippi Supreme Court on Thursday, Dec. 9, amended court rules for camera coverage, giving judges discretion in the application of technical coverage limitations and eliminating a repealer.

The Mississippi Court of Appeals convened in Tupelo on Wednesday, Dec. 8, to ceremonially welcome recently appointed Judge Donna M. Barnes.

The attorney general, judges, representatives of the Mississippi College School of Law, Department of Human Services staff and volunteer lawyers gathered on Tuesday to call attention to the need for more adoptive parents and to cooperative efforts to find permanent homes for children in need of adoption.

Organizers of a drug court for Hinds County Justice Court have been accepted for training in a national program which will teach them how to create and implement a drug court for misdemeanor offenders.

Jim Ingram of Madison has been appointed to the Mississippi Ethics Commission.

Adoptions of children in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Human Services have increased this year as a result of cooperative efforts by Chancery Court judges, the Department of Human Services, the office of the Attorney General, the Mississippi College School of Law, and the Mississippi Bar.

Ridgeland High School students on Thursday, Nov. 11, will have a trial run of court proceedings to get ready for Teen Court in January.

The Mississippi Supreme Court is considering revising its rules regarding lawyers’ obligations to provide legal services to the poor.

Supreme Court Chief Justice James W. Smith Jr. has declared Nov. 30 as Mississippi Adoption Day.

State trial and appellate court judges on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday met to discuss improvements in management practices and technology to speed up the resolution of cases.

Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice James W. Smith Jr. is seeking applicants for appointment to the state Ethics Commission.

Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice James W. Smith Jr. on Friday announced that the court has speeded up the way it handles its voluminous motions docket and reached his goal of deciding motions within 30 days.

Jackson Municipal Court and Hinds County Justice Court are in the planning stages to form misdemeanor drug courts in those jurisdictions, judges and administrators said Tuesday.

Judges, lawyers, friends and family gathered in the Old Supreme Court Chambers at the Capitol on Tuesday to pay tribute to 55 Mississippi lawyers who died during the previous year. The memorial service, which included the lighting of a candle as each name was read, was the 98th to honor deceased members of the bar.

Judges, court staff, attorneys and a journalist representing 18 countries will visit the Administrative Office of Courts on Tuesday, Oct. 5, at 1:30 p.m.

Hinds County District Attorney Faye Peterson will be the guest speaker at a Hinds County Drug Court graduation ceremony on Tuesday, Oct. 5, at 6 p.m. The program will be in Courtroom No. 1 on the second floor of the Hinds County Courthouse in Jackson.

Court of Appeals Judge David M. Ishee after he took the oath of office Monday said the court’s mission is to deliver justice to all, and he will fulfill his oath to do that.

The 11th Circuit Drug Court will receive a $450,000 U.S. Department of Justice grant.

Mississippi Supreme Court Justice Michael K. Randolph on Friday encouraged private attorneys to give some of their time to representing the poor.

Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice James W. Smith Jr. said Tuesday that the court is looking for more ways to give poor people better access to the civil justice system.

The Mississippi Supreme Court this week will distribute $130,000 to programs which provide civil legal assistance to the poor. The money is generated by fees from out of state lawyers.

Nineteen judges and 88 Mississippi attorneys are expected to participate in orientation programs for about 350 first-year law students in Clinton and Oxford on Aug. 18.

Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice James W. Smith Jr. is seeking applicants for a special judge to serve on the Court of Appeals during the absence of Judge Leslie H. Southwick.

The Madison County Youth Court has become the second in the state to operate a juvenile Drug Court.

Court of Appeals Judge Leslie H. Southwick of Jackson will take a leave of absence from the court to begin active duty with the Mississippi Army National Guard on Aug. 9 as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The Mississippi Center for Legal Services, which provides legal assistance to the poor in civil matters, received $30,000 Wednesday from fees assessed to out-of-state lawyers.

Mississippi Supreme Court Justice James E. Graves Jr. has been invited to teach trial advocacy at Harvard Law School in September.

Civil legal assistance programs for the poor in Mississippi will receive $50,000 this month from fees assessed to out of state lawyers.

Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice James W. Smith Jr. has challenged Mississippi lawyers to help him make changes to solve the problems of the state's judicial system.

Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice James W. Smith Jr. named as recipients of this year's Chief Justice Awards Justice Jess H. Dickinson, Circuit Judge Robert B. Helfrich and District Attorney Jon Mark Weathers.

The Mississippi Court of Appeals will close at noon Tuesday, July 6, to honor the judicial service of the late Judge James E. Thomas, and to allow judges and staff to attend visitation and the funeral service in Gulfport, Court of Appeals Chief Judge Leslie D. King said.

Mississippi Court of Appeals Judge James E. Thomas died Sunday, July 4, at his home in Gulfport.

The Mississippi Supreme Court today cleared the backlog of direct appeal cases awaiting decisions.

When the 4th Circuit District Drug Court was in the early stage of development, law enforcement and the court couldn't locate a Greenwood woman who had been recommended for participation in the program. So Circuit Judge Betty W. Sanders of Greenwood took to the streets to find her.

Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice James W. Smith Jr. told Drug Court graduates in Magnolia on Monday that their lives are at a fork in the road, and he urged them to choose the right path.

Mississippi Supreme Court Justice James E. Graves Jr. will be the guest speaker Thursday, June 24, at the 4th Circuit District Drug Court graduation in Greenville.

Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice James W. Smith Jr. will be the guest speaker Monday, June 21, at the 14th Circuit Court District Drug Court graduation in Magnolia. Circuit Judge Keith Starrett will preside over the program, which is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. at the Pike County Courthouse.

A panel of plaintiff and defense lawyers, judges and a law professor on Monday spent more than six hours discussing whether the Mississippi Supreme Court should adopt a rule allowing class action litigation, and how to craft such a rule.

Class-action litigation will be the topic of a June 14 symposium co-sponsored by the Mississippi Supreme Court and Mississippi College School of Law.

Mississippi Court of Appeals Chief Judge Leslie D. King at his investiture on Tuesday pledged to do what is just rather than popular, and to maintain the integrity of the judicial process.

The Special Committee on Judicial Election Campaign Intervention on Thursday conducted a seminar to educate judicial candidates about campaign finance rules and ethics.

The Mississippi Supreme Court on Thursday revised rules regarding lawyer advertising.

More than half of the people who took the Mississippi Bar Examination in February were already licensed to practice law in other states, according to results recently released by the Mississippi Board of Bar Admissions.

An investiture ceremony for Mississippi Court of Appeals Chief Judge Leslie D. King is scheduled for Tuesday, June 1, at 11 a.m. at the Capitol. The investiture ceremony will be held in Room 216, the Old Supreme Court Chambers.

Mississippi Court of Appeals Judge David A. Chandler was awarded a Master of Laws in the Judicial Process (LL.M.) during graduation ceremonies at the University of Virginia School of Law on May 16.

The Rankin County judiciary and the Rankin County Bar Association on Friday honored Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice James W. Smith Jr. by placing his portrait in the Rankin County Justice Center in Brandon.

A portrait of Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice James W. Smith Jr. will be unveiled at the Rankin County Justice Center in Brandon at 2 p.m. on Friday, May 21. The ceremony will be in the main courtroom on the first floor.

Judges of the 4th Circuit District will have a training session at noon on Friday, May 21, in Greenville to introduce attorneys to electronic evidence presentation equipment recently installed in the Washington County Circuit courtroom.

Mississippi Supreme Court Presiding Justice William L. Waller Jr. of Jackson is the recipient of the 2004 Judicial Innovation Award presented by the Hinds County Bar Association and the Jackson Young Lawyers Association.

Gov. Haley Barbour on Thursday signed legislation which will provide a funding mechanism for drug courts.

Charles Wiggins marveled at the world through sober eyes Tuesday and rejoiced at having the opportunity to find a better life.

Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice James W. Smith Jr. today appointed Judge Leslie D. King of Greenville as Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals.

Attorney General Jim Hood will be the guest speaker at a Hinds County Drug Court graduation ceremony on Tuesday, May 4, at 6 p.m. The program will be in Courtroom No. 1 at the Hinds County Courthouse in Jackson.

Chief Justice James W. Smith Jr. on Friday swore in Michael K. Randolph of Hattiesburg minutes after Gov. Haley Barbour announced his appointment to a vacancy on the Mississippi Supreme Court.

Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice James W. Smith on Thursday called upon trial judges to share their ideas for improving the judicial system.

Chief Judge Roger H. McMillin Jr. announced Wednesday that he is retiring from the Mississippi Court of Appeals effective April 30, 2004.

The Mississippi College School of Law named Court of Appeals Judge Joe Lee as Lawyer of the Year for 2004.

A Special Committee on Judicial Election Campaign Intervention has been appointed to deal with allegations of ethical misconduct that may arise in judicial races this year.

Chief Justice James W. Smith Jr. at his investiture on Monday said he will work to restore public confidence in the judicial system by improving the speed and efficiency with which decisions are rendered at all levels and by pushing for appointed appellate judges.

Money in judicial campaigns, conduct, conflicts of interest and collegiality were among topics of discussion Wednesday at an ethics seminar for Mississippi appellate court judges.

James W. Smith Jr. will take the oath of office as chief justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, April 12. The investiture ceremony will be held in Room 216 of the Capitol, in the Old Supreme Court Chambers

Mississippi Supreme Court Chief Justice Edwin L. Pittman announced today that he will retire, effective March 31, 2004.

The Mississippi Supreme Court on Friday, Feb. 20, amended rules and commentary dealing with consolidation, joinder and venue in civil litigation.

Mississippi Supreme Court Presiding Justice William L. Waller Jr. will give the keynote address Friday, Feb. 20, at the investiture of James Rosenblatt as Dean of Mississippi College School of Law. The investiture is scheduled for 2 p.m. at the Old Capitol Museum in Jackson.

Mississippi Supreme Court Justices Kay B. Cobb and George C. Carlson Jr. and Court of Appeals Judge Billy G. Bridges judged the final round of the Spring 2004 Moot Court Board Competition on Friday, Feb. 13, at the University of Mississippi School of Law.

Mississippi Supreme Court Justice James E. Graves Jr. is one of this year's recipients of the Jim Livesay Service Award given by his alma mater, Millsaps College.

Mississippi Supreme Court Justice Jess H. Dickinson pledged Friday to uphold the dignity, respect and public confidence of the Mississippi Supreme Court.

Justice William L. Waller Jr. of Jackson became a presiding justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court on Monday.