State of Mississippi Judiciary

Chancellors, Circuit Court Judges elect conference officers

November 13, 2025

Chancellor Bennie L. Richard of Greenville was recently elected chair of the Conference of Chancery Court Judges. Chancellor Tiffany Grove of Raymond was elected vice-chair, and Chancellor Larry Little of Oxford was re-elected secretary-treasurer. Chancellor Troy Odom of Brandon is immediate past chairman of the Conference.

Circuit Judge Celeste Wilson of Southaven was elected chair of the Conference of Circuit Court Judges, Circuit Judge Carol White-Richard of Greenville is the newly elected vice-chair of the Conference of Circuit Court Judges, and Circuit Judge Grady F. Tollison III of Oxford was elected secretary-treasurer. Circuit Judge Christopher Schmidt of Pass Christian is immediate past chairman.

Conference elections were held Oct. 23 during the fall Trial and Appellate Judges Conference in Natchez. Conference officers make recommendations on issues affecting the courts.

Chancellor Richard took office in the Ninth Chancery District in January 2019 after election in November 2018. He served as a Family Master in Chancery Court before he was elected to the bench. The Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project honored him with the 2024 Beacon of Justice Award for his work providing access to court through quarterly free family law clinics for low-income people. He grew up in Jackson and graduated from Tougaloo College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English. He moved to Greenville shortly after graduating from the University of Mississippi School of Law.

Chancellor Grove has served on the Hinds Chancery Court since January 2019. She has served on the Ac-cess to Justice Commission since July 2020. Before she was elected to the chancery bench, she practiced law for more than 13 years in areas of general civil litigation, estate and fiduciary matters, banking, family law and person-al injury litigation. The Mississippi Women Lawyers Association named her Outstanding Woman Lawyer of the Year in 2018. She was chair of the Women in the Profession Committee of the Mississippi Bar for two years. She is former chair of the Capital Area Bar Association, CABA. She served as a judicial law clerk for Judge Leslie South-wick when he was a member of the Mississippi Court of Appeals, then as law clerk to Court of Appeals Judge Donna M. Barnes. She is a graduate of the Honors College at the University of Southern Mississippi, and earned a law degree from Mississippi College School of Law.

Chancellor Little has served as secretary-treasurer of the Conference of Chancery Judges since October`2019. He took office as chancellor in the 18th Chancery Court in January 2019. He previously served as district attorney for the Third Circuit for 10 years, and for 19 years as part-time Oxford Municipal Judge. He was an adjunct professor at the University of Mississippi School of Law for four years. He is a graduate of the University of Mississippi, and earned his law degree from the former Jackson School of Law, now Mississippi College School of Law.

Judge Wilson was appointed in February 2017 to the 17th Circuit Court. She was elected to the 23rd Circuit Court District in November 2022 after the Legislature created a new district. After further Legislative action, the DeSoto County District is now numbered the 21st Circuit. She serves on the Supreme Court Advisory Committee on Rules. Judge Wilson previously served for eight years as a DeSoto County Court Judge. She served as vice chair of the Council of Youth Court Judges and was a member of the Council for Interstate Compact of Juveniles, the Juvenile Detention and Alternatives Task Force and the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges. Judge Wilson received a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Delta State University and a law degree from the University of Memphis.

Judge White-Richard was elected to the Fourth Circuit Court in November 2014 and took office in January 2015. Earlier in her career, she served as a criminal defense attorney and assistant district attorney. She is past president of the Mississippi Public Defenders Association. She also served as part-time faculty of Gideon’s Promise. She grew up in Holly Springs. She earned her undergraduate degree from Tulane University and her law degree from Vanderbilt University.

Judge Tollison was appointed to the Third Circuit Court bench on July 15, 2020, after serving six terms in the Mississippi Senate, from 1996 to 2019. He held numerous legislative leadership positions, including President Pro Tempore of the Senate, chairman of the Judiciary B Committee, and chairman of the Constitution Commit-tee. He is a graduate of Rhodes College and earned a Juris Doctor from the University of Mississippi School of Law. He began his career as staff assistant to U.S. Senator John C. Stennis from 1986-1988. He served as a law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Armis E. Hawkins in 1991.

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