MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2022 Regular Session
To: Rules
By: Senator(s) Frazier, Barnett, Branning, Butler (38th), DeBar, Hopson, Horhn, Jackson (11th), McCaughn, McDaniel, Norwood, Simmons (12th), Suber, Thomas
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION COMMENDING MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE SCHOOL OF LAW DEAN PATRICIA BENNETT ON THE OCCASION OF HER RETIREMENT.
WHEREAS, the Honorable Patricia Bennett, well-known and highly respected Dean of Mississippi College School of Law, has announced her intention to retire from her position as Dean in June of 2022, after three decades of superior leadership and exceptional service to the acclaimed educational institution and the legal profession; and
WHEREAS, raised in Scott County by a respected family in Forest, Mississippi, she learned from her parents at an early age the invaluable lesson that hard work and education are the keys to success; and
WHEREAS, after demonstrating her scholarly talents during high school, Dean Bennett attended and graduated from Tougaloo College, where she excelled in her academic subjects and was active in student life; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett continued her formal education and training at the Mississippi College School of Law, graduating in 1979 with a superior academic record and a wide network of colleagues with whom she continued to interact over the course of her professional life; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett took and passed the Mississippi Bar Examination and was admitted to practice law in the State and Federal Courts of Mississippi; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett served as Assistant District Attorney for Hinds and Yazoo Counties, where she began her criminal law practice and demonstrated her courtroom skills; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett served as a Special Assistant Attorney General with the Mississippi Attorney General's Office in Jackson, providing superior representation on behalf of the State of Mississippi; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett served her country in the military as a Judge Advocate Officer in the United States Army Reserve and in the Mississippi National Guard when she answered the call to duty and provided selfless and honorable service; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett served in the Department of Justice as an Assistant United States Attorney, where she prosecuted a series of high-profile and challenging cases ranging from murders to white-collar crimes, securing convictions which ensured the fair administration of justice and the safety of the citizenry; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett joined the faculty of Mississippi College School of Law in 1989 and expertly taught a generation of law students Trial Practice, Mediation, Advocacy, Criminal Procedure, Client Interviewing and Counseling, Litigation Technology, and Criminal Law, and also taught as a visiting Professor at Harvard Law School, Emory Law School and the University of Arkansas at Little Rock Law School; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett was selected as Mississippi College's Professor of the Year, the highest teaching award given by the University and delivered the convocation address for Mississippi College; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett served as the Director of the Litigation and Dispute Resolution Center at Mississippi College School of Law, where she organized courses designed to promote effective litigation skills and brought speakers to the law school to provide a rich commentary for the law students such as U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts and thus elevated the standing of the Mississippi College School of Law in the legal community; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett chaired every important Faculty Committee and supported numerous speaker programs, student activities, and alumni events; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett agreed to serve as Interim Dean of Mississippi College School of Law in December of 2016, following the departure of her predecessor, and later in December 2017 was unanimously voted by the law faculty to take the title of Dean and Henry Vaughan Watkins and Selby Watkins McRae Professor of Law, approved by the Board of Trustees of Mississippi College for this leadership role; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett served as President of the Charles Clark Chapter of the American Inns of Court, actively participated in the activities of the Inn as a Bencher, and encouraged student participation in the Inn, exposing law students to expert practitioners and judges; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett has been the recipient of numerous professional awards to include the 2002 Susie Blue Buchanan Award, the 2018 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Mississippi Women Lawyers Association, the Professionalism Award from the Capital Area Bar Association, the Professionalism Award from the Mississippi Bar Foundation, Mississippi College School of Law Faculty Collegiality Award, Mississippi College School of Law Alumni Association Lawyer of the Year Award, Hinds County Bar Association Outstanding Service Award and the Professionalism in the Field of Law Award; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett served the legal community through her position as a member of the Board of Commissioners of The Mississippi Bar, Trustee of the Mississippi Bar Foundation, Bar President's Forum Committee, Mississippi Supreme Court Rules Advisory Committee, U.S. District Court Advisory Group for the Civil Justice Reform Act, the Supreme Court Task Force on Gender Fairness, numerous Mississippi Bar committees, President of the Hinds County Bar Association, President and Governor Emeritus of the Fifth Circuit Bar Association and the Metro-Jackson Black Women Bar Association; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett was elected by the attorneys of Mississippi to serve as President of The Mississippi Bar for the term from July 2017 to July 2018, after taking the oath of office from Chief Justice William Waller, Jr., of the Mississippi Supreme Court, where she represented The Mississippi Bar throughout the State of Mississippi and in regional and national gatherings of Bar Presidents; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett championed efforts to promote diversity and inclusion not only at Mississippi College School of Law but also in legal education writ large and in society; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett led the Mississippi College School of Law through a successful accreditation review by the Council on Legal Education and Admission to the Bar of the American Bar Association after having improved the credentials of entering law students and increased the bar examination passage rate; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett was a member of and active in a series of professional associations designed to promote the rule of law and the fair administration of justice to include being a Fellow of the American Bar Association and the Mississippi Bar Foundation, as well as maintaining membership in the American Bar Association, the Mississippi Bar Association, the Magnolia Bar Association, the Fifth Circuit Bar Association, and the Mississippi Women Lawyers Association; and
WHEREAS, Dean Bennett led the Mississippi College School of Law through the COVID-19 challenges, ensuring that faculty, staff, and students remained healthy while functioning in an in-person learning environment; and
WHEREAS, Dean Patricia Bennett's husband Claude, a building contractor, has given generously of his time and energy to assist Dean Bennett with her decanal duties and in particular with her leadership role while President of The Mississippi Bar; and
WHEREAS, as Patricia Bennett prepares to retire from her position as Dean of the Mississippi College School of Law, it is most appropriate that this Legislature respectfully acknowledges her immeasurable contributions to the Mississippi College School of Law and the entire legal profession which, by positively influencing the education and training of tomorrow's bench and bar while working to create increased access to necessary legal services for all, have greatly benefited not only the individual lives of many, but the entire State of Mississippi:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby commend Mississippi College School of Law Dean Patricia Bennett on the occasion of her retirement, and extend to her our heartiest wishes for a long and healthy retirement marked by continued success of all of her future personal and professional endeavors.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to Dean Patricia Bennett, the Mississippi College School of Law, the Board of Trustees of Mississippi College, and made available to the Capitol Press Corps.