MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2020 Regular Session
To: Rules
By: Senator(s) Blackmon, Simmons (13th), Barnett, Blount, Butler, Frazier, Hopson, Jackson (11th), Jackson (32nd), Jordan, Norwood, Simmons (12th), Witherspoon
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION COMMENDING THE PIONEERING ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF FORMER PRESIDING JUSTICE OF THE MISSISSIPPI SUPREME COURT, THE HONORABLE FRED LEE BANKS, JR., AND ACKNOWLEDGING HIS CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI.
WHEREAS, growing up in Mississippi, the nephew of a community activist in the late 1950s, a young Fred Banks heard grizzly details about the gruesomely brutal demise of Emmett Till, and as a matriculating student at Howard University during the 1960s, he returned home during Freedom Summer in 1961 to assist fellow Howard alum, Stokely Carmichael and other Freedom Riders who had been arrested; and
WHEREAS, born on September 1, 1942, in the heart of the capital city, to Mr. Fred Lee Banks, Sr., and Mrs. Violet Mabery Banks, the 1960 Lanier High School graduate attended Washington, D.C.'s premier historically black college and university, Howard University, where he received his B.B.A. before earning his J.D. from the Howard University School of Law in 1968, finishing second in his class with cum laude honors, before returning to Mississippi to become one of only 11 African American attorneys in the City of Jackson upon his arrival "to help African Americans achieve equality"; and
WHEREAS, in a zealous effort to fulfill that commitment, after gaining admission to the bar in Mississippi, Banks entered into private practice with several other attorneys, Reuben Anderson, E.M. Nichols and Melvyn R. Leventhal, acting as Counsel for the Mississippi NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, as well as prominent civil rights litigation, criminal capital defense and a variety of nonprofit agencies which provided services to the indigent and poor, which included work on the appellate brief to allow the Mississippi Loyalist Democrats that ability to gain representation at the 1968 Democratic Convention, as well as the desegregation of public schools in Mississippi; and
WHEREAS, hoping to extend the reach of his service to mankind, premised on the principle tenet that "charity begins at home and spreads abroad," a political aspiring Banks, who had previously worked on Reuben Anderson's campaign in his bid for Jackson City Council, successfully sought election to the Mississippi House of Representatives in 1975, to which he was twice re-elected and faithfully discharged the duties of said office as Chair of the House Ethics Committee, Chair of a House Judiciary Committee and Chair of the Mississippi Legislative Black Caucus, in addition to being appointed by the Governor to serve on the Mississippi Board of Bar Admissions and by numerous appointing authorities to serve on a variety of commissions at both the state and federal levels, including: the State Advisory Committee to the Commission on Civil Rights; the State Advisory Commission on Substance Abuse; the Governor's Task Force on Drunk Driving; the Governor's Constitutional Reform Commission; and presidential appointments to serve as a member of the National Advisory Committee on the Education of Disadvantaged Children and the Democratic National Committee Commission on Presidential Elections by President Jimmy Carter; and
WHEREAS, after nine years, Banks, who has spent much of his legal career dedicated to civil rights and justice, in addition to rendering his talent as President/CEO of the Mississippi Center for Justice, received a gubernatorial elevation when Governor William "Bill" Allain appointed him to the bench as a Circuit Judge for the 7th Circuit District, which encompassed Hinds and Yazoo Counties, to fill the unexpired term of his childhood friend, Reuben Anderson, whom Governor Allain had elevated to the Mississippi Supreme Court in February 1985; and
WHEREAS, after six years on the Circuit Court bench, Judge Banks was once again vetted to follow the steps of his fifth-grade friend, former law partner, and predecessor to the judiciary when Governor Ray Mabus appointed him to the Supreme Court to fill the remainder of Justice Anderson's term in January 1991, to which he was officially elected to serve in November 1991, and re-elected in 1996 to a full term, before permanently retiring his robe to the chamber and silenced his gavel on October 3, 2001; and
WHEREAS, as a presiding Justice on the Supreme Court who authored 612 opinions during his tenure, Judge Banks was considered a potential nominee to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in 1993 during the Clinton administration, which such appointment would have secured his place in this nation's history as the first African American Judge on the Fifth Circuit; and
WHEREAS, fate would lend itself to a different lot for Banks, as he would go on to serve on the National Board of Directors of the NAACP, the Minority Advisory Committee to the University of Mississippi School of Law, the Board of Visitors at Mississippi College School of Law, and Chair of the Criminal Justice Task Force of the Mississippi Bar Association, before making the decision to return to the private sector of law practice, this time as a Senior Partner at the firm of Phelps Dunbar, LLP; and
WHEREAS, the former Justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court, trial judge and legislator, now private practitioner with expertise in the areas of appellate litigation, commercial litigation and alternate dispute resolution, Banks has represented corporate clients in a variety of matters, including consumer lending, trade secret infringement, property taxation, First Amendment issues and contract disputes; and
WHEREAS, recognized for his years of service in the legal arena, Judge Banks' successes are undoubtedly attributable to his immense legal talent, but therein also lies his innate ability to exemplify dignity, civility and consummate professionalism in the most challenging of circumstances, and are further highlighted by the paramount accolades he has amassed throughout his storied career, including, but not limited to: the 2019 Capital Area Bar Association Professionalism Award; American Inns of Court Professionalism Award for the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals (2013); The Mississippi Business Journal - Lawyer of the Year (2010); Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business; AV Preeminent Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell; The Best Lawyers in America (Woodward/White, Inc.), Appellate Practice in Jackson (2007-2019); Arbitration in Jackson (2011-2019); Commercial Litigation in Jackson (2008-2019); Mediation in Jackson (2011-2019); and selected to the Mid-South Super Lawyers list, Super Lawyers (Thomson Reuters) (2006-2019); and
WHEREAS, one who has perfected his craft by honing his skills through practice and professional associations with like-minded individuals, Judge Banks's professional memberships and affiliations include: the Mississippi Bar Association; Magnolia Bar Association; National Bar Association; District of Columbia Bar Association; Charles Clark Inn of the American Inns of Court; American Law Institute; Mississippi Bar Foundation (Fellow); Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity; National Board of Directors of NAACP, Legal Committee (Chair); Capital City Convention Center Commission (Chair); and numerous other nonprofit community improvement activities and boards of directors; and
WHEREAS, the service of Judge Banks would be without honor but for the continued support, encouragement and love of his loving wife, Dr. Pamela G. Banks; their three children: Dr. Gabrielle Banks, Jonathan Banks and Dr. Rachel Banks; and grandchild, Benjamin, who endured the daunting struggles that accompany the life of a public official, and who sacrificed countless hours without him in order to allow him to fulfill his obligations; and
WHEREAS, it is the policy of this Legislature to pay homage to those individuals of Judge Banks' caliber, who have served as trailblazing pioneers, and whose contributions merit the same measure of recognition as that experienced by the State of Mississippi as a result his service to the people of this state with honor and intrepid dignity:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby commend the distinguished and laudable career and exceptional contributions of former presiding Justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court, the Honorable Fred Lee Banks, Jr., acknowledge his contributions to the State of Mississippi, and express fondest respect and best wishes for continued success in all of his future endeavors.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be presented to Honorable Fred Banks, Jr., forwarded to The Mississippi Bar, and made available to the Capitol Press Corps.