Court Justice Jess H. Dickinson

In his address, Justice Dickinson plans to answer his self-imposed question, "Can a Southern Judge Take Pride in New Hampshire?"

Like New Hampshire, Mississippi recently established an Access to Justice Commission. Justice Dickinson’s announcement of the MS Commission essentially paraphrases the New Hampshire Bar Foundation’s mission statement: "This commission’s overriding objective is to make sure that every citizen of this state, regardless of economic status, has reasonable access to justice and that no one is excluded because they don’t have the money to hire an attorney."

A 1982 graduate of the University of Mississippi School of Law, Justice Dickinson practiced law for one year in Jackson and twenty years in Gulfport, Mississippi’s two largest cities. He served as a Special Circuit Judge for a year prior to beginning his eight-year term on the Supreme Court in January 2004.

During his first year on the Supreme Court, Justice Dickinson was awarded the "Chief Justice Award" for his work in advancing the administration of justice, and he has been appointed to the MS Supreme Court’s Rules Committee for each of the past three years.

On a personal note, Justice Dickinson is an avid photographer and golfer, and plays 14 different instruments, including the hammered dulcimer, piano, guitar, trumpet, drums, and Irish low whistle. He’s a student of colonial history and serves as adjunct faculty at the University of Mississippi School of Law.

"Justice Dickinson comes highly recommended as an engaging and knowledgeable speaker and we look forward to welcoming him and his wife, Janet, to the New Hampshire Bar Foundation’s Annual Dinner," said David Snyder, executive director.