Vicksburg native Larry Houchins, executive director of the Mississippi Bar Association since 1980, has received the National Association of Bar Executives’ Bolton Award for Outstanding Bar Leadership.

The award is the association’s highest honor and is presented annually to a bar executive who epitomizes the highest standard of professional excellence. It is named in honor of Fred Bolton, executive director and secretary of the Pennsylvania Bar Association from 1966 to 1977.

Houchins is a graduate of Vicksburg High School and has a bachelor’s degree in management from the University of Mississippi. He is the former executive director of the Mississippi Trial Lawyers Association.