Vicksburg attorney and state Sen. Briggs Hopson III has been sworn in as the 111th president of the Mississippi Bar, composed of more than 8,000 attorneys licensed to practice law in the state of Mississippi.

“Briggs brings a lot of integrity to that position,” said Vicksburg lawyer David Sessums. “He is an excellent attorney, well-respected by his peers, and he is a credit to his profession. It’s an honor well-deserved.”

“I am very proud of him that he has agreed to take on the responsibility of the Bar; for all attorneys,” said lawyer Robert Bailess, who was the Bar’s president in 2007.

A partner in the law firm of Teller, Hassell & Hopson, Hopson has practiced with the firm for 18 years.  He also practiced in New Orleans and Gulfport for more than six years before returning to Vicksburg.

“I’m honored to have been elected to serve as president of the Mississippi Bar,” Hopson said. “It’s a great organization, it is humbling to be president of that group, which includes 8,000 attorneys that are licensed in the state of Mississippi.”

He said he served as president-elect, “so I knew it was coming. It’s such a great and venerable organization. The Bar promotes excellence in the profession and in our justice system as a whole. It does wonderful work and I’m honored to be at the helm for a year.”

Hopson received a bachelor of business administration with a major in banking and finance, and law degrees from the University of Mississippi in 1987 and 1990, respectively.  While in law school, Briggs was a member of the Phi Delta Phi legal fraternity and served as Law School Student Body President.

Briggs has served on the Mississippi Bar’s Board of Bar Commissioners, and as president of the Bar’s Young Lawyers Division.

He is a fellow of the Mississippi Bar Foundation and the Young Lawyers Division, and served as Warren County Bar Association president.  He is a former adjunct professor of the Mississippi College School of Law.

Hopson is an active member of the Louisiana State Bar Association, the International Association of Defense Counsels, the Council of School Attorneys, and the Southeastern Admiralty Law Institute, where he has served on the board of directors.

He is a commissioner for the Uniform Law Commission, vice chairman of the Law and Criminal Justice Committee of the National Conference of State Legislatures, and serves as a member of the Mississippi Tort Claims Board and the Drug Court Advisory Committee.

Hopson has served as chairman of the Board of Directors of the United Way of West Central Mississippi and the Good Shepherd Community Center.

He has also served on the Board of Directors of Mission Mississippi, the University of Mississippi Alumni Association, the University of Mississippi Law Alumni Association, the Mississippi River Trail, and the Red Carpet Bowl Committee.  He has served as fundraising Chairman for the American Heart Association and the American Cancer Society.

Hopson is a member of the University of Mississippi Law School’s Lamar Order and is former commissioner of the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium.  He presently serves as a district chancellor for the Mississippi United Methodist Church and is an active member of Crawford Street United Methodist Church in Vicksburg.