MS Volunteer Lawyers Project honors Supreme Court for support of legal assistance to the poor

JANS – The Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project honored the Mississippi Supreme Court with a Torchbearer Award on Dec. 2 for the Court’s continuing support of the Civil Legal Assistance Fund that promotes access to the courts for low-income people.

 Other awards presented by MVLP during a ceremony at the Old Capitol Museum on Dec. 2 included:

• Beacon of Justice Award to Vicksburg Municipal Court Judge Angela Carpenter;

• Curtis E. Coker Access to Justice Award to Attorney RaToya Gilmer McGee of Edwards; and 

• Pro Bono Awards to Attorney Jasmine Bogard of Jackson, Attorney Giulia McQuirter of Jackson, and Rev. Anthony McIntosh of Louisville.

Attorney Seth Shannon, Chairman of the Board of MVLP, said, “This year, the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project is honored to present the 2025 Torchbearer Award to the Mississippi Civil Legal Assistance Fund, and, by extension, to the Mississippi Supreme Court, which has faithfully stewarded this fund with vision, integrity, and an unwavering commitment to Mississippi’s most vulnerable citizens.”

Shannon said, “The Mississippi Supreme Court’s stewardship of this fund has ensured that these dollars are not merely distributed – they are purposely invested in strengthening families, stabilizing communities, and protecting the dignity of individuals across the state. The Court has consistently upheld the principle that justice must reach every county, every community, and every household – especially those who need it most.”

 Supreme Court Chief Justice Mike Randolph of Hattiesburg said, “It’s just an honor to me to accept this award on behalf of the Mississippi Supreme Court. Our predecessors and those that will succeed us will be backing these projects.”

Justice Kenneth Griffis of Ridgeland, Justice Jenifer Branning of Philadelphia, and Supreme Court Administrator and Counsel Hubbard T. Saunders IV of Jackson also attended the ceremony. Shannon thanked them and Administrative Office of Courts Director Katharine Surkin of Madison. Saunders and Surkin provide administrative oversight for the Civil Legal Assistance Fund and the quarterly disbursal of funds.

Since the Civil Legal Assistance Fund was created in 2004, the Supreme Court has disbursed $12,930,000 to help poor people gain access to the legal system for civil cases, Chief Justice Randolph said. MVLP has received more than $3.6 million, said Gayla Carpenter-Sanders, Executive Director and General Counsel of MVLP.

The funds are paid from special assessments on court filings and from fees charged to out-of-state attorneys appearing pro hac vice. Funds held by the Administrative Office of Courts are disbursed quarterly to MVLP, North Mississippi Rural Legal Service, and the Mississippi Center for Legal Services.

Volunteer attorneys working through MVLP help fill the gap for access to the courts for people who can’t afford to hire a lawyer to represent them in family law and other civil justice issues.

Shannon said the financial support has allowed MVLP to provide services including:

• deliver life-changing pro bono representation to thousands of families;

• hold clinics in communities where no other legal help exists;

• expand access to housing stability, family safety, and economic empowerment; and

• strengthen Mississippi’s pro bono culture through increased volunteer attorney engagement.

Judge Carpenter and Rev. McIntosh were honored for their work helping poor people to clear their records through expungement of criminal charges.

Judge Carpenter has approved nearly 200 expungements during the past three years at the MVLP – Vicksburg Expungement Clinic. Attorney Josie Mayfield Hudson, Vice Chair of the MVLP Board of Directors, said, “For the past three years, Vicksburg residents have filled the courtroom hoping for a chance to move beyond old mistakes.” After meeting with volunteer attorneys, those seeking expungement appear before Judge Carpenter for a decision. Hudson said, “Individuals are not left waiting in uncertainty. The court handles the entire process, and never at a cost to the client. The impact is profound: families regain confidence, employment doors reopen, and individuals are no longer defined by the lowest moments of their past.”

Rev. McIntosh worked with MVLP to establish a periodic expungement clinic in Louisville as a result of his own experience. He spent nearly four years in prison after being convicted of selling cocaine to an undercover officer at the age of 17.

 “What could have been the end of his story became the beginning of his ministry,” said MVLP Staff Attorney Sierra Williams. He earned bachelors, masters, and a doctorate degree in theology from New Foundation Theological Seminary. “He has served as the Pastor of Mount Bell Missionary Baptist Church in Louisville for 25 years, and is the Moderator of the Mount Olive/Bethel Harmony District Association. He also serves as Chaplain and Program Director for the Winston/Choctaw Regional Correctional Facility, where he mentors and restores hope to countless individuals walking the same road he once traveled.”

About four years ago, Rev. McIntosh asked MVLP to bring an expungement and estate planning clinic to Louisville. “He saw neighbors struggling under the weight of old criminal convictions or lacking even the most basic estate planning documents,” Williams said. In clinics since then, coordinated by MVLP and Rev. McIntosh, more than 50 people have cleared their criminal records or received essential estate planning services, Williams said. “His advocacy has directly restored opportunities, dignity, and hope to families across Winston County and beyond,” she said.

Bogard has worked with MVLP since she was a law student at the University of Mississippi School of Law. She worked with the Innocence Project on behalf of death row inmates. As a law student, “she understood that the privilege of legal knowledge comes with a responsibility to serve. She didn’t wait for a diploma to begin giving back. She stepped in immediately, offering her time, skill, and compassion to Mississippians who needed it most,” said MVLP Clinic Coordinator Sara Cotton. As a practicing attorney, Bogard “currently maintains active MVLP cases, demonstrating that her dedication to pro bono service is not a season. It is a calling. Her willingness to show up consistently for vulnerable families reflects the heart of this award.”

Cotton said that McQuirter during the past year has litigated 14 cases for MVLP, providing nearly 70 hours of bro bono services to people who could not afford to pay for counsel. McQuirter “has become one of MVLP’s most dedicated pro bono champions.”

McQuirter’s private law practice “centers on some of the most sensitive and life-changing areas of the law: divorce, child abuse and neglect, juvenile defense, and other family law matters,” Cotton said. “Her commitment to protecting vulnerable children and strengthening Mississippi families extends far beyond her professional caseload.”

McGee, who grew up in Edwards, practices law there. She is the recipient of MVLP’s highest honor, the Curtis E. Coker Access to Justice Award, which is named for the former Mississippi Bar President who championed equal access. Carpenter-Sanders called McGee “a true champion of justice whose work continues to change lives, create opportunities, and advance justice across Mississippi.” In more than a decade of work with MVLP, she served on the MVLP Board of Directors and as Board Chair from 2023 through 2024. “Her leadership helped guide MVLP through critical growth and deepen our statewide impact,” Carpenter-Sanders said.

 McGee played a key role in multiple expungement clinics, and litigated more than a dozen cases on behalf of clients who could not afford to hire an attorney. Carpenter-Sanders said, “RaToya has dedicated her entire legal career to serving the indigent, the overlooked, and the under-represented, a passion that began during her law school clinical work and has only strengthened over time.”

McGee served as President of the Magnolia Bar Association and Chair of the Women in the Profession Section of the Mississippi Bar. She has worked with organizations including the Mississippi Association for Justice, the Mississippi Women Lawyers Association, the Metro Jackson Black Women Lawyers Association, and the 33rd Leadership Greater Jackson Class. She chaired the Western Hinds County Young Professionals and was a coordinator for the town of Edwards Mayoral Health Council.

For more information about services provided by MVLP, call 601-960-9577 or email mvlp@mvlp.org.