Judges face unfilled promises

The Hattiesburg American, 2/2/9

A report in the November-December issue of The Mississippi Lawyer magazine, noted the National Center for State Courts’ July 2008 salary ranking – which also includes the District of Columbia – of Mississippi’s trial court judges’ salaries 50th out of 51. Mississippi circuit and chancery judges’ salaries are $104,170; Montana trails with $99,234.

Mississippi Supreme Court justices are listed as 50th out of 51 at $112,530.

State Supreme Court Justice James W. Smith Jr. told the magazine the state’s judicial salaries are “inadequate (and) absolutely devastating to trial judges.”

Court of Appeals judges’ pay ranked at 39th with a salary of $105,050. Only 39 states have intermediate appellate courts.