The Mississippi Bar Foundation, Inc. was organized in 1963 shortly after Mississippi State Bar President Sidney Carlton recognized the need for an organization which is representative of the bench and bar and is able to improve and facilitate the administration of justice. A six-man study committee chaired by N. W. Overstreet, Jr. carefully reviewed the experiences and operations of twelve legal foundations throughout the country. The committee recommended unanimously to the Board of Commissioners of the Mississippi State Bar that a non-profit corporation be established to direct its research skills and efforts toward supplying essential information and ideas for the solution of current legal issues in the public interest and to improve the administration of justice. The recommendations of the committee were approved by the Board of Commissioners of the Mississippi State Bar at its meeting December 6, 1962. On December 11, 1962, the Charter of Incorporation of the Mississippi Bar Foundation, Inc. was issued.

The Mississippi Bar Foundation will support:

1. The Improvement of the Administration of Justice in Mississippi
The Foundation will strive to improve the administration of justice through the support of organizations which provide legal services to the poor and needy. The Foundation will work to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of Mississippi's judiciary through education, training, technological improvements, and by recognizing and honoring significant contributors to this cause.

2. The Advancement of the Science of Jurisprudence
The Foundation will advance the science of jurisprudence by providing scholarship assistance and support to law schools, students and faculty and by sponsoring significant legal research, education and training projects.

3. The Improvement of Relations Between Members of the Bar, the Judiciary and the Public
The Foundation will work to improve relations between the Bar, judiciary and public by sponsoring law-related public education programs designed to improve public understanding of the legal system. The Foundation will work to inform the public of the service and support provided by the Bar, the judiciary, and their individual members. The Foundation, through its members, will actively participate in community service projects and will mobilize the effective support of the Bar and the judiciary to act on the legitimate concerns of the public.

4. The Presentation of the American Constitutional Form of Government
The Foundation will strive to preserve the form of Government established by the United States Constitution by developing and sponsoring programs which explain the rights, privileges and responsibilities of citizenship and the role of our legal system in the preservation of the freedom citizens enjoy.

All lawyers who are invited to become Fellows and all members of the Foundations' Board of Trustees must pledge to support the Foundation's purposes.