JACKSON- The Mississippi Supreme Court released two opinions today on cases before them involving State Auditor Stacey Pickering, Attorney General’s Office, MCI and Microsoft.

The Supreme Court released an opinion that is shared by former State Auditor, now Governor Phil Bryant and State Auditor Stacey Pickering, fees paid to outside counsel as a part of contingency fee contracts are public funds and must be appropriated either by the Mississippi Legislature or through the Attorney General’s contingency fund.

Excerpt from today’s opinion in “Stacey Pickering, in His Capacity As Auditor For the State of Mississippi v. Langston Law Firm, P.A.; Joseph C. Langston; State of Mississippi; Lundy & Davis; And Aylstock Witkin, Kreis & Overholtz”:
The plain language of Section 7 – 5 – 7 mandates the outside counsel retained by the Attorney General be paid only from the Attorney General’s contingent fund or from funds appropriated to the Attorney General by the Legislature,” – NO. 2010-CA-00362-SCT, Supreme Court of Mississippi.

“The Supreme Court agreed that the Mississippi Statute uses the mandatory term ‘shall,’ and we view this mandate as declaratory that all fees paid through contingency fee contracts are public funds and must be appropriated by the Mississippi Legislature,” said State Auditor Stacey Pickering.  “These rulings today are a victory for open government and transparency as well as for the taxpayers of Mississippi. These opinions set a clear precedent in Mississippi ensuring that the purse strings of the State of Mississippi are to be controlled by the Mississippi Legislature. These funds are public funds, subject not only to control by the Legislature but also subject to audit by the State Auditor’s Office. I appreciate my predecessor Governor Bryant for his leadership on this issue when it began in 2007, and I am overwhelming pleased with today’s action by the Mississippi Supreme Court.”

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