Emmerich: Leglislature should end Hood's contingency practices

Wyatt Emmerich says its time the legislature reign in the practice of Attorney General Jim Hood in awarding contracts to his campaign contributors.

The Wall Street Journal has been highly critical of Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood. America’s most powerful newspaper has made Hood the target of at least a half dozen critical editorials.

This week the journal wrote: “In Mississippi, the state attorney general determines when the public employees retirement fund should bring a securities class action and which outside firms will represent the fund. Would you be shocked to learn that Attorney General Jim Hood has frequently chosen law firms that have donated to his campaigns?”

The journal noted that the law firm of Bernstein Litowitz received $40 million in fees. The firm was chosen by Hood just days after Hood received $25,000 in donations from Bernstein Litowitz attorneys.

It is time for the Legislature to put a stop to this practice. This kind of legal work needs to be bid out on a per hour basis. Mississippi taxpayers need to be receiving the settlement money, not some out-of-state law firm that is putting money in a politician’s pocket.