Guff Abbott of Oxford is the Foundation’s 2017 Professionalism Award recipient. This award recognizes a lawyer whose life, practice and service have displayed outstanding character and integrity.

Guff grew up in Gulfport and Jackson and graduated from Murrah High school. He received both his undergraduate and law degree from Ole Miss. He practiced law in Gulfport from 1967 – 1970 and in 1970 he began his 30 plus year career as a Professor at the Ole Miss Law School.

While at Ole Miss, Guff was selected as the first recipient of the Butler, Snow, O’Mara, Stevens & Cannada Endowed Lectureship in Law. He was elected by the Law School Student Body as Outstanding Professor of Law in 1974, 1976, 1984, 1992 and 2000. He was the recipient of the University of Mississippi Outstanding Teacher Award in 1986. Guff was selected as Ole Miss Law Alumnus of the Year for 2000-2001 and inducted into the Ole Miss Law Alumni Hall of Fame in 2016.

Guff is a past president of The Mississippi Bar. He is a Fellow of the Mississippi Bar Foundation and the Bar’s Young Lawyers Division and he was a founding member of the American Inns of Court. He is a long time member and past chair of the Supreme Court’s Advisory Committee on Rules. He also served on the Court’s Commission to redraft all Civil Model Jury Instructions in Plain Language.

Guff is married to the former Patsy Munn of Leland. They have 3 children —Guff, Louis and Linda. Guff is a Ruling Elder and previous Clerk of the Session at First Presbyterian Church in Oxford.