Bert Kemp Receives John B. McMillan Distinguished Service Award

Lawyers Mutual congratulates Bert Kemp for receiving the prestigious John B. McMillan Distinguished Service Award from the North Carolina State Bar. Bert is a former Assistant District Attorney in Pitt County and has been with the Pitt County Public Defender’s Office since 2001. He has served as the Chief Pitt County Public Defender since 2007.

Bert’s contributions to the legal profession are substantial. He has served as president of the Pitt County Bar and Judicial District 3 Bar. He is also the past president of the North Carolina Public Defender Association and past chair of the Criminal Justice Section of the North Carolina Bar Association. Bert has been a member of North Carolina Courts Commission, the Governor’s Crime Commission, the Chief Justice’s Equal Access to Justice Commission, and the Chief Justice’s Commission on Professionalism. Bert has previously received the Wade M. Smith Award from the NCBA Criminal Justice Section and the Chief Justice’s Professionalism Award.

Bert also served as a State Bar Councilor for Pitt County from 2021through 2023. Bert worked on the Ethics, Administrative, Appointments, and LAMP committees.

In addition to his contributions to the profession, Bert has served the country as a member of the North Carolina National Guard, Bert currently holds the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the Judge Advocates General Corps. He has been deployed on two tours in Iraq.

Bert was presented with the award at a gathering of Pitt County attorneys on December 12, 2024.