Michael S. Meyer von Bremen, is an attorney and Democratic politician from the state of

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

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. He resides in

Albany, Georgia Albany ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Georgia. Located on the Flint River, it is the seat of Dougherty County, and is the sole incorporated city in that county. Located in southwest Georgia, it is the principal city of the Albany, Georgia ...

Early life and education

Born on August 19, 1957, Meyer von Bremen attended public schools in Albany and graduated from

Mercer University Mercer University is a private research university with its main campus in Macon, Georgia. Founded in 1833 as Mercer Institute and gaining university status in 1837, it is the oldest private university in the state and enrolls more than 9,000 ...

in Macon in 1979 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science. He earned his

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

from Mercer's

Walter F. George School of Law Mercer University School of Law (historically Walter F. George School of Law) is the professional law school of Mercer University. Founded in 1873, it is one of the oldest law schools in the United States; the first law school accredited by the ...

in 1983.

Political career

Meyer von Bremen was elected to the

Georgia State Senate The Georgia State Senate is the upper house of the Georgia General Assembly, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Legal provisions The Georgia State Senate is the upper house of the Georgia General Assembly, with the lower house being the Georgia ...

in 1998 to represent the 12th Senatorial District, which included all of

Baker A baker is a tradesperson who bakes and sometimes sells breads and other products made of flour by using an oven or other concentrated heat source. The place where a baker works is called a bakery. History Ancient history Since grains ha ...

Calhoun John C. Calhoun (1782–1850) was the 7th vice president of the United States. Calhoun can also refer to: Surname * Calhoun (surname) Inhabited places in the United States *Calhoun, Georgia *Calhoun, Illinois * Calhoun, Kansas * Calhoun, Kentuc ...

Clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4). Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay par ...

, Dougherty, Randolph,

Terrell Terrell, Terell, Terrel, or Terrelle may refer to: Places United States *Terrell, Georgia, unincorporated community *Terrell, North Carolina, unincorporated community in Catawba County, North Carolina, United States *Terrell, Texas, city in Kau ...

and Quitman counties and portions of Mitchell County. He held that position until 2009, when he declined to seek re-election. Instead, in the 2008 election cycle, he ran, unsuccessfully, for a seat on the

Georgia Court of Appeals The Georgia Court of Appeals is the intermediate-level appellate court for the U.S. state of Georgia. History Founding of the court The genesis of the Court of Appeals began with a report by the State Bar of Georgia in 1895, suggesting that the G ...

. After his election defeat, Meyer von Bremen returned to the private practice of law. He later was appointed a magistrate judge.

State Senate

As a senator, Meyer von Bremen was the chairman of the Special Judiciary committee. He was also a member of the Senate Appropriations, Ethics, Judiciary and Natural Resources Committees and sat on the Joint Commission on Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Committee, the Southern Legislative Conference's Economic Development, Transportation and Cultural Affairs Committee, the National Conference of State Legislators' Environment and Natural Resources Committee and the Joint Comprehensive Water Plan Study Committee. From 2002 until he left the Georgia Senate, Meyer von Bremen was the (Democratic) Senate minority leader. He was selected as a Governor's appointment to the Workforce Investment Board and a Supreme Court Appointment to the Indigent Defense Commission.

Judicial campaign and career

In 2008, Meyer von Bremen announced his candidacy for the

. He did not win the election and returned to private law practice. Later, he was appointed a fulltime magistrate judge of Dougherty County.

Private practice

Meyer von Bremen is a partner in a private law firm.
- He is a member of the State Bar of Georgia and the American Bar Association. He is a member and past president of the Dougherty Circuit Bar Association and the Albany Sertoma Club. He is a past president of the College of Liberal Arts and Arts & Sciences Alumni Association for Mercer University.

Community involvement

Having earned the rank of

Eagle Scout Eagle Scout is the highest achievement or rank attainable in the Scouts BSA program of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Since its inception in 1911, only four percent of Scouts have earned this rank after a lengthy review process. The Eagle Sc ...

in 1970, Meyer von Bremen is active in community and civic affairs. He is married to the former Peggy Hicks, and they have two children, Meg and Welsley. They are members of the Porterfield Memorial United Methodist Church in Albany where he has been on the administrative board and the board of trustees. He is also a member of the Chancel Choir. He wason the Albany Dougherty Chamber board and executive committee and the board of the Georgia Independent College Association. He was a recipient of the Robert Benham Community Service Award, The Meritorious Service Award from Mercer University, 2008 Dream Award from King Celebration, Legislator of the Year Awards from the Governors Council of Developmental Disabilities and the Georgia Association of Educators, Best Lawyers in America from 2010-2020.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meyer Von Bremen, Michael 1957 births Living people Georgia (U.S. state) lawyers Georgia (U.S. state) state senators Mercer University alumni 21st-century American politicians