BATON ROUGE - Baton Rouge native and LSU alumnus Carlton "Trey" Jones III has been named Vice President of Legal Affairs and General Counsel at the state's flagship university. 

Jones was promoted from LSU's Deputy General Counsel to the school's top lawyer. He will be filling the position left open by Winston Decuir, who officially resigned at the beginning of March. The university said that Jones appointment was effective May 1.

A statement sent by LSU says that Jones specializes in "employment law, civil rights, risk management, litigation, free speech and academic freedom."

"We are thrilled to welcome Trey Jones to this vital leadership role," said Scott Ballard, Chair of the LSU Board of Supervisors. "His deep expertise and long-standing commitment to LSU will serve our institution well as we continue to pursue excellence across our campuses. Trey understands the legal complexities of higher education and brings both wisdom and vision to the role."