Chief Judge Thomas C. Clark II has announced the Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District, plans to convene court Thursday, April 4, 2024, to hear three cases for a special Northern Division docket at the Hannibal High School auditorium, 4500 McMasters Avenue, in Hannibal. The court sessions – scheduled for 9:30, 10 and 11 a.m. – are open to the public.
“The Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District, is very pleased to conduct a docket at Hannibal High School, extending the court’s accessibility to the citizens and hopefully expanding the understanding of the court system, the appellate process and the rule of law,” Judge Thom C. Clark said. He noted the court regularly conducts oral arguments at various locations, including high schools, throughout the Eastern District.
Four judges from the court of appeals will be participating in the docket: Chief Judge Thomas C. Clark II, Judge Robert Clayton, Judge Philip Hess and Judge John Torbitzky. The judges will sit as a panel of three to hear oral arguments in three appeals from the Knox County and Marion County circuit courts. After the court session, the judges will participate in a question and answer session with audience members and students regarding courts, the role of judges and the judicial system.
Clark was appointed to the court of appeals in 2021 after serving as a circuit judge, an associate circuit judge and an assistant circuit attorney in the city of St. Louis. Clayton was appointed to the court of appeals in 2011. He previously served as chairman of the Public Service Commission and as a Missouri state representative, and was also in the private practice of law in Hannibal. Hess was appointed to the court of appeals in 2013. Previously, he was in the private practice of law in St. Louis. Torbitzky was appointed to the appeals court in August 2021 after engaging in the private practice of law in St. Louis.
The Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District, is the state’s largest appellate court, with offices in the historic Old Post Office in downtown St. Louis. The court regularly hears cases in St. Louis, Hannibal, Cape Girardeau and other locations in the Eastern District, which includes 25 counties and the City of St. Louis.
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