The Committee for Economic Development (United States of America), the Missouri Law Institute, Missourians for Fair and Impartial Courts, and Justice at Stake, will host a luncheon forum on “Why a Fair and Impartial Judiciary Matters to the Missouri Business Community.” The forum will include business and policy leaders for a bi-partisan discussion on judicial reform. The event will take place on Tuesday, December 11, 2007 from 12:00-2:00 pm at the Renaissance Grand Hotel (Crystal Ballroom 20th Floor) at 800 Washington Avenue in downtown St. Louis, Missouri. A complimentary lunch will be served.
From the press release:
“In the midst of an historic upsurge in judicial campaign requests for business donations, business leaders are beginning to realize the critical importance of protecting the stability, impartiality and public support for the judicial system. This luncheon will focus on judicial trends and reform, including current efforts to protect Missouri’s first-in-the-nation merit selection system. Panelists will analyze state and national trends, recent polling, legislative proposals, and prospects for 2008 and beyond.”
Related: St. Louis Attorney Offers “New Missouri Plan”
0 responses so far ↓
1 Bill Placke // Nov 28, 2007 at 12:31 pm
It should be quite interesting for these groups to explain how having plaintiffs’ lawyers control 40% of the commission that selects judges as being good for business. To be clear on the facts, currently all 3 lawyer members are current or past members of the Board of Governors of the Missouri Association of Trial Attorneys — the association for plaintiffs’ attorneys. What type of spin has to occur to make this “good for business” should be a great exercise in fiction.
2 Jim Byrne // Nov 29, 2007 at 9:33 am
Who will be participating in this “non-partisan” forum? Will it be a true forum, or a partisan presentation given to a non-partisan audience? Will anyone that is not a member of the Missouri Bar be presenting information against the “Plan”.
Sorry Mr. Placke, but I feel that the current Missouri Supreme Court Rules prevent you from speaking as openly as you would wish about Missouri judges.
http://www.courts.mo.gov/courts/ClerkHandbooksP2RulesOnly.nsf/c0c6ffa99df4993f86256ba50057dcb8/ca7aed042c84dce486256ca60052120d?OpenDocument
The Missouri Bar, through its related organizations, is sure going out of its way to defend a Plan that the rest of the country does not see fit to use.
The Bar claims that their “merit system” is the best method for judicial selection, but presents no evidence that can support this as fact.
The Missouri Bar uses scare tactics to try to influence the voters.
The Bar claims that the partisan elections of judges (one of the proposed changes to the Plan) will result in partisan decisions handed down by the courts, but fails to present one partisan decision that has been handed down by the numerous judges that are currently elected to the Missouri courts by partisan elections throughout the State.
If you want to find out the truth about the flaws and shams that go along with the Missouri Plan, look to some of the states where it has been proposed.
I highly recommend that you read this article.
http://www.texaspolicy.com/pdf/2002-3-2-veritas-judgelect.pdf
While the Missouri Plan may be the best plan available for the Missouri Bar to ensure that they can maintain a corrupt judiciary, it is not the best plan for the citizens of Missouri. The Missouri Plan was designed to eliminate judicial corruption, but in the end, the only thing it has managed to do is to allow attorneys to hand-pick the judges that have the ability to increase their incomes.
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