Two judges and a lawyer from St. Louis are the candidates for the open seat on the Missouri Supreme Court.
The Appellate Judicial Commission, which interviews applicants for appeals court-level judges, announced the nominees Wednesday. Whoever is chosen will replace Judge Richard Teitelman, 69, who died in November.
The candidates are:
- Lisa White Hardwick, a member of the state Court of Appeals for the Western District. She was the only person of color among the 31 people who applied;
- Benjamin Lipman, an attorney with Lewis Rice in St. Louis. In addition to commercial real estate, Lippman has worked extensively on First Amendment cases;
- Brent Powell, a circuit judge in Jackson County in the Kansas City area. In 2012, he wrote an opinion blocking students from transferring out of the Kansas City Public Schools, which were unaccredited. It was one of several cases around the state’s transfer law, which the state Supreme Court later upheld.
Under the state’s Non-Partisan Court Plan, Republican Gov. Eric Greitens must choose from one of the candidates within 60 days. If he doesn’t, the commission will choose. The position does not require confirmation by the state Senate.
Steve Ehlmann, the Republican executive of St. Charles County, and Republican state Rep. Jay Barnes from the Jefferson City area were among the candidates interviewed by the commission. Ed Martin, the former head of the Missouri Republican Party, also applied for the position but dropped out before being interviewed.
Follow Rachel on Twitter: @rlippmann
