14 January 2009

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – The Appellate Judicial Commission now is accepting applications for three judge vacancies on the Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District, to fill the vacancies created by the resignations of Judge Ronald R. Holliger, effective January 15, 2009; Judge Paul M. Spinden, effective January 16, 2009; and Judge Joseph P. Dandurand, effective March 2, 2009. Holliger, who served nine years on the Western District and served as a circuit judge and juvenile judge in Jackson County for five years before that, will serve as general counsel to Attorney General Chris Koster. Spinden, who served more than 17 years on the Western District, has joined the faculty of Liberty University School of Law in Lynchburg, Virginia. Dandurand, who served more than 20 years as a circuit judge in the 17th Judicial Circuit (Cass and Johnson counties) before being appointed to the Western District in November 2007, will serve as Koster's deputy attorney general.

A single form will serve as an application for all three openings. That application must be filed no later than 5 p.m. Friday, February 13, although earlier submission strongly is encouraged. The commission will conduct a single set of interviews of all applicants for the three vacancies on March 2 and 3, 2009. After conducting individual interviews of applicants, the commission will meet at approximately noon Tuesday, March 3, 2009, at the Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District, in Kansas City to select a panel of three nominees for the vacancy created by Holliger's resignation.

Following the governor's selection of one of the nominees from this panel, the commission will meet to select, from the same applicant pool, a second panel of three nominees for the vacancy created by Spinden's resignation. Following the governor's selection of one of the nominees from the second panel, the commission will meet a third time to select, again from the same applicant pool, a third panel of three nominees for the vacancy created by Dandurand's resignation. As the commission does not know the date Governor Nixon will select a nominee from the first panel of nominees, it cannot announce the date for the commission's meetings to select the second and third panels at this time. It will do so as soon as feasible following the governor's selections.

Interested persons may download an application and accompanying rules and instructions below:

Application: Microsoft Word | Adobe

Application Instructions: Microsoft Word | Adobe

Guidelines for References: Microsoft Word | Adobe

All applicants, including those who have applied previously for other vacancies, must file a new application and will be scheduled for an interview.

The Missouri Constitution requires that a judge of the Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District, be at least 30 years old, licensed to practice law in Missouri, a United States citizen for at least 15 years and a qualified Missouri voter for at least nine years next preceding selection.

Note: Links to application materials typically are disabled after the application deadline passes.

Contact: Beth S. Riggert

Communications Counsel

Supreme Court of Missouri

(573) 751-3676