Missouri Bar 2012-13 Board of Governors Elects Officers

Blue Springs Attorney Patrick B. Starke Elected Missouri Bar President"

ST. LOUIS – Patrick B. Starke of Blue Springs today was elected President of The Missouri Bar for 2012-2013. The election took place during the 131st Annual Meeting of The Missouri Bar, held October 17-19 at the Hilton St. Louis at the Ballpark in downtown St. Louis. He succeeds Lynn Whaley Vogel of St. Louis as president of the 30,000-member organization.

Starke, of Starke Law Offices, earned his law degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia and has been a member of the Board of Governors of The Missouri Bar since 2006.

P. John Brady, a shareholder in the Kansas City office of Polsinelli Shughart, P.C., was chosen as the new President-Elect of The Missouri Bar. A member of the Board of Governors since 2002, he earned his law degree from Creighton University.

The Board of Governors also elected Reuben Shelton as Vice President of The Missouri Bar. Shelton is senior litigation counsel for Monsanto Corporation in St. Louis. He received his legal education at St. Louis University School of Law, and has been a member of the Board of Governors since 2008.

Newly-elected representatives from the three districts of the Missouri Court of Appeals are: Douglass F. Noland, Joseph P. Rice III and John Grimm. They, along with the officers and the Immediate Past President, comprise The Missouri Bar’s Executive Committee for the coming year.

For photos of the 2012-2013 Missouri Bar officers, please go to http://www.mobar.org/officers.htm.

The Missouri Bar is a statewide organization that is dedicated to improving the legal profession, the law and the administration of justice for all Missourians. Created in 1944 by order of the Supreme Court of Missouri, it serves all 30,000 of Missouri’s practicing attorneys. To achieve its mission, The Missouri Bar provides a wide range of services and resources to its members, as well as the media, educators and the citizens of Missouri. To learn more about The Missouri Bar, visit www.mobar.org.

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MoBar Quick Info

Organization and Purpose: The Missouri Bar is the statewide organization that all Missouri lawyers must belong to if they practice law. The Missouri Bar was created in 1944 by order of the Supreme Court of Missouri. It is considered an instrumentality of the state, not a private association nor a state agency. Its mission is to improve the legal profession, the administration of justice, and law on behalf of the public.

Member Size: Currently, the bar is comprised of about 32,000 members.

Staff Size: The executive director, Sebrina Barrett, supervises a staff of 50 employees. Click here to see a Staff Directory

Budget: Approximately $10 million. No tax dollars are used to support Missouri Bar activities. Most money is derived from dues that lawyers pay; some is derived from CLE programs and publications, grants and The Bar Foundation.

Governance: The Board of Governors of The Missouri Bar determines policies and sets the course of action for the state bar to follow. The 45 members of the Board are elected by bar members. The Board elects a president, president-elect and vice president to serve as officers of the bar.

Sections and Committees: The Missouri Bar offers more than 50 substantive law committees for its members to join. It also has two sections: a Family Law Section, and the Young Lawyers' Section.

Location: The Missouri Bar Center is located in Jefferson City, at 326 Monroe St.

Missouri Bar Resources and Activities: The Missouri Bar provides a wide variety of services and resources, not only to its members, but also to the news media, school teachers and the citizens of Missouri. These include: CLE programs and publications, an Annual Meeting, a Solo and Small Firm Conference, teachers’ programs, committee meetings and extensive services for attorneys. The bar also administers a minimum continuing legal education requirement for attorneys.