MO Lawyers Blog

Better Courts can intervene in ballot challenge 

A Cole County judge allowed attorneys for a proponent of direct judicial elections to intervene in a lawsuit over an initiative petition’s ballot language. Last year, James Harris submitted a constitutional amendment for circulation to put judges chosen under the Missouri Nonpartisan Court Plan up for elections. Opponents of the measure sued, citing problems with the [...]

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Eminent domain ballot language changed again 

Missouri courts have once again rewritten a proposed ballot item that would alter Missouri’s constitutional provisions for eminent domain. The Missouri Court of Appeals Western District said this morning that most of the ballot summary and fiscal explanation, written by the secretary of state and state auditor offices, was sufficient. A Cole County judge had reached [...]

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Stifel Nicolaus settles with state over auction-rate securities 

Stifel, Nicolaus & Co. is to pay back tens of millions of dollars to investors under a settlement reached this week with state officials. Eligible investors are those who hold auction-rate securities through Stifel. The secretary of state’s office says the company should return as much as $41 million to clients by the end of 2010. The [...]

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Early voting measure cleared to gather signatures 

A proposal to allow for early voting in Missouri received the all-clear from the secretary of state’s office to move forward. The proposed initiative petition would allow registered voters in Missouri to cast ballots in person at various locations for a couple of weeks ahead of Election Day, including Saturday hours. Currently in Missouri, people can [...]

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Court plan amendment gets green light  

Supporters of changing the way Missouri chooses its judges have cleared an important hurdle to put the idea before voters. The secretary of state’s office today announced the proposed initiative petition submitted by James Harris has been approved to begin seeking voter signatures. His proposed amendment would take Missouri close to the federal system, where the [...]

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ACLU sues to block effort limiting affirmative action programs in government 

The ACLU has filed a lawsuit seeking to dismantle an effort to limit use of affirmative action programs in government before it really gets started. Earlier this month, Secretary of State Robin Carnahan said an initiative petition met state standards to begin collecting signatures in hopes of making the 2010 ballot. The measure was proposed by the [...]

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