The POWER List: Charles W. Hatfield

Stinson, Jefferson City 

Last July, Chuck Hatfield argued the biggest case of 2021 — a lawsuit before the Missouri Supreme Court to determine if the voter-approved expansion of Missouri’s Medicaid system could take effect without a specific appropriation from the legislature. The court’s unanimous “yes” led Missouri Lawyers Media to name Hatfield, along with co-counsel Joel Ferber and Lowell Pearson (a POWER honoree for tax law), as its Lawyers of the Year. 

For Hatfield, it was the latest in a long line of appellate cases involving election law and public policy. In particular, he often litigates the fairness of ballot summaries. Examples include a challenge to the proposal that ultimately undid Missouri’s attempt at gerrymandering reform, as well as a 2012 initiative that tried, unsuccessfully, to alter the Nonpartisan Court Plan. 

Hatfield’s cases also include a 2011 Supreme Court ruling that successfully challenged the constitutionality of Missouri’s campaign finance and ethics legislation.  

Hatfield began his career as a volunteer election staffer for Jay Nixon (now a fellow POWER honoree). He served for 10 years as chief of staff and counsel for the then-attorney general. In 2003 he joined what was then Stinson Morrison Hecker and established its Jefferson City office.  

Hatfield earned his law degree in 1993 from the University of Missouri.