The POWER List 2023: Michael Downey

Downey Law Group, St. Louis

Mike Downey is a favored choice for attorneys facing discipline through the Downey Law Firm, which he started in 2015.

In the last year, Downey served as St Louis City Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner’s counsel over professional misconduct during her investigation of former Gov. Eric Greitens. The Missouri Supreme Court accepted the joint stipulation between Gardner and the Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel (OCDC) that resulted in Gardner’s reprimand.

Downey also has represented the co-founder of civil-rights law firm ArchCity Defenders, who faced probation this past year after admitting to his firm that he misused $7,700 on a firm credit card. He’s also represented former St. Louis mayor Freeman Bosley Jr. and one of two St. Louis circuit attorneys involved in a 2014 scandal where a police officer assaulted a suspect in custody.

Downey has been an adjunct professor of law for 23 years at Washington University in St. Louis, teaching legal ethics courses and law firm management courses. He earned his law degree from there in 1998.