Eastern District holds special docket in honor of court’s 150th anniversary

The Missouri Court of Appeals Eastern District is holding a special docket Jan. 27 in St. Louis.

The court will convene en banc at 10 a.m. to hear oral arguments in a criminal appeal from the St. Louis circuit court at the Old Post Office in downtown St. Louis. The special court session, which is open to the public, is one of several events to celebrate the court’s 150^th anniversary. This is the court’s first en banc setting since 2013.

“It has been a long time since the Eastern District has heard a case en banc, and it seems fitting to bring the whole court together again in recognition of 150 years of service to the people of Missouri,” Chief Judge John P. Torbitzky stated in a news release. “We hope to celebrate not only the work done by this court over the decades but also the Missourians who have sought a fair and just resolution of their disputes within its halls. Looking back on 150 years helps to emphasize that this court is more than just the judges who sit here. It is a continuous effort to uphold the law generation after generation.”

Thirteen of the court’s judges will be participating: Torbitzky, Judge Gary M. Gaertner Jr., Judge Robert M. Clayton III, Judge Angela T. Quigless, Judge Philip M. Hess, Judge James M. Dowd, Judge Lisa P. Page, Judge Michael E. Gardner, Judge Thomas C. Clark, II, Judge Renée D. Hardin-Tammons, Judge Michael S. Wright, Judge Rebeca Navarro-McKelvey and Judge Virginia W. Lay.

The St. Louis Court of appeals was created by the Constitution in 1875 and officially opened for business Jan. 3, 1876. A 1972 amendment to the state constitution created the present-day Court of Appeals with three territorial jurisdictions.

The Eastern District is Missouri’s largest appellate court, handling appeals from trial courts in 25 counties and the city of St. Louis. It handles approximately 41 percent of the intermediate appellate caseload in the state.