Damien de Loyola named 2026 Defender of Distinction
Damien de Loyola, a district defender in Kansas City, received the 2026 Defender of Distinction Award from the Missouri State Public Defender Commission.
De Loyola is the district defender for Area 69, one of the Missouri State Public Defender appellate/post-conviction offices in Kansas City. He graduated from the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law and has been a public defender since 2012.
De Loyola previously received The Missouri Bar Foundation’s David J. Dixon Appellate Advocacy Award and was a member of the 2015-2016 Missouri Bar Leadership Academy. He is a member of the Supreme Court of Missouri Committee on Procedure in Criminal Cases and is on several Office of State Courts Administrator workgroups.
De Loyola said he was proud of his office.
“The attorneys and staff I get to work with every day are some of the smartest, kindest, most creative, and most client-centered people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing,” de Loyola said. “When you so enjoy and respect the people you work with, it makes all the work you do so much easier.”
De Loyola said the best advice he received about being a lawyer was not to make excuses when you make a mistake, but to fix it. He also encouraged public defenders, or prospective public defenders, to utilize the Missouri State Public Defender’s professional growth and leadership opportunities.
De Loyola will accept the Defender of Distinction Award in Kansas City during the Annual Meeting of The Missouri Bar and Judicial Conference, Sept. 16-18.
Click here to learn more about annual awards presented by The Missouri Bar, the Missouri Bar Foundation, and other entities. Read about other 2026 award winners here.