Missouri lawyers elect 2025-2026 Board of Governors, YLS Council
The lawyers of Missouri, voting in districts throughout the state, elected several members to The Missouri Bar Board of Governors and Young Lawyers’ Section Council.
The newly elected and retained Board of Governors members and YLS Council members will take office at the conclusion of the 2025 Annual Meeting of The Missouri Bar, which takes place Sept. 17-19 in Branson.
Board of Governors
Six members were newly elected to the 45-member Board of Governors of The Missouri Bar and 16 incumbents were retained for new terms. Members of the Board of Governors are elected to serve two-year terms. Newly elected members or past members elected in different districts of the Board of Governors include:
- District 1 (Andrew, Atchison, Buchanan, Caldwell, Chariton, Clinton, Daviess, DeKalb, Gentry, Grundy, Harrison, Holt, Linn, Livingston, Mercer, Nodaway, Putnam, Sullivan, and Worth counties): Joseph A. Gagnon
- District 3 (Bates, Carroll, Cass, Cooper, Henry, Johnson, Lafayette, Pettis, Ray, St. Clair, and Saline counties): Max E. Mitchell
- District 4 (Cole County): Jeremiah J. Morgan
- District 5 (Barry, Barton, Cedar, Dade, Jasper, Lawrence, McDonald, Newton, Stone, and Vernon counties): A. Keegan Tinney
- District 10 (Greene County): Jacqueline Ledezma-Ruelas
- Missouri Court of Appeals-Southern District: Bethany R. Turner
The following members of the Board of Governors were re-elected to a two-year term:
- District 5 (Barry, Barton, Cedar, Dade, Jasper, Lawrence, McDonald, Newton, Stone, and Vernon counties): Hon. Charles D. Curless
- District 6 (Benton, Camden, Christian, Dallas, Douglas, Hickory, Laclede, Miller, Moniteau, Morgan, Ozark, Polk, Taney, Webster, and Wright counties): Andrew S. Lyskowski
- District 7 (Bollinger, Butler, Cape Girardeau, Dunklin, Jefferson, Madison, Mississippi, New Madrid, Pemiscot, Perry, Ripley, St. Francois, Ste. Genevieve, Scott, Stoddard, and Washington counties): Scott A. Robbins
- District 8 (Jackson [excluding Kansas City], Clay, and Platte counties): Kate E. Noland
- District 9 (St. Louis County): Michael P. Downey, J. Brent Dulle, and Amy Bender-Levy
- District 11 (City of St. Louis): Hon. Michael J. Colona and Matthew C. Casey
- District 12 (City of Kansas City within Jackson County): Scott S. Bethune, Phyllis A. Norman, Christa B. Moss, and Christopher D. Dandurand
- District 14 (St. Charles County): Eric J. Wulff
- District 15 (Boone and Callaway counties): Sander C. Sowers
- Missouri Court of Appeals-Western District: Lillian Mehler
YLS Council
Missouri lawyers elected five new individuals and retained 14 incumbents to serve on the 35-member YLS Council, the governing body of The Missouri Bar Young Lawyers’ Section. Council members are elected to serve two-year terms.
The newly elected members are:
- District 3 (Jackson County): Kelly St. John and Justin Shock
- District 9 (City of St. Louis): Brad Baker
- District 11 (Christian, Douglas, Greene, Howell, Ozark, Stone, Taney, Webster, and Wright counties): Brett Hodges
- Western Appellate District Diversity Seat: Darrell Smith
The incumbents retained for new terms are:
- District 2 (Adair, Audrain, Chariton, Clark, Knox, Lewis, Lincoln, Linn, Macon, Marion, Monroe, Montgomery, Pike, Putnam, Ralls, Randolph, Schuyler, Scotland, Shelby and Sullivan counties): Cassidy Johnston
- District 3 (Jackson County): Lauren Dollar, Sam Sherman, and Erica Frank
- District 5 (Boone, Callaway, Cooper, Howard, and Saline counties): George Brand
- District 6 (Cole, Moniteau, and Osage counties): Paige Wheeler
- District 8 (St. Louis County): Courtney Chen, Darrian Castro, and Vince Taormina
- District 9 (City of St. Louis): Katie Finnegan Krispin, Elizabeth McNulty, and David Wasserman
- District 12 (Benton, Camden, Dallas, Hickory, Laclede, Maries, Miller, Morgan, Pettis, Phelps, Polk, Pulaski, and Texas counties): Danielle Drake
- Southern Appellate District Diversity Seat: John Boyer
YLS strives to enhance the professional growth and public service of new and recently admitted Missouri lawyers by sponsoring community service projects, CLE programs, and networking events. All Missouri lawyers 36 years old or younger and/or who have been in practice 10 years or less are automatically members of the section at no additional cost. Learn more about YLS at MoBar.org/YLS.
The Missouri Bar is a statewide organization that is dedicated to improving the legal profession, the law, and the administration of justice for all Missourians. Created in 1944 by order of the Supreme Court of Missouri, it serves all 30,750 of Missouri’s practicing lawyers. The Missouri Bar provides a wide range of services and resources to its members, as well as the media, educators, and the citizens of Missouri. To learn more, visit MoBar.org.
Correction: This article was updated at 11:05 a.m. on Aug. 18, 2025, to state there were 16 incumbents retained in the Board of Governors election, as well as include Lillian Mehler as the incumbent retained in the Missouri Court of Appeals-Western District race.