Holden gets high-court nominees

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Two sitting judges and a partner in a controversial law firm are the finalists to fill an impending vacancy on the Missouri Supreme Court.

The Appellate Judicial Commission trimmed the pool of applicants for the opening to Jackson County Circuit Court Judge Michael W. Manners of Independence, Judge Richard B. Teitelman of the Missouri Court of Appeals Eastern District in St. Louis and Clifton M. Smart, who is in private practice in Springfield.

The commission announced its decision Tuesday evening. Gov. Bob Holden will have 60 days to select one.

Judge John Holstein is retiring effective March 1. Holstein was named to the court by Republican Gov. John Ashcroft in October 1989.

Holden's selection will give Democratic appointees a 4-3 majority on the court.

Firm in tobacco lawsuit

Smart, 41, is an officer with the Strong Law Firm in Springfield. Attorney General Jay Nixon, also a Democrat, hired the firm to represent Missouri in a national lawsuit against the tobacco industry.

Nixon and the firm's head, Thomas Strong, were widely criticized for a lucrative contract that by initial estimates would have paid $479 million to the firm and others subcontracted by Strong -- despite the fact the attorneys were hired just five months before a settlement was reached.

Under the terms of the settlement, the original contract was scrapped and an arbitration panel awarded Missouri's tobacco team $111 million in legal fees.

Senate President Pro Tem Peter Kinder, R-Cape Girardeau, challenged the original contract all the way to the Supreme Court.

"I wouldn't think the governor would want to taint the Missouri Supreme Court with the tobacco lawyers scandal," Kinder said.

Smart was born in Blytheville, Ark. He earned his law degree from the University of Arkansas.

Second time on short list

Teitelman, 54, is making the Supreme Court short list for the second time in a year. That time Holden selected Judge Laura Denvir Stith for the seat being vacated by the court's only woman.

Democratic Gov. Mel Carnahan named Teitelman to the Court of Appeals in December 1997. He was born in Philadelphia, Pa., and is a graduate of University of Pennsylvania and the Washington University School of Law in St. Louis.

Manners, 51, was prosecuting attorney for Smithville, just north of Kansas City, for 18 years before being appointed circuit judge by Gov. Roger Wilson, a Democrat, in November 2000. His term expires at the end of the year.

Manners graduated from Central Missouri State and the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law.

The commission consists of Chief Justice Stephen N. Limbaugh of Cape Girardeau, three lawyers elected by the Missouri Bar and three lay people picked by the governor.

If Holden doesn't pick a finalist within 60 days, the commission will make the selection.

mpowers@semissourian.com

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