W&L Law Alum Honored as Champion of Justice
Former Missouri Supreme Court Judge Ray Price, a 1978 graduate of the Washington and Lee School of Law, stepped down from the Missouri Supreme Court this month after 20 years, including two terms as chief justice. The longest serving Missouri Supreme Court Judge, he has returned to private practice, joining Armstrong Teasdale’s Litigation Practice Group.
Ray was presented the inaugural Champion of Justice Award from the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis (BAMSL) on Aug. 17. The award recognized Ray’s dedication to judicial excellence and his steadfast support of the Missouri Non-Partisan Court Plan for the selection of judges as well as for his role in establishing drug courts and reforming sentencing guidelines. Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon was the keynote speaker for the event.
An editorial in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch from June when he announced he was leaving the court said: “Judge Price will be remembered for having as much influence as anybody in the state on the Missouri Legislature’s slow and reluctant movement toward being smarter on crime.”
In an interview with St. Louis Public Radio, Ray discussed his support of Missouri’s drug courts and his contention that the state puts too many non-violent offenders in prison. You can listen to that interview and also hear his views on the Missouri Plan on the St. Louis Public Radio website.
Prior to his 1992 appointment to the Missouri Supreme Court, Price had been a business litigation attorney with a major Kansas City-based law firm. With Armstrong Teasdale, he has a state-wide practice focusing on complex commercial and tort matters and maintains offices in St. Louis, Kansas City and Jefferson City.
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