Mark Powell, an associate circuit judge in Greene County, announced his retirement after 23 years on the bench. Powell’s last day will be May 15, he wrote in a Jan. 17 letter to Paul Wilson, chief justice of the Supreme Court of Missouri.
Powell was first appointed to the position in 2000 following a 15-year career as an attorney in Springfield, where he most often represented clients in civil cases that were adjudicated in state or federal court. He was a shareholder with Miller and Sanford P.C. before the law firm merged with Lathrop and Gage in 1999. He was appointed to his position as an associate circuit judge in March of 2000.
As a judge in Greene County, Powell has presided over civil and criminal matters alike and established a truancy court for Springfield Public Schools during his time on the bench.
Nineteen of 20 Missouri Bar committee members surveyed said Powell substantially meets overall judicial performance standards, according to his most recent Missouri Bar Association rating, given in 2018.
Powell’s letter to Wilson thanked members of the state’s supreme court for allowing him to serve as a member of Missouri’s Circuit Court Budget Committee since 2008.
“I would also like to thank the members of the Missouri Bar and my fellow judges of the Thirty-First Circuit,” he wrote.
“Each and every one of them has made my judicial career rich and rewarding.”
Powell also thanked Greene County citizens for supporting him during his judicial career.
“Without their confidence and support I would not have had the continued opportunity to serve as a judge,” Powell wrote. “I will never forget the responsibility they placed in me.”
