Hon. Lawrence E. Mooney (Ret.) joins JAMS in St. Louis following over 21 years of distinguished service as a judge on the Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District, including a term as chief judge. 

From 2015 to his retirement, Judge Mooney served as his court’s settlement judge, screening all civil matters filed with the court in an effort to find opportunities for settlement prior to adjudication. Judge Mooney won consistent praise from both the court and litigants for his ability to identify alternatives to litigation and to work with parties to settle dozens of matters set for appeal.

Believing that it is never too late for settlement, Judge Mooney excels at helping even firmly entrenched parties find fresh avenues for agreement.           

ADR Experience and Qualifications

• Former settlement judge for the Missouri Court of Appeals, with a recognized track record of working with parties to settle live litigation
• Consistently praised on the bench for his timely, high-quality work product and fair treatment of parties; sat by designation on the Supreme Court of Missouri
• Served as chair of the Judicial Finance Commission, a body established by the Missouri Legislature to resolve budget disputes between judicial circuits and counties
• Community leader with decades of service to economic development and the arts in the St. Louis metropolitan region

Representative Matters

• Blanks v. Fluor Corporation, 450 S.W.3d 308 (Mo. App. E.D. 2014): Reviewed a $358-million verdict in a 180-page opinion, affirming in part and reversing and remanding in part
• Mello v. Davis, 182 S.W.3d 622 (Mo. App. E.D. 2005): Reversed an award of attorneys’ fees, employing both legal principles and humor in reaching its conclusion
• Missouri Soybean Association v. The Missouri Clean Water Commission, 102 S.W.3d 10 (Mo. banc 2003)
• While sitting as a special judge on the Supreme Court of Missouri, authored the majority opinion, which affirmed and modified the dismissal of a challenge to the Missouri Clean Water Commission’s decision designating the Mississippi and Missouri rivers as impaired waterways
• At JAMS, handled a billing dispute arbitration between a hospital and an insurance company.

Honors, Memberships, and Professional Activities

• Honoree, Missouri Lawyers Media ICON, 2021
• Completed Virtual ADR training conducted by the JAMS Institute, the training arm of JAMS
• Legal Pioneer, Bar of Association of Metropolitan St. Louis (BAMSL), 2021
• Hall of Fame, Order of the Fleur de Lis, St. Louis University Law School, 2020
• President’s Award, Midwest LGBTQ Law Conference, 2014
• Warren Welliver Award, Missouri Lawyers’ Assistance Program, 2014
• Human Rights Award, Outlaw (LGBTQ+ Student Organization), 2003
• Jurist in Residence, St. Louis University School of Law, 2003
• Member of the Board, Metropolitan Employment and Training Center, 2000–2003
• Member of the Board, Buzz Westfall Charitable Foundation, 2004–2012
• Member, Board of Trustees, Laumeier Sculpture Park, 2001–2012; Secretary, 2008–2012
• Member of the Board, National Conference for Community and Justice, St. Louis, 2001–2008
• President, Food Outreach, 1996–1998; Member of the Board, 1995–2001
• Board Member, The Leadership Center of Greater St. Louis, 1994–1996
• Member, Community Action to Prevent Violence Steering Committee, 1994–1996
• President, St. Louis Film Office, 1995–1997; Member of the Board, 1995–1998
• Member, Criminal Justice Review Committee, 21st Judicial Circuit, 1993–1998
• Member, World of Difference Institute Advisory Board, Anti-Defamation League, 1998
• Director, St. Louis Community Partnership, 1998
• Graduate, Leadership St. Louis, 1992–1993
• Member, Regional Health Care Task force, 1992
• Member of the Board, Tennessee Williams Festival, St. Louis, 2015—present
• Member of the Board, Valley Farm Dairy Company, 1979–1990
• Member:
• American Bar Association
• Missouri Bar Association
• Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis
• Lawyers’ Association of St. Louis
• St. Louis County Bar Association
• Lawyers for Equality

Admissions

• Missouri, 1974
• United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, 1977
• United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, 1978

Background and Education

• Judge, Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District, 1998–2019
• Chief Judge, 2002–2003
• Chair, Judicial Finance Commission, 2003–2019
• Member, Treatment Courts Coordinating Commission, 2002–2019
• Settlement Judge, 2015–2019
• Member, Committee on Practice and Procedure in Municipal Division Cases, 2016–2019
• Member, Missouri Circuit Realignment Task Force, 2017–2019
• Executive Assistant to County Executive Buzz Westfall, 1991–1998
• Harvard University, Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government, 1991
• First Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, St. Louis County, 1979–1990
• Associate; Padberg McSweeney, Slater, Merz & Reid; 1978–1979
• Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, St. Louis County, 1975–1977
• J.D., St. Louis University School of Law, 1974
• A.B., History, St. Louis University, 1971