Cape Girardeau's Gardner named chief appellate judge

Michael E. Gardner of Cape Girardeau has been elected unanimously by his peers to a one-year term as chief judge of the Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District.

Gardner's term as chief judge began Friday.

As chief, Gardner is the top administrative officer of the court, presiding at court en banc meetings and representing the court to the public.

Gov. Mike Parson appointed Gardner to the court in February 2020.

Gardner received his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Missouri-Columbia.

While in law school, Gardner served as lead articles editor of the Missouri Law Review and was elected to the Order of the Coif.

After graduating, he clerked for Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. at the Supreme Court of Missouri.

He then worked in private practice for nine years.

In 2014, he was elected circuit judge of the 32nd Judicial Circuit, which covers Bollinger, Cape Girardeau and Perry counties, serving for five years, including a two-year term as presiding judge.

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