Oct. 23, 2026–The Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District, plans to convene court at Missouri Western State University on Thursday, Oct, 29. The oral arguments will be held in the Kemper Recital Hall, Leah Sprat Hall room 101 on the MoWest campus beginning at 9 a.m.
A three-judge panel consisting of Chief Judge Ted Ardini, Jr., Judge Lisa White Hardwick and Judge Gary Witt will hear oral arguments in four cases. After the oral arguments, the judges will take time to discuss the court system and take general questions from the audience.
Ardini will preside over the proceedings at MoWest. He joined the Western District in 2016. Prior to his appointment, he served as counsel to the Missouri Attorney General and then as counsel to the governor of Missouri. Hardwick joined the Western District in 2001. Prior to her appointment, she served as a circuit judge in Jackson County (in the 16th Judicial Circuit). Before becoming a judge, she practiced law with the Shook, Hardy & Bacon law firm in Kansas City. Witt was appointed to the Western District in 2010. Prior to his appointment, he served as an associate circuit judge in Platte County. Prior to becoming a judge, he practiced law in Platte County and served in the Missouri House of Representatives.
The court regularly convenes court in Kansas City. For more than 25 years, however, the court has held dockets in several of the 45 counties in the court’s jurisdiction, which includes all of northwest Missouri and most of central Missouri. The court hears oral arguments outside of Kansas City to give individuals an opportunity to observe a part of the judicial system they normally do not see and to familiarize those attending with the court’s role in the judicial system.
Summaries of the four cases to be heard in St. Joseph are available on the court’s website.
Missouri Western State University is a student-centered learning community preparing individuals for lives of excellence through applied learning. MoWest is located in St. Joseph, Mo., and is committed to the educational, economic, cultural and social development of the region it serves. Visit missouriwestern.edu.