This program was originally recorded at The Missouri Bar, 03/24/2024.
The Appellate Practice Committee invites you to attend this program, featuring four esteemed judges, representing each district of the Missouri Court of Appeals as well as our Supreme Court. The judges will participate in a panel discussion addressing common appellate practice issues, from the technicalities of respondent’s briefs to the art of oral argument.
Moderator: Cale C. Spangler, Spangler Ward LLC, Sedalia
Speakers: Hon. Zel M. Fischer, Supreme Court of Missouri, Jefferson City; Hon. Gary D. Witt, Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District, Kansas City; Hon. Matthew P. Hamner, Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District, Springfield; Hon. John P. Torbitzky, Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District, St. Louis
Opinions and positions stated by presenters of MoBarCLE programs are those of the presenters and not necessarily those of The Missouri Bar. This program is intended as information for lawyers in Missouri, in conjunction with other research they deem necessary, in the exercise of their independent judgment.
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Judge Zel Fischer was born in Hamburg, Iowa and grew up in the small town of Watson, Missouri. He was educated in Rock Port public schools, and attended William Jewell College, in Liberty, MO. He went on to graduate from the University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Law with distinction in 1988.
Judge Fischer was admitted to The Missouri Bar in 1988 and served one year as law clerk for the Honorable Andrew Jackson Higgins of the Supreme Court of Missouri. From there, he practiced law in Kansas City, engaged in a solo law practice in northwest Missouri, and in November 2006, he was elected associate circuit judge for Atchison County. Judge Fischer served in that capacity until his appointment to the Supreme Court of Missouri in October 2008. He served as chief justice from July 2017–June 2019, receiving the Theodore McMillian Judicial Excellence Award from the Missouri Bar in 2019.
Judge Fischer is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of The National Courts and Science Institute (NCSI), which is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to training judges in science, and also serves as a member on the National Advisory Board for the University of North Carolina Bryson Center for Judicial Science Education. Judge Fischer is a frequent presenter for judicial and local education, primarily on the topics of appellate practice, professional ethics, and the intersection of law and science.
Judge Matthew Hamner was raised at the Lake of the Ozarks and graduated from Camdenton High School in 1994. He earned a bachelor’s degree in speech communication from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 1998, and then earned his law degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law in 2001.
After law school, Judge Hamner served as a law clerk for the Honorable William Ray Price, Jr., of the Supreme Court of Missouri. He then practiced at Rouse Hendricks German May in Kansas City, before moving back to the Lake and becoming a shareholder at Phillips, McElyea, Carpenter & Welch in Camdenton. He was elected Associate Circuit Judge in Camden County in 2014, and was appointed as a Circuit Judge in the 26th Judicial Circuit in 2017, serving a term as Presiding Judge. In March 2024, Governor Parson appointed Judge Hamner to the Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District.
Judge Hamner is a former President of the 26th Circuit Bar Association, and has been involved in numerous community organizations including the Camdenton Athletic Boosters, the Camdenton Education Foundation, the Rotary Club and the Chamber of Commerce. Judge Hamner is a member of Harper Chapel United Methodist Church where he performs in the Praise Band.
Judge Hamner and his wife Sherrie have two daughters, neither of whom are impressed by anything in this bio.
Cale Spangler is an associate attorney with Spangler Ward, LLC, in Sedalia. Cale, a Sedalia native, graduated from Sacred Heart High School and then received his undergraduate degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia. He then received his Juris Doctor degree, with cum laude honors, from the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law, where he was also a member of the UMKC Law Review. He then served a two-year clerkship for the Hon. Zel M. Fischer of the Missouri Supreme Court. Cale and wife Natalie are the parents of a daughter, Caroline, and their two dogs, Edison and Scout.
John P. Torbitzky is a judge on the Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District. Judge Torbitzky served as a law clerk to the Honorable Zel M. Fischer on the Supreme Court of Missouri before entering private practice. He was appointed to the court in 2021.
Hon. Gary Witt was appointed to the Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District, in 2010. He was elected as chief judge for a two year term that began July 1, 2022. He received the Appellate Judicial Excellence Award in 2020. He was previously an associate circuit judge in Platte County from 1998 - 2010.
Before his judicial service, Judge Witt served as a state representative from 1991-1996. He was a shareholder with Witt, Hicklin & Witt, PC in Platte City.
Judge Witt earned his undergraduate degree from William Jewell College and his Juris Doctor from University of Missouri-Columbia.
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