Meet Mark Powell

For fifteen years Mark Powell practiced law with the firm of Miller and Sanford P.C., which later merged with Lathrop & Gage L.C.  He practiced in Missouri’s state and federal courts with a practice emphasis in general civil trial litigation, construction litigation, employment law, contract and business litigation, including products liability, personal injury, insurance defense, and law enforcement civil rights litigation.

In 2000, Mark was appointed Associate Circuit Judge for the Thirty-First Judicial Circuit of Missouri, a position he held for 23 years.  During his tenure Judge Powell handled an associate civil docket, a circuit civil docket, an associate criminal docket, and a circuit criminal docket.  He presided over numerous bench trials and jury trials involving misdemeanors, felonies, personal injury, medical negligence, real estate, construction, employment, and business disputes. 

Mark graduated cum laude from Southwest Missouri State University (Missouri State University) in 1982 and Drake University Law School with honors in 1985.  He has received the Red Cross Everyday Hero Award, Council of Churches Gift of Time Award and the Leadership Springfield O. Franklin Kenworthy Award for outstanding leadership.

In 1997, Mark was appointed by the Missouri Supreme Court to the Thirty-First Judicial Bar Committee, which took and investigated complaints against lawyers in Southwest Missouri.  Between 2007 and 2010 Mark served on the Springfield Metropolitan Bar’s Bench and Bar Committee.  From 2008 to the time of his retirement from the bench, Mark served as a member of Missouri’s Circuit Court Budget Committee working closely with Missouri’s Supreme Court and the office of Missouri’s Court Administrator overseeing the money allocated by Missouri’s Legislature to Missouri’s trial courts. As a member of the CCBC, Judge Powell served on the Judge Transfer Work Group and the 21st Century Workforce Work Group.

Mark has also served on the Board of Directors for a number of organizations such as the Springfield Boys’ and Girls’ Clubs, the History Museum for Springfield-Greene County, Court Appointed Special Advocates, Leadership Springfield, and Community Partnership of the Ozarks.  In 2002, Judge Powell established the Truancy Court program at Reed Middle School and then helped establish Truancy Courts at Pipkin, Study and Jarrett Middle Schools.

Mark Powell Mediation offers all services outlined in Missouri Supreme Court Rule 17:  mediation, arbitration, early neutral evaluation, mini-trials, and summary jury trials.