Mo. Supreme Court earns auditor’s second-best rating

Missouri Auditor Nicole Galloway’s office has issued the state Supreme Court its second-best rating of “good.”

The high court of the Show-Me State was docked for two reasons: unreimbursed payroll and meetings issues.

The Missouri Supreme Court found to inconsistently treat the Missouri Bar, Board of Certified Court Reporter Examiners and Missouri Board of Law Examiners, sometimes not requiring them to reimburse the court for administrative expenses incurred by court employees.

According to the audit report, the bar, for example, provides an annual stipend directly to the court clerk, rather than the court at large as required through standard state payroll processes.

For en banc meetings - sessions heard by all judges of the court - the audit found the court does not adequately document motions and votes in the minutes. The auditor says the court also does not sign or formally approve prior meeting minutes and document meeting times or attendees for the public portion of the meetings.

In both cases, the Supreme Court said it would implement the auditor’s suggestions related to the infractions.