The Honorable Brian H. May Missouri Cases

Country Mutual Insurance Co. (Relator) petitioned for a writ of prohibition against Judge Brian H. May (Respondent) after its timely application for a change of judge was denied. Relator, an intervenor in a wrongful death suit, argued that upon filing its application, Respondent lost authority to take any further action in the case. The Missouri Supreme Court agreed, making the preliminary writ of prohibition permanent, directing Respondent to vacate his orders and sustain the application for a change of judge.

Mario Richardson sought a writ of prohibition to prevent Judge Brian May from presiding over his criminal case, arguing his application for a change of judge was timely filed after a superseding indictment added new charges. The Supreme Court of Missouri quashed the preliminary writ of prohibition. The Court held that Richardson's application was untimely because the "initial plea" refers to the first plea in the criminal case, not subsequent pleas to new charges, and the "designation of the trial judge" occurred when the judge was first assigned, not when new charges were filed.