March 26, 2022
Submitted by Josh Peter
The summer after his first year at UMKC – School of Law, Josh Peter volunteered to work at the Missouri State Public Defender’s Trial office in Kansas City, MO.
Since then, he has spent nearly every day for the past 20 years in a courtroom. After almost 2 decades as an attorney, he is now hoping to take on a new role in the courtroom- Judge.
Josh’s commitment to public service is clear when you review his career. As a public defender, he defended and protected the Constitutional rights of those that couldn’t afford an attorney and served as a Trial Team Leader of the Kansas City Trial Office. He served as chair of the Bar Leadership Academy and sat on the Missouri Board of Governors – Young Lawyers Section. He has served as a member of the Volunteer Attorney Project and the Military Matters committee – groups that assist veterans and others in need obtain pro bono and reduced-rate legal services. He also regularly teaches training seminars for the Public Defender System and Continuing Legal Education classes for attorneys throughout the state and currently sits on the Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association’s Municipal Law and Criminal Law Committees.
Josh’s professionalism and dedication to justice combined with his commitment to philanthropy have earned him positive reputation with judges, prosecutors, members of law enforcement and the community at large.
In 2015, Josh left the Public Defender’s Office and moved to Lee’s Summit to raise his family. He opened his own law firm, Solomon & Peter, LLP, and appears in courts throughout the metro. He, along with his clients and others associated with the court, began to see issues with how the Lee’s Summit Municipal Court ran. Dockets were not starting on time or were rescheduled last-minute. Motions were not being ruled upon. A general lack of communication and cooperation was apparent, leading to obvious relationship issues within the court, harming the judicial system overall. For Josh, all these issues raised concerns about the court not meeting the standards required by the Missouri Supreme Court and their Rules of Judicial Conduct.
Knowing this lack of dedication and professionalism in the court has far-reaching impacts in our community, Josh is determined to make a difference by serving as Municipal Court Judge.
He wants to address the current issues and also bring some new ideas to benefit the court and community at large. Recognizing that substance abuse and mental health are growing concerns in our community, he wants to institute programs to help fix the underlying problems, hopefully preventing future criminal behavior. He has already met with Police Chief Forbes, Fire Chief Snider, and the Director of Field Services, Ryan Elam, to discuss ways in which Public Safety, Code Enforcement and the Court can all work together to improve our community.
Josh hopes to use his experience and professionalism to ensure that the Lee’s Summit Municipal Court runs fairly and efficiently, giving all an opportunity to be heard and securing that justice is served.
