This guide builds on the Missouri guide, which covers Rules 4-7.1 through 4-7.4 and Missouri's AI opinion. Here the focus is the local market: one independent city, one large county around it, and two circuit courts.
One market name, two governments
The City of St. Louis says it operates as both a city and a county, and that St. Louis County is an entirely separate governmental entity. People still type "St. Louis" whether they live downtown or in a county suburb.
The county is a patchwork of its own. The City of Clayton describes itself as the county seat and one of St. Louis County's 91 municipalities. Florissant, Chesterfield, Kirkwood, Webster Groves, University City, Ferguson, and Ballwin are among the cities the Missouri state roster lists in St. Louis County. A single page that says "St. Louis" and nothing else leaves a county reader guessing which court applies.
Getting the local court facts right
| Where the client lives | Circuit | Court locations |
|---|---|---|
| City of St. Louis | 22nd Judicial Circuit | Civil Courts Building, 10 N. Tucker Blvd.; Carnahan Courthouse, 1114 Market St.; Family Court, Juvenile Division, 920 N. Vandeventer Ave. |
| St. Louis County | 21st Judicial Circuit | 105 South Central Avenue, Clayton |
Probate follows the same split. Missouri's small estate affidavit forms are captioned by circuit and county and filed in the circuit court's probate division, so a county family and a city family file in different places even under the same $40,000 limit.
What differs from Kansas City
In St. Louis, the key line runs between a city and the county around it. The Kansas City market has a different shape: one city spread across four Missouri counties, with a second Kansas City across the state line. If your firm also takes Illinois matters, those pages need to say which state's law they explain and where your attorneys are licensed.
What we build for St. Louis firms
- Practice-area pages that state which circuit court a city or county client goes to
- Separate St. Louis County pages where you take clients there and the court facts differ
- Answer posts for the questions St. Louis clients ask before they call
The estate planning guide shows why probate venue matters on these pages, and the family law guide covers the questions divorce clients raise. If you are weighing how many location pages to build, read whether city pages still work for lawyers.
Common questions
Should a St. Louis firm build a separate page for St. Louis County?
If you take county clients, usually yes. The county is a separate government with its own circuit court in Clayton, so the page carries different facts rather than a swapped place name.
Where is the St. Louis city circuit court?
The 22nd Judicial Circuit lists the Civil Courts Building at 10 N. Tucker Blvd. and the Carnahan Courthouse at 1114 Market St. Check the court's own site before publishing, since locations and hours can change.
Keep reading
Sources
- City of St. Louis, City Government Structure (linked above)
- City of St. Louis Sheriff, Court Information (22nd Judicial Circuit locations)
- St. Louis Circuit Court, 22nd Judicial Circuit
- St. Louis County Courts, 21st Judicial Circuit
- City of Clayton, St. Louis County
- Missouri Secretary of State, Missouri Roster, Missouri Cities
- Missouri Courts, small estate affidavit, intestate, form PR16 (rev. 01-24)