Missouri attorney general asks to dismiss lawsuit a day before scheduled deposition

Attorney General Andrew Bailey speaks at a press conference in the Missouri House Lounge, flanked by House Speaker Dean Plocher, left, and state Rep. Justin Sparks (Tim Bommel/Missouri House Communications).

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey wants to dismiss his lawsuit against Jackson County a day before he was set to answer questions under oath about a potential ethical breach in the case.

Bailey, who is suing the county over its property assessment process, on Tuesday asked the Missouri Court of Appeals for the Western District to overturn a circuit court order in the case allowing Jackson County attorneys to take his deposition .

The appeal was denied Wednesday morning .

Hours later, Bailey filed a motion in Jackson County Circuit Court to dismiss the entire case.

In the motion, Bailey says the litigation is no longer needed after the Missouri State Tax Commission issued an order on Wednesday rolling back most property value increases. In a press release, Bailey said the order relied on information obtained through the discovery process in his lawsuits against the county.

“This is a huge win for every property owner in Missouri, but especially in Jackson County,” said Bailey, who on Tuesday won the GOP primary for a full term as attorney general.

Bailey was scheduled to sit for a deposition Thursday to be questioned by Jackson County’s attorneys about his meetings with a county official that they argued violated ethical rules for lawyers. The trial over the property assessment process was expected to resume Friday.

At issue were meetings that both Bailey and a deputy had with Jackson County Legislator Sean Smith. Under Missouri Supreme Court rules, attorneys are not to communicate about a lawsuit with individuals represented in the case by another lawyer without the consent of the other lawyer.

Judge orders Missouri AG Andrew Bailey to sit for deposition over possible ethics breach

Bailey’s office maintained his meeting with Smith amounted to nothing more than a campaign meeting with little discussion of the lawsuit. But Jackson County attorneys filed a motion for sanctions, and Clay County Circuit Judge Karen Krauser gave the county permission to question Bailey as a form of sanction.

“Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey and his office have exhibited a blatant disregard for the Rules of Professional Conduct in this case,” the motion filed by Jackson County says, “and their actions are sanctionable. Based on what we know so far, their actions were not innocent mistakes.”

Bailey’s office tried to persuade Krauser to reconsider , but she declined .

The ethics dispute comes in Bailey’s case accusing Jackson County of failing to comply with the law when it assessed properties in 2023, resulting in an average 30% increase in value across hundreds of thousands of properties. The lawsuit says more than 90% of residential properties saw an increase in property value, and values increased by at least 15% for three-quarters of properties in the county.

The increase in property value means some owners will have to pay more in property taxes each year.

In defending the case, Jackson County said Bailey had waited too long to file the lawsuit since tax bills have already been paid and money distributed. Beyond that, the county argued, the attorney general can’t file a case unless the State Tax Commission attempted to first resolve the issue.

The State Tax Commission weighed in Wednesday, saying the county had failed to follow proper procedures, including performing physical inspections, before increasing property values more than 15%.

The commission issued an order claiming “widespread and systemic” failures by Jackson County and ordered officials to roll back the assessments on 75% of properties.

In a statement, Jackson County called the State Tax Commission’s order “inaccurate and dangerously politicized,” arguing that it was a “desperate, last-minute maneuver” before Bailey’s litigation concludes.

“This reckless order is harmful to not only taxing jurisdictions, but also taxpayers,” said Jackson County Executive Frank White, Jr. “While fixing decades of mismanagement hasn’t been easy, we are committed to fairness and will continue working every day to achieve it. Actions like this do immense harm to our communities.”

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