Columbia attorney plans run for judge

A Columbia attorney is planning a run for judge in Boone and Callaway counties.

Andy Hirth, a lawyer at TGH Litigation, formed a candidate committee on Wednesday for the circuit judge position in the 13th Judicial Circuit. Hirth gave $20,000 to his committee the same day to get it started, and plans to run as a Democrat for the seat in 2020.

Hirth will seek election to the seat that will be left open by Judge Jodie Asel when she retires due to age in June 2020. State law requires judges to retire when they turn 70 years old. Asel was appointed to the court in 1991 and has been re-elected ever since starting in 1992.

Hirth co-founded TGH Lititgation in 2017 after working more than six years in the Attorney General’s Office. Joanna Trachtenberg, his law partner, will also serve as his campaign treasurer.

Hirth is the first person to signal a run for judge in mid-Missouri.