Biography

Ann Kettering Covington was the first woman to serve on the Missouri Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court of Missouri, and as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Missouri.

Born on March 5, 1942, Ann Kettering was raised in Fairmont, West Virginia. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree at Duke University in 1963. As the mother of two young children, Elizabeth and Paul, she entered the University of Missouri School of Law in 1974. She describes her children as the center of her life. While a law student, she went home at 4 o'clock each day to spend time with her children. She did not return to her law books until after Elizabeth and Paul's bedtime. She received her J.D. degree in May 1977. That same year, she married Joe Covington.

Also in 1977, she began her law career as an Assistant Attorney General in the Missouri Attorney General's office. In 1979, she entered the private practice of law in Columbia, Missouri, where she had a successful general litigation practice. In 1987, she was appointed to the Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District. Shortly thereafter, she was appointed to the Supreme Court of Missouri. She served on the Supreme Court of Missouri from 1989 to 2001, including a two-year term as the Court's Chief Justice from 1993 to 1995. After retiring from the Supreme Court of Missouri, Judge Covington became a partner at Bryan Cave, LLP, where she focused on appellate advocacy.

Judge Covington retired from the practice of law in 2010 and lives in Columbia, Missouri with her husband Charles McClain. She enjoys spending time with her family, including her two granddaughters Ashley and Devin. She sits on the Board of Directors of Shelter Insurance, participates in various bar organizations and projects, and remains active in the Missouri Conference of the United Methodist Church.