Honorable
Virginia Lay

Family Court

Virginia W. Lay was appointed Associate Circuit Judge on April 1, 2019 by Governor Michael L. Parson.

She received her B.A., with honors in American Studies from Columbia University in 1990 and her law degree from Washington University School of Law in 1993.

From 1993-1997, Judge Lay served as an Assistant Circuit Attorney in St. Louis. She was an Assistant Prosecutor for Jackson County, Missouri in Kansas City for 1998-1999, after which she handled civil and criminal cases on behalf of the Attorney General for the State of Missouri. Judge Lay was in private practice from 2002-2017, handling a diverse civil defense caseload, including employment and municipal matters. She has served as an Adjunct Professor at Washington University School of Law, teaching Civil Pretrial through Settlement. From 2012-2019, Judge Lay served as a Special Assistant Circuit Attorney, handling white collar cases for the Missouri Division of Employment Security.

Judge Lay serves on the board of Unleashing Potential. She is a member of the Missouri Bar Association and its Criminal Practice and Procedure Committee, the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis and the St. Louis County Bar Association.

Judge Lay lives in St. Louis County with her family.