Stephen R. Bough
How Judge Bough rules, drawn from 26 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
About Judge Bough
Stephen Rogers Bough is a judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri. Appointed by President Barack Obama, Judge Bough received a commission on December 19, 2014.
Judge Bough's practices and standing orders
Rules for cases before Judge Bough, as published on the court's website (checked October 9, 2026). Judges revise these often, so confirm the current version on the court's site before you file.
Key rules
Conferences
File one joint proposed scheduling order signed by both parties.
“The parties will be responsible for filing one, joint Proposed Scheduling Order, signed by both parties”
Standing orders for every case in this court
Orders the court applies to all of its cases, whichever judge has them, as published on the court's website (checked October 9, 2026).
How Judge Bough decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
What persuades
In Booher's negligence case, Bough dismissed the claims against the MFA defendants under Rule 12(b)(6) because the complaint's allegations against them were conclusory and did not satisfy Rule 8(a)(2).
“These statements are conclusory and do not allow the Court to draw a reasonable inference that the MFA Defendants are liable for misconduct.”
In Wriston’s repossession case, Judge Bough granted Officer Ramsey summary judgment on the Section 1983 claim because the vehicle was already hooked and lifted when Ramsey arrived, and the record did not show his intervention caused the repossession to proceed.
“the record shows that the repossession was complete or substantially complete because the Vehicle was already hooked and lifted in the air at the time Ramsey arrived.”
In the Burnett antitrust case, Judge Bough denied a motion to exclude Roger Alford’s expert testimony after finding his methodology, experience, and factual support adequate; the defendants’ criticisms could be tested on cross-examination.
“Defendants’ arguments are more suited for cross-examination, not exclusion.”
Procedural preferences
In Riley v. Department of Veterans Affairs, Bough denied the plaintiffs leave to amend because their proposed new parties and claims would not survive a Rule 12(b)(6) motion.
“the Court concludes that the proposed amendments would not withstand the scrutiny of a motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and are, therefore, futile.”
In United States v. Mangol, Bough independently reviewed and adopted a magistrate judge’s unopposed recommendation to deny a motion to dismiss one indictment count.
“After an independent and careful review of the record, the applicable law, and the parties’ arguments, the Court ADOPTS Judge Gaddy’s Report and Recommendation (Doc. #76).”
In Wriston, Judge Bough denied the defendant’s motion to strike the plaintiff’s summary-judgment filings because he had considered them when resolving both sides’ summary-judgment motions.
“DENIED for the reasons stated by Plaintiff and because the Court considered those filings in resolving the parties’ respective motions for summary judgment”
Cautions
In Burkes, Judge Bough dismissed the plaintiff’s case without prejudice under Rule 37(d) after missed discovery deadlines and noncompliance with a court order. He declined dismissal with prejudice and fees because the record did not show bad faith warranting those sanctions.
“the Court grants dismissal of Plaintiff’s case without prejudice under Rule 37(d) and declines to award attorney’s fees as requested by Coreslab under Rule 37(d)(3).”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“Accordingly, the MFA Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss (Doc. #93) is GRANTED.”
“It is ORDERED that Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss Count Eight of the Indictment (Doc. #67) is DENIED.”
“the motion to withdraw is GRANTED and the motion to dismiss is GRANTED in part with modification.”
“ORDERED that Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss (Doc. #14) is DENIED without prejudice as moot.”
“Plaintiffs’ motion for leave to amend their complaint is DENIED”
“Plaintiffs’ request for an extension of time is GRANTED.”
“Plaintiff’s Motion for Leave to Proceed in Forma Pauperis (Doc. #1) is DENIED. It is further ORDERED the above-captioned matter is DISMISSED WITHOUT PREJUDICE.”
“Accordingly, Plaintiffs’ Motion is GRANTED.”
“Defendant Benjamin Ramsey’s Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. #60) is GRANTED, and Count III is DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE”
“Plaintiff’s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment as to Liability (Doc. #62) is DENIED”
“Plaintiff’s Motion to Exclude Defendant’s Expert Testimony (Doc. #65) is DENIED AS MOOT”
“Defendant’s Motion to Strike Both Plaintiff’s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment and Plaintiff’s Suggestions in Support of Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (Doc. #69) is DENIED for the reasons stated by Plaintiff”
“Trans Pacific Transportation, Inc.’s Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. #159) is GRANTED IN PART and DENIED IN PART. The motion is GRANTED insofar as summary judgment is entered in favor of Trans Pacific and against Monroe on Count XIII for negligence per se. The motion is DENIED on all other claims.”
“For the reasons set forth herein, the motions to remand are GRANTED.”
“Defendant, Lynn Elgin’s, Supplemental Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. #99) is DENIED.”
“ORDERED that Plaintiff’s Motion for Summary Judgment, Doc. #16, is GRANTED.”
Pending matters in the official report
Reported by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts under the Civil Justice Reform Act, as of March 31, 2026.
| Motions pending more than six months | 0 |
| Bench trials submitted more than six months | 0 |
| Bankruptcy appeals pending more than six months | 0 |
| Social Security appeals pending more than six months | 0 |
| Civil cases pending more than three years | 2 |
| Report | Motions over six months | Cases over three years |
|---|---|---|
| Mar 2026 | 0 | 2 |
| Sep 2025 | 0 | 3 |
| Mar 2025 | 0 | 2 |
| Sep 2024 | 0 | 14 |
| Mar 2024 | 0 | 14 |
| Sep 2023 | 0 | 14 |
| Mar 2023 | 0 | 5 |
| Sep 2022 | 0 | 4 |
| Mar 2022 | 1 | 3 |
| Sep 2021 | 0 | 1 |
| Mar 2021 | 0 | 1 |
| Sep 2020 | 0 | 2 |
A snapshot on that date: matters listed may since have been decided or reassigned. A motion referred to a magistrate judge is counted for both judges. Motions in multidistrict litigation, section 2255 cases and Social Security appeals are not counted, and a very large three-year count is generally a multidistrict docket. Source: Appendix A of the report (PDF); about the report.
How long civil cases take in this court
For the whole of United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri, not for Judge Bough: median time from filing to disposition of the civil cases the court closed in the 12 months ending September 30, 2025, as reported by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts.
| Cases | Median time | |
|---|---|---|
| All civil cases closed | 1,429 | 6.7 months |
| Closed with no court action | 520 | 5.7 months |
| Closed before pretrial | 876 | 7.2 months |
| Closed during or after pretrial | 19 | 49.3 months |
| Closed during trial | 14 | 22.7 months |
| 12 months ending | Cases closed | Median time |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2025 | 1,429 | 6.7 months |
| Sep 2024 | 1,461 | 6.9 months |
| Sep 2023 | 1,502 | 6.2 months |
| Sep 2022 | 1,738 | 7.3 months |
| Sep 2021 | 1,341 | 8.2 months |
| Sep 2020 | 1,312 | 6.9 months |
| Sep 2019 | 1,485 | 7 months |
The table leaves out prisoner petitions, land condemnations, deportation reviews, recovery of overpayments and enforcement of judgments, and reports no median for fewer than 10 cases. A district that closed a large multidistrict litigation in the period shows very large counts and long medians for that year. Source: Table C-5, U.S. District Courts (spreadsheet).
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