Joe Cornelison, general counsel and chief of staff at Northwest Missouri State University, was granted an extension Wednesday that will, for the time being, keep the university’s governing board from giving him the boot.

The Board of Regents voted 5-2 in closed session on March 18 to give Mr. Cornelison 60 days’ notice. Attorneys for Mr. Cornelison believe the board is reconsidering to take more immediate action to “unceremoniously throw him out.” He’s been with the university since 2005.

It was revealed in the 4th Judicial Court Wednesday that Mr. Cornelison’s mother, Mary Cornelison, 91, died while he was in court the previous week, during the case’s first hearing. Attorney Tim McNamara, who is representing Mr. Cornelison, said his client has had no time over the past week to devote to his case and asked for an extension on the restraining order and to continue the hearing. The restraining order is keeping the Board of Regents from taking further action against Mr. Cornelison.

John Reddoch, an attorney representing the board members, argued that despite Mr. Cornelison’s loss, he’s had time to begin an “e-mail campaign” to solicit public sympathy for his case. The defense also made a motion to increase the bond amount associated with the restraining order against the board, which ultimately was overruled by Judge Roger Prokes.

Mr. Reddoch also argued that there are no statutes to justify a restraining order in this situation.

Mr. Prokes said they still need to get to the bottom of two issues — did the board have the authority to fire Mr. Cornelison, and did they violate sunshine laws?

The next hearing is scheduled for April 11. But attorneys on both sides agreed that the hearing on that date would be unlikely because Bill Loch, president of the Board of Regents and whom Mr. McNamara referred to as the “No, 1 witness,” is scheduled to undergo hip replacement surgery today.

Mr. Cornelison is originally from Maryville. He is a West Point graduate and earned his law degree from Georgetown University. He served 28 years in the Army, retiring as a colonel, and was appointed by President Bill Clinton as the deputy administrator of the Panama Canal Commission.

Jimmy Myers can be reached at jimmym@npgco.com