[2] Otis received an Artium Baccalaureus degree from the University of Missouri in 1906, an Artium Magister degree from the same institution in 1910, and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Missouri School of Law in 1910.
He was an unsuccessful candidate for the United States House of Representatives in 1914.
[3] Otis received a recess appointment from President Calvin Coolidge on March 23, 1925, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri vacated by Judge Arba Seymour Van Valkenburgh.
He was confirmed by the United States Senate on December 14, 1925, and received his commission the same day.
[3] Among his notable cases was the judge in the trial of Kansas City boss Tom Pendergast in 1939 that led to Pendergast's fall and the dismantling of the Pendergast machine that dominated Kansas City and Missouri politics and launched the career of Harry S.