The Florida First District Court of Appeal is one of six intermediate appellate courts in Florida. It is located in Tallahassee, although it periodically hears oral arguments in other counties. The court consists of 13 judges. The Florida Legislature created the First District Court in 1957, along with the Second and Third district courts.[1][2][3]
The First District encompasses five circuits: the First, Second, Third, Eighth, and Fourteenth circuits.[4]
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- Published opinions of the Florida First District Court of Appeal can be found here. Archived opinions dating back to 2001 can be found here.
Florida First District Court of AppealCourt informationJudges: 13Founded: 1957Salary: Associates: $212,562[5]Judicial selectionMethod: Assisted appointmentTerm: 6 years
Judges
Judge Tenure Appointed By
Thomas D. Winokur
June 11, 2015 – Present
Rick Scott
Ross L. Bilbrey
December 23, 2014 – Present
Rick Scott
L. Clayton Roberts
January 18, 2007 – Present
Charlie Crist
Lori S. Rowe
September 15, 2009 – Present
Charlie Crist
Stephanie Williams Ray
2011 – Present
Rick Scott
Susan Kelsey
April 16, 2015 – Present
Rick Scott
Timothy D. Osterhaus
May 20, 2013 – Present
Rick Scott
Adam Tanenbaum
2019 – Present
Ron DeSantis
Joseph Lewis
2001 – Present
Jeb Bush
Rachel Nordby
2019 – Present
Ron DeSantis
Robert E. Long Jr.
June 30, 2020 – Present
Ron DeSantis
Bradford Thomas
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2005 – Present
Jeb Bush
M. Kemmerly Thomas
June 20, 2016 – Present
Rick Scott
Judicial selection
See also: Judicial selection in Florida
The justices of the Florida District Courts of Appeal are selected by a nine-member judicial nominating commission.[6] The commission screens potential judicial candidates, submitting a list of three to six nominees to the governor. The governor must appoint a judge from this list.[7]
Newly appointed judges serve for at least one year, after which they appear in a yes-no retention election held during the next general election. If retained, judges serve six-year terms.[7] Under the Florida constitution, a judge must retire at age 75; however, a judge who reaches 75 after serving at least half of his or her term may complete that term.[8]
Qualifications
To serve on one of these courts, a judge must be:
- a qualified elector;
- a resident in the jurisdiction of the court;
- admitted to practice law in the state for 10 years before assuming the bench; and
- under the age of 75.
Chief justice
The chief justice of the appellate courts is selected by peer vote. He or she serves in that capacity for two years.[7]
Vacancies
See also: How vacancies are filled in state supreme courts
If a midterm vacancy occurs, the seat is filled as it normally would be if the vacancy occurred at the end of a judge’s term. A judicial nominating commission recommends three to six qualified candidates to the governor, and the governor selects a successor from that list. The new appointee serves for at least one year before running in a yes-no retention election. If retained, judges serve six-year terms.[7]
Salary
In 2023, the associate judges of the court received a salary of $212,562, according to the National Center for State Courts.[9]
Elections
For details about Florida’s judicial elections, visit the Florida judicial elections page.
2024
See also: Florida intermediate appellate court elections, 2024
The terms of 22 Florida intermediate appellate court judges will expire on January 7, 2025. The 22 seats are up for retention election on November 5, 2024. The filing deadline is April 26, 2024.
Judges with expiring terms
This is a list of the judges who must stand for retention election in 2024 in order to remain on the bench. Judges may choose not to stand for election. The list is subject to change if judges retire or are appointed.
First District Court of Appeal
■ Stephanie Williams Ray ■ Bradford Thomas ■ M. Kemmerly Thomas
Second District Court of Appeal
■ Anthony K. Black ■ Darryl Casanueva ■ Edward LaRose ■ Susan Rothstein-Youakim
Third District Court of Appeal
■ Kevin M. Emas ■ Ivan F. Fernandez ■ Norma S. Lindsey
Fourth District Court of Appeal
■ Burton C. Conner ■ Jeffrey T. Kuntz
Fifth District Court of Appeal
■ Joe Boatwright ■ Eric Eisnaugle ■ Harvey Jay III ■ Paige Kilbane ■ John MacIver ■ Jordan Pratt ■ Adrian Soud
Sixth District Court of Appeal
■ Keith F. White ■ Jared Smith ■ Joshua Mize
2022
See also: Florida intermediate appellate court elections, 2022
The terms of 28 Florida intermediate appellate court judges expired on January 2, 2023. The 28 seats were up for retention election on November 8, 2022.
Judges with expiring terms
Candidates and results
First District Court of Appeals
Bilbrey’s seat
Kelsey’s seat
Long’s seat
Rowe’s seat
Winokur’s seat
Second District Court of Appeals
Kelly’s seat
Khouzam’s seat
Labrit’s seat
Lucas’ seat
Morris’ seat
Northcutt’s seat
=Stargel’s seat
Villanti’s seat
Third District Court of Appeals
Bokor’s seat
Scales’ seat
Fourth District Court of Appeals
Artau’s seat
Ciklin’s seat
Damoorgian’s seat
Gerber’s seat
Gross’ seat
Levine’s seat
May’s seat
Fifth District Court of Appeals
Cohen’s seat
Edwards’ seat
Lambert’s seat
Nardella’s seat
Traver’s seat
Wozniak’s seat
2020
Main article: Florida intermediate appellate court elections, 2020
Judges with expiring terms
This is a list of the justices who had to stand for retention election in 2020 in order to remain on the bench. Justices could choose not to stand for election.
■ Joseph Lewis■ Scott D. Makar■ Rachel Nordby■ Timothy D. Osterhaus■ L. Clayton Roberts■ Adam Tanenbaum
2016
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Main article: Florida judicial elections, 2016
Judges who faced retention
■ James Wolf ■ Ross L. Bilbrey ■ T. Kent Wetherell ■ Lori S. Rowe ■ Susan Kelsey ■ Thomas D. “Bo” Winokur
Election results
November 8 general election
James Wolf was retained in the Florida First District Court of Appeal, Wolf’s Seat election with 62.52% of the vote.
Florida First District Court of Appeal, Wolf’s Seat, 2016 Name Yes votesJames Wolf62.52% Source: Florida Division of Elections Official Results
Ross L. Bilbrey was retained in the Florida First District Court of Appeal, Bilbrey’s Seat election with 63.25% of the vote.
Florida First District Court of Appeal, Bilbrey’s Seat, 2016 Name Yes votesRoss L. Bilbrey63.25% Source: Florida Division of Elections Official Results
T. Kent Wetherell was retained in the Florida First District Court of Appeal, Wetherell’s Seat election with 62.23% of the vote.
Florida First District Court of Appeal, Wetherell’s Seat, 2016 Name Yes votesT. Kent Wetherell62.23% Source: Florida Division of Elections Official Results
Lori S. Rowe was retained in the Florida First District Court of Appeal, Rowe’s Seat election with 63.53% of the vote.
Florida First District Court of Appeal, Rowe’s Seat, 2016 Name Yes votesLori S. Rowe63.53% Source: Florida Division of Elections Official Results
Susan Kelsey was retained in the Florida First District Court of Appeal, Kelsey’s Seat election with 64.94% of the vote.
Florida First District Court of Appeal, Kelsey’s Seat, 2016 Name Yes votesSusan Kelsey64.94% Source: Florida Division of Elections Official Results
Thomas D. “Bo” Winokur was retained in the Florida First District Court of Appeal, Winokur’s Seat election with 61.52% of the vote.
Florida First District Court of Appeal, Winokur’s Seat, 2016 Name Yes votesThomas D. “Bo” Winokur61.52% Source: Florida Division of Elections Official Results
2014
Retention
JudgeElection VoteRobertsL. Clayton Roberts64.2% ALewisJoseph Lewis64.4% ABentonRobert Benton64.6% AMakarScott D. Makar63.8% AOsterhausTimothy D. Osterhaus63.4% A
2012
JudgeIncumbencyRetention voteRetention Vote %ThomasBradford Thomas AYes813,71464.5%ASwansonRonald V. Swanson AYes821,13964.9%AMarstillerSimone Marstiller AYes785,39761.7%ARayStephanie Williams Ray AYes837,70966.1%A
Ethics
The Code of Judicial Conduct for the State of Florida sets forth ethical guidelines and principles for the conduct of judges and judicial candidates in Florida. It consists of seven canons:
- Canon 1: “A Judge Shall Uphold the Integrity and Independence of the Judiciary”
- Canon 2: “A Judge Shall Avoid Impropriety and the Appearance of Impropriety in all of the Judge’s Activities”
- Canon 3: “A Judge Shall Perform the Duties of Judicial Office Impartially and Diligently”
- Canon 4: “A Judge Is Encouraged to Engage in Activities to Improve the Law, the Legal System, and the Administration of Justice”
- Canon 5: “A Judge Shall Regulate Extrajudicial Activities to Minimize the Risk of Conflict With Judicial Duties”
- Canon 6: “Fiscal Matters of a Judge Shall be Conducted in a Manner That Does Not Give the Appearance of Influence or Impropriety; etc.”
- Canon 7: “A Judge or Candidate for Judicial Office Shall Refrain From Inappropriate Political Activity”[10]
The full text of the Code of Judicial Conduct for the State of Florida can be found here.
Removal of judges
Judges in Florida may be removed in one of two ways:
- By a two-thirds vote of the senate after a two-thirds vote for impeachment by the house of representatives
- By the supreme court after a recommendation from the Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission[11]
Jurisdiction
There are five circuits and 29 counties in the First District.[2]
- First Circuit: Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa and Walton counties
- Second Circuit: Franklin, Gadsden, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty and Wakulla counties
- Third Circuit: Columbia, Dixie, Hamilton, Lafayette, Madison, Suwannee and Taylor counties
- Eighth Circuit: Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Gilchrist, Levy and Union counties
- Fourteenth Circuit: Bay, Calhoun, Gulf, Holmes, Jackson and Washington counties[12]
Noteworthy cases
Courtroom Weekly: Florida Showdown: College gun ban struck, December 19, 2013
State profile
Demographic data for Florida FloridaU.S.Total population:20,244,914316,515,021 Land area (sq mi):53,6253,531,905Race and ethnicity** White:76%73.6% Black/African American:16.1%12.6% Asian:2.6%5.1% Native American:0.3%0.8% Pacific Islander:0.1%0.2% Two or more:2.4%3% Hispanic/Latino:23.7%17.1%Education High school graduation rate:86.9%86.7% College graduation rate:27.3%29.8%Income Median household income:$47,507$53,889 Persons below poverty level:19.8%11.3%Source: U.S. Census Bureau, “American Community Survey” (5-year estimates 2010-2015)Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Florida. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
Presidential voting pattern
See also: Presidential voting trends in Florida
Florida voted Republican in four out of the six presidential elections between 2000 and 2020.
Pivot Counties (2016)
Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, four are located in Florida, accounting for 1.94 percent of the total pivot counties.[19]
Pivot Counties (2020)
In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year’s presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Florida had three Retained Pivot Counties and one Boomerang Pivot County, accounting for 1.66 and 4.00 percent of all Retained and Boomerang Pivot Counties, respsectively.
More Florida coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Florida
- United States congressional delegations from Florida
- Public policy in Florida
- Influencers in Florida
- Florida fact checks
- More…
See also
Florida Judicial Selection More Courts Courts in Florida Florida Court of Appeals Florida Supreme Court Elections: 2024 • 2023 • 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 Gubernatorial appointments Judicial selection in Florida Federal courts State courts Local courts
External links
- Florida Courts, “First District Court of Appeal”
Footnotes
Florida District Courts of AppealJudicial selection in Florida • 2024 elections • Florida Supreme Court First District
Joseph Lewis • L. Clayton Roberts • Bradford Thomas • Ross L. Bilbrey • Lori S. Rowe • Stephanie Williams Ray • Timothy D. Osterhaus • Susan Kelsey • Thomas D. “Bo” Winokur • Robert E. Long Jr. • M. Kemmerly Thomas • Rachel Nordby • Adam Tanenbaum •
Second District Stevan Northcutt • Nelly Khouzam • Patricia Kelly • Darryl Casanueva • Craig Villanti • Morris Silberman • Edward LaRose • Daniel H. Sleet • Anthony K. Black • Robert J. Morris Jr. (Florida Court of Appeals judge) • Matthew C. Lucas • Andrea Teves Smith • Susan Rothstein-Youakim • J. Andrew Atkinson • Suzanne Labrit • Third District
Richard Suarez • Kevin M. Emas • Ivan F. Fernandez • Eric Hendon • Bronwyn C. Miller • Monica Gordo • Fleur J. Lobree • Thomas W. Logue • Edwin A. Scales, III •
Fourth District
Robert Gross • Cory Ciklin • Martha Warner • Melanie May • Dorian Damoorgian • Burton C. Conner • Jonathan D. Gerber • Spencer D. Levine • Mark W. Klingensmith • Alan O. Forst • Edward Artau • Jeffrey T. Kuntz •
Fifth District
Eric Eisnaugle • Brian D. Lambert • Frederic Rand Wallis • John M. Harris • Norma S. Lindsey • Adrian Soud • Harvey Jay III • Scott D. Makar • James A. Edwards • Paige Kilbane • Joe Boatwright • Jordan Pratt • John MacIver •
Sixth District
Jay Cohen • John K. Stargel • Keith F. White • Daniel Traver • Jared Smith • Paetra Brownlee • Mary Alice Nardella • Joshua Mize • Carrie Ann Wozniak •
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