United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida | |
---|---|
(M.D. Fla.) | |
Location | Orlando More locations |
Appeals to | Eleventh Circuit |
Established | July 30, 1962 |
Judges | 15 |
Chief Judge | Timothy J. Corrigan |
Officers of the court | |
U.S. Attorney | Roger B. Handberg |
U.S. Marshal | William B. Berger Sr. |
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The United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida (in case citations, M.D. Fla.) is a federal court in the Eleventh Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).
The District was established on July 30, 1962, with parts of the Northern and Southern Districts transferring into the newly created Middle District [1]
As of December 2021 the United States attorney for the District is Roger B. Handberg.[2]
Organization of the court
The United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida is one of three federal judicial districts in Florida.[3] Court for the District is held at Fort Myers, Jacksonville, Ocala, Orlando, and Tampa.
Fort Myers Division comprises the following counties: Charlotte, Collier, Desoto, Glades, Hendry, and Lee.
Jacksonville Division comprises the following counties: Baker, Bradford, Clay, Columbia, Duval, Flagler, Hamilton, Nassau, Putnam, St. Johns, Suwannee, and Union.
Ocala Division comprises the following counties: Citrus, Lake, Marion, and Sumter.
Orlando Division comprises the following counties: Brevard, Orange, Osceola, Seminole, and Volusia.
Tampa Division comprises the following counties: Hardee, Hernando, Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, and Sarasota.
Current judges
As of December 30, 2023:
# | Title | Judge | Duty station | Born | Term of service | Appointed by | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Active | Chief | Senior | ||||||
30 | Chief Judge | Timothy J. Corrigan | Jacksonville | 1956 | 2002–present | 2020–present | — | G.W. Bush |
21 | District Judge | Steven Douglas Merryday | Tampa | 1950 | 1992–present | 2015–2020 | — | G.H.W. Bush |
32 | District Judge | Marcia Morales Howard | Jacksonville | 1965 | 2007–present | — | — | G.W. Bush |
33 | District Judge | Mary Stenson Scriven | Tampa | 1962 | 2008–present | — | — | G.W. Bush |
36 | District Judge | Sheri Polster Chappell | Ft. Myers | 1962 | 2013–present | — | — | Obama |
38 | District Judge | Paul G. Byron | Orlando | 1959 | 2014–present | — | — | Obama |
39 | District Judge | Carlos E. Mendoza | Orlando | 1970 | 2014–present | — | — | Obama |
40 | District Judge | William F. Jung | Tampa | 1958 | 2018–present | — | — | Trump |
41 | District Judge | Thomas P. Barber | Tampa | 1966 | 2019–present | — | — | Trump |
42 | District Judge | Wendy Berger | Orlando | 1968 | 2019–present | — | — | Trump |
43 | District Judge | John Badalamenti | Ft. Myers | 1973 | 2020–present | — | — | Trump |
44 | District Judge | Kathryn Kimball Mizelle | Tampa | 1987 | 2020–present | — | — | Trump |
45 | District Judge | vacant | — | — | — | — | — | — |
46 | District Judge | vacant | — | — | — | — | — | — |
47 | District Judge | vacant | — | — | — | — | — | — |
15 | Senior Judge | Elizabeth A. Kovachevich | Tampa | 1936 | 1982–2018 | 1996–2002 | 2018–present | Reagan |
17 | Senior Judge | Patricia C. Fawsett | Orlando | 1943 | 1986–2008 | 2003–2008 | 2008–present | Reagan |
19 | Senior Judge | Harvey E. Schlesinger | Jacksonville | 1940 | 1991–2006 | — | 2006–present | G.H.W. Bush |
20 | Senior Judge | Anne C. Conway | Orlando | 1950 | 1991–2015 | 2008–2015 | 2015–present | G.H.W. Bush |
22 | Senior Judge | Henry Lee Adams Jr. | Jacksonville | 1945 | 1993–2010 | — | 2010–present | Clinton |
23 | Senior Judge | Susan C. Bucklew | Tampa | 1942 | 1993–2008 | — | 2008–present | Clinton |
24 | Senior Judge | Richard A. Lazzara | Tampa | 1945 | 1997–2011 | — | 2011–present | Clinton |
25 | Senior Judge | James D. Whittemore | Tampa | 1952 | 2000–2017 | — | 2017–present | Clinton |
26 | Senior Judge | John Antoon | Orlando | 1946 | 2000–2013 | — | 2013–present | Clinton |
27 | Senior Judge | John E. Steele | Ft. Myers | 1949 | 2000–2015 | — | 2015–present | Clinton |
28 | Senior Judge | James S. Moody Jr. | Tampa | 1947 | 2000–2014 | — | 2014–present | Clinton |
29 | Senior Judge | Gregory A. Presnell | Orlando | 1942 | 2000–2012 | — | 2012–present | Clinton |
31 | Senior Judge | Virginia M. Hernandez Covington | Tampa | 1955 | 2004–2020 | — | 2020–present | G.W. Bush |
34 | Senior Judge | Charlene Edwards Honeywell | Tampa | 1957 | 2009–2023 | — | 2023–present | Obama |
35 | Senior Judge | Roy B. Dalton Jr. | Orlando | 1952 | 2011–2022 | — | 2022–present | Obama |
37 | Senior Judge | Brian J. Davis | Jacksonville | 1953 | 2013–2023 | — | 2023–present | Obama |
Vacancies and pending nominations
Seat | Prior judge's duty station | Seat last held by | Vacancy reason | Date of vacancy | Nominee | Date of nomination |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
7 | Orlando | Roy B. Dalton Jr. | Senior status | July 9, 2022 | Julie S. Sneed | November 6, 2023 |
8 | Tampa | Charlene Edwards Honeywell | December 4, 2023 | – | – | |
9 | Jacksonville | Brian J. Davis | December 30, 2023 | – | – | |
15 | Timothy J. Corrigan | November 2, 2024[4] | – | – |
Former judges
# | Judge | State | Born–died | Active service | Chief Judge | Senior status | Appointed by | Reason for termination |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | John Milton Bryan Simpson | FL | 1903–1987 | 1962–1966[Note 1] | 1962–1966 | — | Truman/Operation of law | elevation to 5th Cir. |
2 | Joseph Patrick Lieb | FL | 1901–1971 | 1962–1971[Note 1] | 1966–1971 | — | Eisenhower/Operation of law | death |
3 | William McRae | FL | 1909–1973 | 1962–1973[Note 1] | 1971–1973 | — | Kennedy/Operation of law | death |
4 | George C. Young | FL | 1916–2015 | 1962–1981[Note 2] | 1973–1981 | 1981–2015 | Kennedy/Operation of law | death |
5 | Charles R. Scott | FL | 1904–1983 | 1966–1976 | — | 1976–1983 | L. Johnson | death |
6 | Ben Krentzman | FL | 1914–1998 | 1967–1982 | 1981–1982 | 1982–1998 | L. Johnson | death |
7 | Gerald Bard Tjoflat | FL | 1929–present | 1970–1975 | — | — | Nixon | elevation to 5th Cir. |
8 | William Terrell Hodges | FL | 1934–2022 | 1971–1999 | 1982–1989 | 1999–2022 | Nixon | death |
9 | John A. Reed Jr. | FL | 1931–2015 | 1973–1984 | — | — | Nixon | resignation |
10 | Howell W. Melton | FL | 1923–2015 | 1977–1991 | — | 1991–2015 | Carter | death |
11 | George C. Carr | FL | 1929–1990 | 1977–1990 | 1989–1990 | — | Carter | death |
12 | Susan H. Black | FL | 1943–present | 1979–1992 | 1990–1992 | — | Carter | elevation to 11th Cir. |
13 | William J. Castagna | FL | 1924–2020 | 1979–1992 | — | 1992–2020 | Carter | death |
14 | John H. Moore II | FL | 1927–2013 | 1981–1995 | 1992–1995 | 1995–2013 | Reagan | death |
16 | G. Kendall Sharp | FL | 1934–2022 | 1983–2000 | — | 2000–2022 | Reagan | death |
18 | Ralph Wilson Nimmons Jr. | FL | 1938–2003 | 1991–2003 | — | — | G.H.W. Bush | death |
Chief judges
Chief judges have administrative responsibilities with respect to their district court. Unlike the Supreme Court, where one justice is specifically nominated to be chief, the office of chief judge rotates among the district court judges. To be chief, a judge must have been in active service on the court for at least one year, be under the age of 65, and have not previously served as chief judge.
A vacancy is filled by the judge highest in seniority among the group of qualified judges. The chief judge serves for a term of seven years, or until age 70, whichever occurs first. The age restrictions are waived if no members of the court would otherwise be qualified for the position.
When the office was created in 1948, the chief judge was the longest-serving judge who had not elected to retire, on what has since 1958 been known as senior status, or declined to serve as chief judge. After August 6, 1959, judges could not become or remain chief after turning 70 years old. The current rules have been in operation since October 1, 1982.
Succession of seats
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Courthouse history
Completed in 1908 by architect John Knox Taylor, the historic Federal courthouse in Tampa stands as the only civic building constructed in the eclectic renaissance style.[5] Initially serving as a U.S. Post Office, the courthouse moved two blocks down to its current location in 1998.[6] Congress named the court in honor of long-time Tampa representative and University of Florida Law alumnus Sam Gibbons; the congressman is largely recognized as the founder of the University of South Florida.[7]
See also
- Courts of Florida
- List of current United States district judges
- List of United States federal courthouses in Florida
- Playboy Enterprises, Inc. v. Frena (1993)
- United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
- United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida
- United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida
References
- ↑ "History of the Federal Judiciary - Federal Judicial Center". Fjc.gov. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
- ↑ "Meet the U.S. Attorney". January 3, 2022. Archived from the original on January 10, 2022.
- ↑ 28 U.S.C. § 89
- ↑ "Future Judicial Vacancies | United States Courts". www.uscourts.gov.
- ↑ "National Registry". Npgallery.nps.gov. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
- ↑ Wade-Bahr, Linda H. "Official Site of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida". Flmd.uscourts.gov. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
- ↑ "Public Law 104-230" (PDF). Gpo.gov. Retrieved 1 August 2017.