Christopher Benjamin is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

attorney, mediator, arbitrator, magistrate and politician who has served as a member of the

Florida House of Representatives The Florida House of Representatives is the lower house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida Senate being the upper house. Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of Florida, adopted ...

from District 107 since November 2020.

Early life and education

Benjamin was born and raised in

Hollywood, Florida Hollywood is a city in southern Broward County, Florida, United States, located between Fort Lauderdale and Miami. As of July 1, 2019, Hollywood had a population of 154,817. Founded in 1925, the city grew rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s, and is now ...

. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in political science from

Florida Memorial University Florida Memorial University is a private historically black university in Miami Gardens, Florida. It is a member of the United Negro College Fund and historically related to Baptists although it claims a focus on broader Christianity. History ...

in 1998 and a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

from the

St. Thomas University School of Law Benjamin L. Crump College of Law is one of the graduate schools of St. Thomas University located in Miami Gardens, Florida. The College of Law was founded in 1984. According to its 2017 ABA-required disclosures, 54.7% of the Class of 2017 obta ...

in 2001.

Career

As a young teenager, Benjamin began his working experience as a door-to-door salesman for the ''

Miami Herald The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by the McClatchy Company and headquartered in Doral, Florida, a List of communities in Miami-Dade County, Florida, city in western Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County and the M ...

''. Benjamin served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

from 1991 to 1994. After graduating from law school, Benjamin worked as an attorney in the Case Management Division (Family Division) of the 11th Judicial Circuit of

Miami-Dade County, Florida Miami-Dade County is a County (United States), county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Florida. The county had a population of 2,701,767 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the most populous county in ...

. In 2002, Benjamin opened his law practice, now known as th
Barrister Firm
where he has provided affordable legal services to clients in the areas of Business Formation, Business Litigation, Bankruptcy, Civil Litigation, Child Support, Criminal Defense, Commercial Litigation, Consumer Litigation, Estate Planning, Family Law, Guardianship, Probate, Real Estate and Real Estate Closings w/Title Insurance (Residential and Commercial). In 2007, Benjamin obtained his first certifications in Alternative Dispute Resolution (Mediation and Arbitration) and for over a decade he has actively practiced with the prestigious mediation firm o
Salmon and Dulberg
and has also been an independent contractor with the 17th Judicial Circuit of Broward County, Florida (Mediation Department) and the FL Department of Financial Services (Mediation Program - Insurance Disputes). In 2011, Benjamin was appointed as a Traffic Hearing Officer with the 11th Judicial Circuit Court of Miami-Dade County, Florida; he has also been appointed Special Magistrate for municipalities throughout S. Florida. In his community, Benjamin has served on several committees and boards such as: Florida's Local Advocacy Council
Miami Garden
s Nuisance Abatement Board, Miami-Dade County's Citizen's Independent Transportation Trust, Parks and Recreation, Small Business/Minority Certification and the Human Rights Commission
Dade Public School'
s Small Business/Minority Certifications, Attendance & Boundary Committee and the Save Our Future Advisory Committee. Benjamin is a Florida licensed real estate broker, title insurance agent, title insurance instructor and notary. He has also taught at Florida Memorial University,

Miami Dade College Miami Dade College (Miami Dade, MDC or Dade) is a public college in Miami, Florida. Founded in 1959, it has a total of eight campuses and twenty-one outreach centers throughout Miami-Dade County. It is the largest college in the Florida College ...

an
Nova Southeastern University Shepard Broad School of Law.
In 2020, Benjamin defeated Ulysses Harvard in the Democratic primary for District 107 in the

. Benjamin did not face a candidate in the general election and assumed office on November 3, 2020.

Personal life

Upon assuming office, Benjamin became the first Muslim elected to the

Florida legislature The Florida Legislature is the legislature of the U.S. State of Florida. It is organized as a bicameral body composed of an upper chamber, the Senate, and a lower chamber, the House of Representatives. Article III, Section 1 of the Florida Cons ...

. Benjamin and his late wife, Carleen Nelson-Benjamin, have four children.

Elections

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Benjamin, Christopher Democratic Party members of the Florida House of Representatives Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Florida lawyers People from Hollywood, Florida St. Thomas University (Florida) alumni Muslims from Florida 21st-century American politicians