Florida Circuit Courts
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The Florida circuit courts are state courts and
trial court A trial court or court of first instance is a court having original jurisdiction, in which trials take place. Appeals from the decisions of trial courts are usually heard by higher courts with the power of appellate review (appellate courts). ...
s of
original jurisdiction In common law legal systems, original jurisdiction of a court is the power to hear a case for the first time, as opposed to appellate jurisdiction, when a higher court has the power to review a lower court's decision. India In India, the S ...
for most controversies. In Florida, the
circuit court Circuit courts are court systems in several common law jurisdictions. It may refer to: * Courts that literally sit 'on circuit', i.e., judges move around a region or country to different towns or cities where they will hear cases; * Courts that s ...
s are one of four types of courts created by the Florida Constitution (the other three being the
Florida Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Florida is the state supreme court, highest court in the U.S. state of Florida. It consists of seven justices—one of whom serves as Chief Justice. Six members are chosen from six districts around the state to foster geog ...
,
Florida district courts of appeal Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
, and Florida county courts). The circuit courts primarily handle
felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "''félonie''") to describe an offense that r ...
criminal cases; family law matters; civil cases where the
amount in controversy Amount in controversy (sometimes called jurisdictional amount) is a term used in civil procedure to denote the amount at stake in a lawsuit, in particular in connection with a requirement that persons seeking to bring a lawsuit in a particular cou ...
is greater than $50,000; probate, guardianship, and mental health cases; juvenile dependency and delinquency cases; and appeals of decisions in certain administrative, noncriminal infractions, and other types of cases.


Circuits

There are 20 judicial circuits in Florida, all but five of which span multiple
counties A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...
. They are: # First Circuit – Escambia, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and Walton # Second Circuit – Franklin, Gadsden, Jefferson, Leon,
Liberty Liberty is the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views. The concept of liberty can vary depending on perspective and context. In the Constitutional ...
, and Wakulla # Third Circuit – Columbia,
Dixie Dixie, also known as Dixieland or Dixie's Land, is a nickname for all or part of the Southern United States. While there is no official definition of this region (and the included areas have shifted over the years), or the extent of the area i ...
,
Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...
, Lafayette, Madison, Suwannee and
Taylor Taylor, Taylors or Taylor's may refer to: People * Taylor (surname) ** List of people with surname Taylor * Taylor (given name), including Tayla and Taylah * Taylor sept, a branch of Scottish clan Cameron * Justice Taylor (disambiguation) ...
# Fourth Circuit –
Clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impuriti ...
, Duval and Nassau # Fifth Circuit –
Citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the family Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, mandarins, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. ''Citrus'' is nativ ...
, Hernando,
Lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from ...
, Marion and
Sumter Sumter may refer to: People Given name * Sumter S. Arnim (1904–1990), American dentist * Sumter de Leon Lowry Jr. (1893–1985), United States Army general Surname * Rowendy Sumter (born 1988), Curaçaoan footballer * Shavonda E. Sumt ...
# Sixth Circuit – Pasco and Pinellas # Seventh Circuit – Flagler, Putnam, St. Johns and Volusia # Eighth Circuit – Alachua,
Baker A baker is a tradesperson who baking, bakes and sometimes Sales, sells breads and other products made of flour by using an oven or other concentrated heat source. The place where a baker works is called a bakery. History Ancient histo ...
,
Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...
, Gilchrist, Levy, and Union # Ninth Circuit – Orange and
Osceola Osceola (1804 – January 30, 1838, Vsse Yvholv in Muscogee language, Creek, also spelled Asi-yahola), named Billy Powell at birth, was an influential leader of the Seminole people in Florida. His mother was Muscogee, and his great-grandfa ...
# Tenth Circuit – Hardee, Highlands, and Polk # Eleventh Circuit – Miami-Dade # Twelfth Circuit – DeSoto,
Manatee Manatees (, family (biology), family Trichechidae, genus ''Trichechus'') are large, fully aquatic, mostly herbivory, herbivorous marine mammals sometimes known as sea cows. There are three accepted living species of Trichechidae, representing t ...
, and Sarasota # Thirteenth Circuit – Hillsborough # Fourteenth Circuit – Bay, Calhoun,
Gulf A gulf is a large inlet from an ocean or their seas into a landmass, larger and typically (though not always) with a narrower opening than a bay (geography), bay. The term was used traditionally for large, highly indented navigable bodies of s ...
, Holmes, Jackson and Washington # Fifteenth Circuit – Palm Beach # Sixteenth Circuit – Monroe # Seventeenth Circuit – Broward # Eighteenth Circuit – Brevard and
Seminole The Seminole are a Native American people who developed in Florida in the 18th century. Today, they live in Oklahoma and Florida, and comprise three federally recognized tribes: the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, the Seminole Tribe of Florida, ...
# Nineteenth Circuit – Indian River,
Martin Martin may refer to: Places Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Europe * Martin, Croatia, a village * Martin, Slovakia, a city * Martín del Río, Aragón, Spain * M ...
, Okeechobee and St. Lucie # Twentieth Circuit – Charlotte, Collier, Glades, Hendry and Lee


Jurisdiction

Florida circuit courts have original jurisdiction not vested in the county courts, direct review of administrative action, and the power to issue
writs In common law, a writ is a formal written order issued by a body with administrative or judicial jurisdiction; in modern usage, this body is generally a court. Warrants, prerogative writs, subpoenas, and ''certiorari'' are common types of writs ...
of
mandamus A writ of (; ) is a judicial remedy in the English and American common law system consisting of a court order that commands a government official or entity to perform an act it is legally required to perform as part of its official duties, o ...
,
quo warranto In the English-American common law, ''quo warranto'' (Medieval Latin for "by what warrant?") is a prerogative writ issued by a court which orders someone to show what authority they have for exercising some right, power, or franchise they clai ...
,
certiorari In law, ''certiorari'' is a court process to seek judicial review of a decision of a lower court or government agency. ''Certiorari'' comes from the name of a prerogative writ in England, issued by a superior court to direct that the recor ...
,
prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...
, and
habeas corpus ''Habeas corpus'' (; from Medieval Latin, ) is a legal procedure invoking the jurisdiction of a court to review the unlawful detention or imprisonment of an individual, and request the individual's custodian (usually a prison official) to ...
, as well as any other writs necessary to exercise their jurisdiction. As authorized by the legislature, and in addition to the power to issue various injunctions and other necessary orders, the circuit courts more specifically have the following jurisdiction:


Original jurisdiction

Original jurisdiction In common law legal systems, original jurisdiction of a court is the power to hear a case for the first time, as opposed to appellate jurisdiction, when a higher court has the power to review a lower court's decision. India In India, the S ...
is as follows: *In all actions at law not cognizable by the county courts; *Of proceedings relating to the settlement of the estates of decedents and minors, the granting of letters testamentary, guardianship, involuntary hospitalization, the determination of incompetency, and other jurisdiction usually pertaining to courts of probate; *In all cases in equity including all cases relating to juveniles except traffic offenses as provided in chapters 316 and 985; *Of all felonies and of all misdemeanors arising out of the same circumstances as a felony which is also charged; *In all cases involving legality of any tax assessment or toll or denial of refund, except as provided in s. 72.011; *In actions of ejectment; and *In all actions involving the title and boundaries of real property.


Appellate jurisdiction

Appellate jurisdiction An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to hear a case upon appeal from a trial court or other lower tribunal. Appellat ...
is as follows: * Appeals from final administrative orders of local government code enforcement boards and of reviews and appeals as otherwise expressly provided by law. § 26.012(1) (2020).


Florida's Business and Commercial Court Tracks

Four of Florida's Circuit Court's have issued orders creating specialized complex business and commercial court programs, including the Ninth Judicial Circuit (Orange and Osceola Counties) Business Court, the Eleventh Judicial Circuit (Miami-Dade County) Complex Business Litigation Division, the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit (Hillsborough County) Business Court, and the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit (Broward County) Complex Litigation Unit consisting of a business and tort subdivision. In 2004, Ninth Circuit Chief Judge Belvin Perry made Judge Renee A. Roche Florida's first specialized business court judge. Judge Roche, along with Florida Judge John E. Jordan (Ninth Judicial Circuit), have served as Business Court Representatives to the American Bar Association's Business Law Section. A specialized business court in Orlando (Orange County) was first suggested by Thomas Benton Smith (judge). In 2023, the Ninth Circuit business court expanded from Orange County to add Osceola County. Judge Gill S. Freeman was the first judge presiding over Miami's Complex Business Litigation Section, serving in that role for five years. She is co-chair of the Florida Bar Association's Business Law Section Business Courts Task Force, which was formed in 2018 to study the merits of implementing a statewide business court. In early 2020, on the precipice of the COVID pandemic, the task force recommended a proposed statewide business court. Judge Richard A. Nielsen was the first presiding judge in the Thirteenth Circuit's Complex Business Litigation Division in Tampa, in 2007, where he served for 5 years. In 2008, Seventeenth Judicial Circuit (Broward County) Chief Judge Victor Tobin issued an administrative order creating a Complex Litigation Unit with subdivisions for complex tort cases and complex business court cases. Judge Robert Rosenberg, who had suggested the idea of a specialized business court in the Seventeenth Circuit was appointed as one of the initial complex business case judges, with Judge Charles Greene to handle complex tort cases and Judge Jeffrey Streitfeld to handle complex tort and business cases. In 2017, the Eleventh Judicial Circuit Court in Miami-Dade County Florida created a separate International Commercial Arbitration Court. As of May 2024, Judge Lisa S. Walsh serves as both a Complex Business Litigation Division Judge and a presiding International Commercial Arbitration Court Judge. Judge Jennifer D. Bailey also served both as a Complex Business Litigation Division judge and International Commercial Arbitration judge in the Eleventh circuit, among her many contributions to that court.


Election

Circuit court judges are elected by the voters of the circuits in nonpartisan, contested elections against other persons who choose to qualify as candidates for the position. Circuit court judges serve for six-year terms, and they are subject to the same disciplinary standards and procedures as Supreme Court Justices and district court judges.


See also

* Judiciary of Florida


References


External links


Map of District Court's Jurisdiction

The Florida Rules of Civil Procedure
{{Florida Court System Florida state courts
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
Courts and tribunals with year of establishment missing