United states district court southern district of florida

Southern District of Florida
Eleventh Circuit
United states district court southern district of florida
Judgeships
Posts: 18
Judges: 15
Vacancies: 3
Judges
Chief: Cecilia Altonaga
Active judges:
Roy Altman, Cecilia Altonaga, Beth Bloom, Aileen Cannon, William Dimitrouleas, Darrin P. Gayles, Jose Martinez, Donald Middlebrooks, Kevin Michael Moore, Robin L. Rosenberg, Rodolfo Ruiz, Robert N. Scola Jr., Anuraag Singhal, Rodney Smith, Kathleen M. Williams

Senior judges:
James Cohn, Marcia Cooke, Jose Gonzalez, Donald Graham, Paul Huck, Daniel Hurley, James King, Joan Lenard, Kenneth Marra, Federico Moreno, Patricia Seitz, William Zloch

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida is one of 94 United States district courts. The district operates out of courthouses in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and Fort Pierce. When decisions of the court are appealed, they are appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit based in downtown Atlanta at the Elbert P. Tuttle Federal Courthouse.

Vacancies

See also: Current federal judicial vacancies

There are three current vacancies on the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, out of the court's 18 judicial positions.

Pending nominations

There are no pending nominees for this court.

Active judges

Article III judges

JudgeAppointed ByAssumed OfficeBachelorsLaw

Kevin Michael Moore

George H.W. Bush (R)

February 10, 1992 -

Florida State University, 1972

Fordham University Law, 1976

Donald Middlebrooks

Bill Clinton (D)

May 27, 1997 -

University of Florida, 1968

University of Florida Law, 1972

William Dimitrouleas

Bill Clinton (D)

May 22, 1998 -

Furman University, 1973

University of Florida College of Law, 1975

Jose Martinez

George W. Bush (R)

September 17, 2002 -

University of Miami, 1962

University of Miami School of Law, 1965

Cecilia Altonaga

George W. Bush (R)

May 7, 2003 -

Florida International University, 1983

Yale Law, 1986

Kathleen M. Williams

Barack Obama (D)

August 4, 2011 -

Duke University, 1978

University of Miami Law, 1982

Robert N. Scola Jr.

Barack Obama (D)

October 20, 2011 -

Brown University, 1977

Boston College Law, 1980

Darrin P. Gayles

Barack Obama (D)

June 19, 2014 -

Howard University, 1990

George Washington University Law Center, 1993

Beth Bloom

Barack Obama (D)

June 25, 2014 -

University of Florida, 1984

University of Miami School of Law, 1988

Robin L. Rosenberg

Barack Obama (D)

July 24, 2014 -

Princeton University, 1983

Duke University School of Law, 1989

Roy Altman

Donald Trump (R)

April 9, 2019 -

Columbia University, 2004

Yale Law School, 2007

Rodolfo Ruiz

Donald Trump (R)

May 3, 2019 -

Duke University, 2002

Georgetown University Law Center, 2005

Rodney Smith

Donald Trump (R)

June 14, 2019 -

Florida A&M University, 1996

Michigan State University, 1999

Anuraag Singhal

Donald Trump (R)

December 20, 2019 -

Rice University, 1986

Wake Forest University School of Law, 1989

Aileen Cannon

Donald Trump (R)

November 13, 2020 -

Duke University, 2003

University of Michigan Law School, 2007

Active Article III judges by appointing political party

The list below displays the number of active judges by the party of the appointing president. It does not reflect how a judge may rule on specific cases or their own political preferences.

  • Democrat appointed: 7
  • Republican appointed: 8

Senior judges

JudgeAppointed ByAssumed OfficeBachelorsLaw

James King

Richard Nixon (R)

December 20, 1992 -

University of Florida, 1949

University of Florida Law, 1953

Jose Gonzalez

Jimmy Carter (D)

November 30, 1996 -

University of Florida, 1952

University of Florida, 1957

Daniel Hurley

Bill Clinton (D)

February 24, 2009 -

St. Anselm`s College, 1964

George Washington University Law Center, 1968

Paul Huck

Bill Clinton (D)

August 31, 2010 -

University of Florida, 1962

University of Florida School of Law, 1965

Patricia Seitz

Bill Clinton (D)

November 16, 2012 -

Kansas State University, 1968

Georgetown University Law Center, 1973

Donald Graham

George H.W. Bush (R)

December 15, 2013 -

West Virginia State College, 1971

The Ohio State University, Moritz School of Law, 1974

James Cohn

George W. Bush (R)

August 5, 2016 -

University of Alabama, 1971

Samford University, Cumberland School of Law, 1974

William Zloch

Ronald Reagan (R)

January 31, 2017 -

University of Notre Dame, 1966

Notre Dame Law School, 1974

Joan Lenard

Bill Clinton (D)

July 1, 2017 -

Roger Williams University, 1973

Antioch School of Law, 1976

Kenneth Marra

George W. Bush (R)

August 1, 2017 -

State University of New York, Stony Brook, 1973

Stetson University College of Law, 1977

Federico Moreno

George H.W. Bush (R)

July 17, 2020 -

University of Notre Dame, 1974

University of Miami School of Law, 1978

Marcia Cooke

July 15, 2022 -

Georgetown University, 1975

Wayne State University, 1977

Senior judges by appointing political party

The list below displays the number of senior judges by the party of the appointing president. It does not reflect how a judge may rule on specific cases or their own political preferences.

  • Democrat appointed: 5
  • Republican appointed: 6

Magistrate judges

Federal magistrate judges are federal judges who serve in United States district courts, but they are not appointed by the president and they do not serve life terms. Magistrate judges are assigned duties by the district judges in the district in which they serve. They may preside over most phases of federal proceedings, except for criminal felony trials. The specific duties of a magistrate judge vary from district to district, but the responsibilities always include handling matters that would otherwise be on the dockets of the district judges. Full-time magistrate judges serve for renewable terms of eight years. Some federal district courts have part-time magistrate judges, who serve for renewable terms of four years.[1]

JudgeAppointed ByAssumed OfficeBachelorsLaw

Lurana S. Snow

March 10, 1986 -

Harvard Law School, 1975

John O'Sullivan

April 1, 1999 -

State University of New York, Albany, 1977

University of Miami School of Law, 1985

Edwin Torres

October 31, 2003 -

Nova University, 1988

Georgetown University Law Center, 1991

Chris McAliley

March 25, 2004 -

Tufts University, 1979

New York University Law, 1983

Jonathan Goodman

July 23, 2010 -

University of Florida

University of Miami School of Law

Alicia Otazo-Reyes

April 12, 2012 -

University of Miami

University of Miami Law

William Matthewman

July 2, 2012 -

Florida International University, 1978

University of Florida, 1983

Patrick M. Hunt

January 28, 2013 -

University of Miami School of Law, 1985

Alicia O. Valle

August 9, 2013 -

Rutgers University, 1981

Harvard Law School, 1984

Shaniek Maynard

June 26, 2017 -

Howard University, 1998

Yale University Law School, 2001

Lauren Fleischer Louis

February 24, 2018 -

Towson University, 1997

Fordham University School of Law, 2000

Bruce Reinhart

March 19, 2018 -

Princeton University, 1984

University of Pennsylvania Law School, 1987

Lisette M. Reid

January 3, 2019 -

Jacqueline Becerra

January 5, 2019 -

University of Miami, 1991

Yale University Law School, 1994

Jared Strauss

January 29, 2020 -

Harvard Law School, 2005

Former chief judges

In order to qualify for the office of chief judge in an Article III circuit or district court, or on the United States Court of International Trade, a judge must be in active service and hold seniority over the court's commissioned judges who are 64 years of age or under, have served one year or more, and have not previously served as chief judge.[2]

In the event that no judge on the court meets those qualifications, the youngest judge in regular active service aged 65 years or more and who has served as a judge for one year or more shall become chief judge. If no judge meets those qualifications, the judge holding seniority in active service who has not served as chief before shall become the chief judge.[3][4][5]

The chief judge serves for a term of seven years until another judge becomes eligible to serve in the position. No judge is permitted to serve as chief judge after reaching the age of 70 years unless no other judge is qualified to serve.[3][4][5]

Unlike the chief justice of the United States, a chief judge returns to active service after the expiration of their term and does not create a vacancy on the court by the fact of their promotion.[2][3][4][5]

On the United States Court of Federal Claims, the chief judge is selected by the President of the United States. The judge must be less than 70 years of age. A chief may serve until they reach age 70 or until another judge is designated by the president as the new chief judge. If the president selects a new chief judge, the former chief judge may continue active service on the court for the remainder of their appointed term.[6]

  • K. Michael Moore - (2014-2021)
  • Federico Moreno - (2007-2014)
  • William Zloch - (2000-2007)
  • Edward Davis - (1997-2000)
  • Norman Roettger - (1991-1997)
  • James L. King - (1984-1991)
  • Joseph Eaton - (1982-1984)
  • Carl Atkins - (1977-1982)
  • Charles Fulton - (1966-1977)
  • David Dyer - (1962-1966)
  • John Bryan Simpson - (1961-1962)
  • George Whitehurst - (1959-1961)
  • William Julius Barker - (1955-1959)
  • John Warthen Holland - (1950-1955)
  • Louie Willard Strum - (1948-1950)

Former judges

For more information about the judges of the Southern District of Florida, see former federal judges of the Southern District of Florida.

Jurisdiction

United states district court southern district of florida

Southern District of Florida counties (click for larger map)

The Southern District of Florida has original jurisdiction over cases filed within its jurisdiction. These cases can include civil and criminal matters that fall under federal law.

The following counties are located in the Southern District of Florida:

  • Broward County
  • Miami-Dade County
  • Highlands County
  • Indian County
  • Martin County
  • Monroe County
  • Okeechobee County
  • Palm Beach County
  • St. Lucie County

Caseloads

This section contains court management statistics dating back to 2010. It was last updated in April 2021. Click [show] below for more information on caseload terms and definitions.

Caseload statistics explanation
Term Explanation
Cases filed and terminated The number of civil and criminal lawsuits formally initiated or decided by the court in a calendar year. The chart below reflects the table columns Cases filed and Cases terminated.
Average time from filing to disposition The average amount of time, in months, from a case's date of filing to date of disposition (acquittal, sentencing, dismissal, etc.). The chart below reflects the table columns Median time (Criminal) and Median time (Civil).
Starting case load The number of cases pending from the previous calendar year.
Cases filed The number of civil and criminal lawsuits formally initiated in a calendar year.
Cases terminated The total number of civil and criminal lawsuits decided by the court in a calendar year.
Remaining cases The number of civil and criminal cases pending at the end of a given year.
Median time (Criminal) The average amount of time, in months, from a case's date of filing to the date of disposition. In criminal cases, the date of disposition occurs on the day of sentencing or acquittal/dismissal.
Median time (Civil) The average amount of time, in months, from a case's date of filing to the date of disposition.
Three-year civil cases The number and percent of civil cases that were filed more than three years before the end of the given calendar year.
Vacant posts The number of months during the year an authorized judgeship was vacant.
Trial/Post The number of trials completed divided by the number of authorized judgeships on the court. Trials include evidentiary trials, hearings on temporary restraining orders, and preliminary injunctions.

Source: United States Courts, "Explanation of the Judicial Caseload Profiles for United States District Courts," accessed September 25, 2018

United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida caseload stats, 2010-2019
Year Cases Filed Cases Terminated Cases Pending Number of Judgeships Vacant Judgeship Months Average Total Filings per Judgeship Trials Completed per Judgeship Median time from filing to disposition, criminal Median time from filing to disposition, civil Three-year civil cases (#) Three-year civil cases (%)
2010 11,453 11,182 6,623 18 16 636 24 5 5 65 1
2011 10,305 10,559 5,775 18 28 572 21 5 5 80 2
2012 11,187 10,991 6,884 18 18 622 26 6 5 85 2
2013 11,291 11,254 6,888 18 25 627 22 6 5 97 2
2014 11,679 11,730 6,847 18 19 649 27 6 5 113 2
2015 11,824 12,189 6,447 18 12 657 26 5 4 106 2
2016 13,110 12,446 7,071 18 17 728 28 5 4 117 2
2017 11,434 12,031 6,451 18 46 635 24 6 4 97 2
2018 13,126 12,673 6,936 18 60 729 24 5 4 92 2
2019 12,729 13,104 6,590 18 43 707 23 5 4 113 2
Average 11,814 11,816 6,651 18 28 656 25 5 4 97 2

History

The District of Florida was established by Congress on March 3, 1845, with one post to cover the entire state. On February 23, 1847, Congress divided the district into the Northern District of Florida and the Southern District of Florida with one judicial post for each district. Over time, 17 additional judicial posts were added for a total of 18 posts.[7]

Judicial posts

The following table highlights the development of judicial posts for the Southern District of Florida:[7]

Year Statute Total Seats
March 3, 1845 5 Stat. 788 1
February 23, 1847 9 Stat. 131 1
September 14, 1922 42 Stat. 837 2(Temporary)
January 17, 1929 45 Stat. 1081 3
1930 Temporary Post Expired 2
June 27, 1930 46 Stat. 820 3
May 24, 1940 54 Stat. 219 4(Temporary)
1947 Temporary Post Expired 3
August 3, 1949 63 Stat. 493 4
February 10, 1954 68 Stat. 8 5
May 19, 1961 75 Stat. 80 7
July 30, 1962 76 Stat. 247 4
March 18, 1966 80 Stat. 75 5
June 2, 1970 84 Stat. 294 7
October 20, 1978 92 Stat. 1629 12
July 10, 1984 98 Stat. 333 15
December 1, 1990 104 Stat. 5089 16
December 21, 2000 114 Stat. 2762 17
November 2, 2002 116 Stat. 1758 18

Noteworthy cases

For a searchable list of opinions, click here.

Famous cases that have been heard in the district include Bush v. Gore, United States v. Noriega (the prosecution of Manuel Noriega), González v. Reno (the Elián González case) and United States v. José Padilla (the prosecution of José Padilla).

  • Doctor involved in criminal painkiller operation sentenced (2014) Click for summary→
In April 2014, Judge Kenneth Marra sentenced Dr. Cynthia Cadet to 78 months in prison for her role in a money laundering scheme related to the writing of opioid painkiller prescriptions for individuals with addictions and those who would sell the painkillers illegally. Judge Marra also ordered Cadet to pay $10,000 in fines. In the underlying case, Cadet was acquitted in a July 2013 jury trial of charges having to do with the deaths of nine of her patients. The jury chose to convict her on money laundering charges which stemmed from the criminal painkiller operation with which she had become involved.

Articles:

  • Reuters, "U.S. federal judge sentences Florida pill mill doctors," April 4, 2014
  • Palm Beach Post, "Pill mill doctors handed tough sentences," April 4, 2014
  • Drug testing for state employees unconstitutional (2012)
     Judge(s):Ursula Ungaro (AFSCME v. Rick Scott, 11-21976)
Click for summary→

In April 2012, Judge Ursula Ungaro found that Governor Rick Scott's random drug testing of state employees was unconstitutional. The judge ruled that the policy violated constitutional protections against unreasonable search and seizure. In addition, Judge Ungaro found that the testing was unnecessary, since there was not a widespread problem amongst the 80,000 state employees randomly subjected to tests.[8]

  • Bradley Birkenfeld case (2010)
     Judge(s):William Zloch (United States v. Bradley Birkenfeld, 08-CR-60099-ZLOCH)
Click for summary→

Judge William Zloch was the presiding judge in the case of former UBS banker, Bradley Birkenfeld, who was considered to be a key person in an income tax evasion case. On December 31, 2009, Birkenfeld's legal team asked the judge to delay the start of his three-year prison sentence on grounds he should be re-sentenced for cooperating with authorities. This came after federal prosecutors asked the judge to be lenient on sentencing the former banker.[9]

On January 4, 2010, the judge refused a request from Birkenfeld's legal team to give their client a reduced prison sentence for cooperating with authorities. Prosecutors, in turn, asked the judge to be lenient on the defendant. With the judge's decision, Birkenfeld was scheduled to begin a three-year prison sentence on January 8, 2010.[10]

  • BankUnited Case (2010)
     Judge(s):Marcia Cooke
Click for summary→

Judge Marcia Cooke was the presiding judge in a shareholder lawsuit against BankUnited. Shareholders of the Florida-based bank sued its management over being misled about the company's financial condition. The judge stated in her ruling that there was not enough evidence to find BankUnited's management had deliberately misled investors, and the suit was dismissed.[11]

  • Sears Tower attack (2009)
     Judge(s):Joan Lenard (USA v. Batiste, et al, 06-20373-CR-Lenard)
Click for summary→

Judge Joan Lenard was the presiding judge in the case of six Miami-area men who were accused of trying to destroy the Sears (now Willis) Tower in Chicago.[12] On November 20, 2009, Judge Lenard sentenced the leader of the plot, Narseal Batiste, to 13.5 years in federal prison. Batiste's co-conspirators received sentences between five and eight years.[13]

  • Tainted legal fees case (2009)
     Judge(s):Marcia Cooke (USA v. Kuehne, 1:05-cr-20770-MGC)
Click for summary→

Judge Marcia Cooke was the presiding judge in a case about attorney Ben Kuehne, who accepted $5 million dollars in tainted legal fees from a dealer of cocaine. Cooke ruled that a federal law allowed attorneys to accept legal fees no matter if the money was tainted or not. Kuehne had his trial in front of Cooke put on hold while the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit heard arguments regarding the legality of accepting legal fees from disreputable sources.[14]

Noteworthy events

Federal Judicial Conference recommendation (2019)

In March 2019, the Federal Judicial Conference (FJC) recommended that three judgeships be added to the district and one temporary judgeship be made permanent.[15] Based on FJC data, the district handled 721 weighted filings per judgeship from September 2017 to September 2018. Weighted filings are a specific metric used by the federal judiciary that accounts for the different amounts of time judges require to resolve types of civil and criminal cases. The national average in that period for weighted filings per judgeship was 513.[16]

The FJC is the policy-making body for the United States federal courts system. It was first organized as the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges in 1922.[17] The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States serves as chair of the conference. The members of the conference are the chief judge of each judicial circuit, the Chief Judge of the Court of International Trade, and a district judge from each regional judicial circuit.[18]

Federal courthouse

Seven separate courthouses serve the Southern District of Florida:[19]

  • C. Clyde Atkins U.S. Courthouse in Miami
  • James Lawrence King Federal Justice Building in Miami
  • Wilkie D. Ferguson, Jr. U.S. Courthouse in Miami
  • U.S. Federal Building and Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale
  • Paul G. Rogers Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse in West Palm Beach
  • Alto Lee Adams, Sr. U.S. Courthouse in Fort Pierce
  • Sidney M. Aronovitz U.S. Courthouse in Key West

About United States District Courts

The United States district courts are the general trial courts of the United States federal courts. There are 94 such courts. Both civil and criminal cases are filed in the district court, which is a court of both law and equity.

There is a United States bankruptcy court and a number of bankruptcy judges associated with each United States district court. Each federal judicial district has at least one courthouse, and most districts have more than one.

There is at least one judicial district for each state, and one each for Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia. District courts in three insular areas—the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands—exercise the same jurisdiction as U.S. district courts. Despite their name, these courts are technically not District Courts of the United States. Judges on these territorial courts do not enjoy the protections of Article III of the Constitution, and serve terms of 10 years rather than for life.

There are 677 U.S. District Court judgeships.[20][21]

The number of federal district judge positions is set by the U.S. Congress in Title 28 of the U.S. Code, Section 133, which authorizes a set number of judge positions, or judgeships, making changes and adjustments in these numbers from time to time.

In order to relieve the pressure of trying the hundreds of thousands of cases brought before the federal district courts each year, many trials are tried by juries, along with a presiding judge.[22]

Appointments by president

The chart below shows the number of district court judges confirmed by the U.S. Senate through October 1 of the second year of each president's term in office. At this point in the term, President Clinton had the most district court appointments with 83.

Judges by district

See also: Judicial vacancies in federal courts

The table below displays the number of judges in each district and indicates how many were appointed by presidents from each major political party. It also includes the number of vacancies in a district and how many pending nominations for that district are before the United States Senate. The table can be sorted by clicking the column headers above the line, and you can navigate through the pages by clicking the arrows at the top of the table. It is updated every Monday.

Judicial selection

The district courts are served by Article III federal judges who are appointed for life during "good behavior." They are usually first recommended by senators (or members of the House, occasionally). The President of the United States makes the appointments, which must then be confirmed by the U.S. Senate in accordance with Article III of the United States Constitution.[21]

Step
United states district court southern district of florida
Candidacy Proceeds
United states district court southern district of florida
Candidacy Halts
1. Recommendation made by Congress Member to the President President Nominates to Senate Judiciary Committee President Declines Nomination
2. Senate Judiciary Committee interviews Candidate Sends candidate to Senate for confirmation Returns candidate to President, who may re-nominate to Committee
3. Senate votes on candidate confirmation Candidate becomes federal judge Candidate does not receive judgeship

Magistrate judges

The district courts are also served by magistrate judges. Congress created the judicial office of federal magistrate in 1968. In 1990, the position title was changed to magistrate judge. The chief judge of each district appoints one or more magistrate judges, who discharge many of the ancillary duties of district judges so judges can handle more trials. There are both full-time and part-time magistrate judge positions, and these positions are assigned to the district courts according to caseload criteria (subject to funding by Congress). A full-time magistrate judge serves a term of eight years; a part-time magistrate judge's term of office is four years.[23]

  • Search Google News for this topic
  • Official website of the Southern District of Florida
  • Opinions of the Southern District of Florida
  • U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida

See also

  • United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
  • United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama
  • United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama
  • United States District Court for the Southern District of Alabama
  • United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida
  • United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida
  • United States District Court for the Middle District of Georgia
  • United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia
  • United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia

Footnotes

  1. U.S. District Court - NH, "Magistrate Judges," archived April 14, 2014
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 United States Courts, "Frequently Asked Questions," accessed January 25, 2022
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute, "28 U.S. Code § 136 - Chief judges; precedence of district judges," accessed January 25, 2022
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute, "28 U.S. Code § 258 - Chief judges; precedence of judges," accessed January 25, 2022
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute, "28 U.S. Code § 45 - Chief judges; precedence of judges," accessed January 25, 2022
  6. Cornell Law School Legal Information Institute, "28 U.S. Code § 171 - Appointment and number of judges; character of court; designation of chief judge," accessed January 25, 2022
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Federal Judicial Center, "The U.S. District Courts and the Federal Judiciary," accessed April 26, 2021
  8. New York Times, "State Worker Drug Tests Struck Down in Florida," April 26, 2012
  9. New York Times, "U.S. Is Said to Consider Easing Informant’s Term," January 3, 2010
  10. New York Times, "Judge Refuses to Delay Prison for UBS Informant," January 4, 2010
  11. South Florida Business Journal, "Suit against ex-BankUnited leaders dismissed," March 31, 2010
  12. Washington Post, "5 Miami Men Convicted of Attempting to bomb Sears Tower," May 12, 2009
  13. New York Times, "Florida: Sentencing in Tower Plot," November 20, 2009
  14. Newsday, "Fla. court hears alleged tainted legal fees case," Sept. 23, 2009
  15. Federal Judicial Conference, "March 2019 Recommendations," accessed April 26, 2021
  16. US Courts, "Table X-1A—Other Judicial Business (September 30, 2018)," accessed April 23, 2021
  17. US Courts, "Governance & the Judicial Conference," accessed April 23, 2021
  18. US Courts, "About the Judicial Conference," accessed April 21, 2021
  19. United States District Court Southern District of Florida, "Court Locations," accessed May 6, 2021
  20. US Courts, "Federal Judgeships," accessed May 10, 2021 (archived)
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 U.S. Courts, "United States District Court Federal Judiciary Frequently Asked Questions," accessed May 10, 2021 (archived)
  22. United States District Courts, "District Courts," accessed May 10, 2021
  23. The 'Lectric Law Library, "Understanding the U.S. federal courts"

v  e

U.S. Circuit Courts and District Courts
 

First Circuit

District of Maine • District of Massachusetts • District of New Hampshire • District of Puerto Rico • District of Rhode Island

 

Second Circuit

District of Connecticut • Eastern District of New York • Northern District of New York • Southern District of New York • Western District of New York • District of Vermont

 

Third Circuit

District of Delaware • District of New Jersey • Eastern District of Pennsylvania • Middle District of Pennsylvania • Western District of Pennsylvania

 

Fourth Circuit

District of Maryland • Eastern District of North Carolina • Middle District of North Carolina • Western District of North Carolina • District of South Carolina • Eastern District of Virginia • Western District of Virginia • Northern District of West Virginia • Southern District of West Virginia

 

Fifth Circuit

Eastern District of Louisiana • Middle District of Louisiana • Western District of Louisiana • Northern District of Mississippi • Southern District of Mississippi • Eastern District of Texas • Northern District of Texas • Southern District of Texas • Western District of Texas

 

Sixth Circuit

Eastern District of Kentucky • Western District of Kentucky • Eastern District of Michigan • Western District of Michigan • Northern District of Ohio • Southern District of Ohio • Eastern District of Tennessee • Middle District of Tennessee • Western District of Tennessee

 

Seventh Circuit

Central District of Illinois • Northern District of Illinois • Southern District of Illinois • Northern District of Indiana • Southern District of Indiana • Eastern District of Wisconsin • Western District of Wisconsin

 

Eighth Circuit

Eastern District of Arkansas • Western District of Arkansas • Northern District of Iowa • Southern District of Iowa • District of Minnesota • Eastern District of Missouri • Western District of Missouri • District of Nebraska • District of North Dakota • District of South Dakota

 

Ninth Circuit

District of Alaska • District of Arizona • Central District of California • Eastern District of California • Northern District of California • Southern District of California • District of Hawaii • District of Idaho • District of Montana • District of Nevada • District of Oregon • Eastern District of Washington • Western District of Washington

 

Tenth Circuit

District of Colorado • District of Kansas • District of New Mexico • Eastern District of Oklahoma • Northern District of Oklahoma • Western District of Oklahoma • District of Utah • District of Wyoming

 

Eleventh Circuit

Middle District of Alabama • Northern District of Alabama • Southern District of Alabama • Middle District of Florida • Northern District of Florida • Southern District of Florida • Middle District of Georgia • Northern District of Georgia • Southern District of Georgia

United states district court southern district of florida

v  e

State of Florida
Tallahassee (capital)
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United states district court southern district of florida

v  e

Federal judges who have served the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida
Active judges

Chief Judge: Cecilia Altonaga   •  Jose Martinez  •  Kevin M. Moore  •  Donald Middlebrooks  •  William Dimitrouleas  •  Robert N. Scola, Jr.  •  Robin L. Rosenberg  •  Beth Bloom  •  Darrin P. Gayles  •  Kathleen M. Williams  •  Anuraag Singhal  •  Rodolfo Ruiz  •  Rodney Smith (Florida)  •  Roy Altman  •  Aileen Cannon

Senior judges

Federico Moreno  •  James L. King  •  Jose Gonzalez (Florida)  •  Donald Graham  •  Daniel Hurley  •  Paul Huck  •  Patricia Seitz  •  William Zloch  •  Joan Lenard  •  Kenneth Marra  •  James Cohn  •  

Magistrate judges John O'Sullivan (Florida)  •  Edwin Torres  •  Chris McAliley  •  William C. Turnoff  •  Lurana S. Snow  •  Jonathan Goodman  •  Alicia Otazo-Reyes  •  William Matthewman  •  Alicia O. Valle  •  Patrick M. Hunt  •  Bruce Reinhart  •  Lauren Fleischer Louis  •  Jacqueline Becerra  •  Jared Strauss  •  Shaniek Maynard  •  Lisette M. Reid  •  
Former Article III judges

George C. Young  •  William Hoeveler  •  Kenneth Ryskamp  •  Alan Gold  •  Adalberto Jordan  •  Ursula Ungaro  •  James Paine (Florida)  •  Stanley Marcus  •  William Marvin  •  Thomas Jefferson Boynton (Florida)  •  Peter Fay  •  David Dyer  •  James William Locke  •  John McKinney (Florida)  •  John Moses Cheney  •  Rhydon Mays Call  •  Alexander Akerman  •  Lake Jones  •  Halsted Lockwood Ritter  •  Louie Willard Strum  •  John Warthen Holland  •  Joseph Lieb  •  William McRae  •  Curtis Waller  •  George Whitehurst  •  Sidney Aronovitz  •  Carl Atkins  •  Ted Cabot  •  Emett Choate  •  Edward Davis (Florida)  •  Dozier DeVane  •  Joseph Eaton  •  Wilkie Ferguson  •  Charles Fulton  •  James Kehoe  •  William Mehrtens  •  Lenore Nesbitt  •  Norman Roettger  •  Thomas Scott (Florida district court judge)  •  Eugene Spellman  •  Robin Rosenbaum  •  John Bryan Simpson  •  William Julius Barker  •  Alcee Hastings  •  

Former Chief judges

Federico Moreno  •  James L. King  •  Kevin M. Moore  •  William Zloch  •  David Dyer  •  Louie Willard Strum  •  John Warthen Holland  •  George Whitehurst  •  Carl Atkins  •  Edward Davis (Florida)  •  Joseph Eaton  •  Charles Fulton  •  Norman Roettger  •  John Bryan Simpson  •  William Julius Barker  •  

What district is Southern District of Florida?

The Southern District includes the counties of Monroe, Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, Okeechobee and Highlands.

Is the Southern District of Florida a federal court?

Southern District of Florida | United States District Court.

Where is the United States District Court Southern District of Florida located?

Southern District of Florida: The Southern District comprises the counties of Broward, Dade, Highlands, Indian River, Martin, Monroe, Okeechobee, Palm Beach, and St. Lucie. Court for the Southern District is held in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Pierce, Key West, and West Palm Beach.

How many districts courts are in Florida?

The Florida court system is currently comprised of the Supreme Court, five district courts of appeal, 20 circuit courts and 67 county courts.