Florida Supreme Court
From Judgepedia
| Florida Supreme Court |
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| Sitting Justices |
| R. Fred Lewis Charles Wells Harry Lee Anstead Barbara Pariente Peggy Quince Raoul Cantero Kenneth Bell |
| 2008 challengers |
| Charles Wells is up for retention Raoul Cantero is stepping down 9/6/2008 Kenneth Bell is stepping down 10/8/2008 |
| Former justices |
| Florida on Judgepedia |
The Florida Supreme Court was founded in 1845, and is the court of last resort for the state of Florida. The court changed as the state constitution was amended numerous times until a 1940 constitutional amendment, which called for seven Justices, the present number.[1]
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Judicial Selection
For most of Florida's history, all judges were chosen by direct election of the people. The only exception was when a vacancy occurred on a court between elections. In that case, the Governor appointed a replacement to serve until the next election was held.
In 1971, Governor Reubin Askew changed the system after several appellate judges were charged with etichs violations. That year the state instituted a system called "merit selection" whereby the Governor referred a Court vacancy to a panel, which suggested names of possible appointees. The Governor then selected a name from the list. In 1974, Justice Ben F. Overton became the first Supreme Court Justice chosen by this method.
Florida voters amended the Constitution in 1976 to create a "merit retention" system for Florida's appellate judges. This system was intended to eliminate the problems caused by judges running for office in an election.
When there is a vacancy on the Court today, the Governor chooses the next Justice from a list of between three and six qualified persons recommended by the Judicial Nominating Commission. When Justices' terms expire, their names will appear on the general election ballot for a merit retention vote, if they wish to remain in office.[2]
Current Justices
- R. Fred Lewis
- Charles Wells
- Harry Lee Anstead
- Barbara Pariente
- Peggy Quince
- Raoul Cantero
- Kenneth Bell
Removal From Office
"Florida judges may be removed in one of two ways: On the recommendation of the judicial qualifications commission, the supreme court may discipline, retire, or remove a judge. Judges may be impeached by a two-thirds vote of the house of representatives and convicted by a two-thirds vote of the senate." [3]
See Also
External Links
References
- ↑ FL Supreme Court History
- ↑ Supreme Court Overview
- ↑ Methods of Judicial Selection:Removal of Judges
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