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Duval County Court, Florida

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The Duval County Court resides in Florida in the 4th Circuit Court.

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Jurisdiction

This court holds the following jurisdiction:[1]

“ 34.01 Jurisdiction of county court.—

(1) County courts shall have original jurisdiction:
(a) In all misdemeanor cases not cognizable by the circuit courts.
(b) Of all violations of municipal and county ordinances.
(c) Of all actions at law, except those within the exclusive jurisdiction of the circuit courts, in which the matter in controversy does not exceed, exclusive of interest, costs, and attorney fees:
1. If filed on or before December 31, 2019, the sum of $15,000.
2. If filed on or after January 1, 2020, the sum of $30,000.
3. If filed on or after January 1, 2023, the sum of $50,000.

Effective July 1, 2030, and every 10 years thereafter, the $50,000 jurisdictional limit in subparagraph 3. must be adjusted and increased by the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, U.S. City Average, All Items, 1982-1984=100, or successor reports, for the preceding 10 calendar years as initially reported by the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. The adjusted jurisdictional limit must be rounded to the nearest $5,000. However, the jurisdictional limit may not be lower than $50,000. The Office of Economic and Demographic Research must calculate the adjusted jurisdictional limit and certify the adjusted jurisdictional limit to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court beginning January 31, 2030, and every 10 years thereafter. The Office of Economic and Demographic Research and the Office of the State Courts Administrator must publish the adjusted jurisdictional limit on their websites.
(d) Of disputes occurring in the homeowners’ associations as described in s. 720.311(2)(a), which shall be concurrent with jurisdiction of the circuit courts.
(2) The county courts shall have jurisdiction previously exercised by county judges’ courts other than that vested in the circuit court by s. 26.012, except that county court judges may hear matters involving dissolution of marriage under the simplified dissolution procedure pursuant to the Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure or may issue a final order for dissolution in cases where the matter is uncontested, and the jurisdiction previously exercised by county courts, the claims court, small claims courts, small claims magistrates courts, magistrates courts, justice of the peace courts, municipal courts, and courts of chartered counties, including but not limited to the counties referred to in ss. 9, 10, 11, and 24, Art. VIII of the State Constitution of 1885, as preserved by s. (6)(e), Art. VIII of the State Constitution of 1968.[2]

”

Judges


Office Name Party Date assumed office
Duval County Court Michael Bateh Nonpartisan 2018
Duval County Court Brooke Brady Nonpartisan April 10, 2023
Duval County Court Eleni Derke Nonpartisan
Duval County Court Kelly Eckley-Moulder Nonpartisan 2016
Duval County Court Emmet F. Ferguson III Nonpartisan
Duval County Court Gary P. Flower Nonpartisan 2000
Duval County Court Mose Floyd Nonpartisan 2011
Duval County Court Dawn Kuhlmey Hudson Nonpartisan
Duval County Court Michelle Kalil Nonpartisan
Duval County Court Robin Lanigan Nonpartisan May 12, 2020
Duval County Court Shayla Lee Nonpartisan January 7, 2025
Duval County Court Scott Mitchell Nonpartisan 2012
Duval County Court Audrey Moran Nonpartisan January 3, 2023
Duval County Court James Nealis Nonpartisan 2023
Duval County Court Rhonda Peoples-Waters Nonpartisan January 5, 2021
Duval County Court Kimberly A. Sadler Nonpartisan 2018
Duval County Court Julie Taylor Nonpartisan July 1, 2021


Elections

Florida is one of 43 states that hold elections for judicial positions. To learn more about judicial selection in Florida, click here.

Selection method

See also: Judicial selection in the states
See also: Nonpartisan elections

Like the circuit courts, the Florida County Court selects its judges through nonpartisan elections. County judges serve six-year terms, after which they must run for re-election if they wish to retain their seats.[3][4]

In the event of a midterm vacancy, the county courts employ the same assisted appointment method that the appellate courts use. Judges selected this way serve for at least one year, after which they must run for re-election.[5]

Qualifications
To serve on one of these courts, a judge must be:

  • a qualified elector;
  • a state resident;
  • under the age of 75; and
  • admitted to practice law in the state for five years prior to assuming the bench.

Note that this final requirement—that judges be qualified to practice law in the state for at least five years—is the one piece that breaks from the qualifications of Florida appellate judges, who need a minimum of 10 years. In counties of 40,000 people or fewer, this requirement is waived altogether.[3]

Judicial elections in Florida

See also: Florida judicial elections

Florida is one of four states that use nonpartisan elections to initially select judges and then use retention elections to determine whether judges should remain on the bench. To read more about how states use judicial elections to select judges across the country, click here.

Primary election

To get on the ballot, candidates for judicial office are required to obtain signatures equal to at least one percent of the number of registered electors in the geographic boundary of the district.[6] Trial court judicial candidates compete in nonpartisan primaries designed to narrow the field to two candidates for the general election. Candidates who receive a simple majority (fifty percent plus one vote) of the vote in the primary are considered winners and are not on the ballot in the general election unless a write-in candidate qualifies for the same office. Candidates who are unopposed for any office do not appear on the ballot and are considered automatically elected.[7][8]

General election

In the general election, trial court candidates compete in nonpartisan elections. Partisan organizations and political parties are forbidden from endorsing, supporting, or opposing candidates for office.[9]

Retention election

Retention elections for appellate judges ask voters a "yes" or "no" question of whether or not to retain a judge to another term. The judges do not face competition on the ballot. If a majority of votes are in favor of a particular judge, that judge will be retained to a new term.[10]

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Online Sunshine - Official Internet Site of the Florida Legislature, "The 2022 Florida Statutes (including 2022 Special Session A and 2023 Special Session B) - Chapter 34 COUNTY COURTS," accessed May 11, 2023
  2. ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Florida; Limited Jurisdiction Courts," archived October 2, 2014
  4. ↑ Online Sunshine, "The Florida Constitution," accessed June 25, 2014
  5. ↑ American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial selection: Florida," archived October 2, 2014
  6. ↑ Florida Election Law, "Sec. 105.035(e)," accessed April 29, 2014
  7. ↑ Florida Division of Elections, "Frequently Asked Questions," accessed May 4, 2014
  8. ↑ Florida State Legislature, "2017 Florida Statutes, Chapter 105, Nonpartisan Elections," accessed September 25, 2017
  9. ↑ Florida Election Code, "Sec. 105.09," accessed May 4, 2014
  10. ↑ Florida Election Law, "Sec. 105.051," accessed April 29, 2014

Florida courts

Federal courts:

Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Middle District of Florida, Northern District of Florida, Southern District of Florida • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Middle District of Florida, Northern District of Florida, Southern District of Florida

State courts:

Florida Supreme Court • Florida District Courts of Appeal • Florida Circuit Court • Florida County Court

State resources:

Courts in Florida • Florida judicial elections • Judicial selection in Florida


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