Florida 5th Circuit Court
The Florida Fifth Circuit Court is one of twenty circuit courts in Florida. It is a trial court of general jurisdiction presiding over Citrus, Hernando, Lake, Marion, and Sumter counties.[1]
 |
This officeholder information was last updated on July 11, 2022. Please contact us with any updates. | |
Court
Judges
Citrus County
- Patricia V. Thomas (Administrative judge)
- Thomas Eineman
- Carol Falvey
- Richard A. Howard
- Mary P. Hatcher [2]
Hernando County
- Daniel B. Merritt, Jr. (Administrative judge)
- Peter Brigham
- Curtis Neal
- Donald Scaglione
- Stephen E. Toner, Jr. [3]
Lake County
Marion County
- Ann Melinda Craggs
- Joel Fritton
- Lisa D. Herndon
- Robert W. Hodges
- Jonathan D. Ohlman
- Willard Pope
- Steven G. Rogers
- Gary Sanders
- Jennifer Bass
- Anthony Tatti [5]
Sumter County
Former judges
- Don F. Briggs (Administrative judge)
- David B. Eddy
- William Hallman III (Administrative judge)
- Mark J. Hill
- Sandy K. Kautz
- Brian D. Lambert
- Mark Nacke
- Sandra Robbins (Administrative judge)
- Edward Scott
- Lawrence J. Semento
- Hale R. Stancil
- Richard Tombrink, Jr.
Contact
|
Citrus County Courthouse |
Lake County Judicial Center |
Sumter County Judicial Complex |
See also
External links
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
Elections
- See also: Florida judicial elections
Florida is one of 43 states that hold elections for judicial positions. To learn more about judicial selection in Florida, click here.
- Florida local trial court judicial elections, 2025
- Florida local trial court judicial elections, 2024
- Florida local trial court judicial elections, 2023
- Florida local trial court judicial elections, 2022
- Florida local trial court judicial elections, 2021
- Florida local trial court judicial elections, 2020
- Florida local trial court judicial elections, 2019
- Florida local trial court judicial elections, 2018
- Florida local trial court judicial elections, 2017
- Florida local trial court judicial elections, 2016
- Florida judicial elections, 2014
- Florida judicial elections, 2012
- Florida judicial elections, 2010
Selection method
- See also: Nonpartisan elections
There are 597 judges on the Florida Circuit Court, each elected via nonpartisan elections. They serve six-year terms, after which they must run for re-election if they wish to retain their seat.[8]
The chief judge is selected by peer vote and serves in that capacity for two years.
Qualifications
To serve on this court, a judge must be:[8]
- a qualified elector;
- a state resident;
- admitted to practice law in the state for five years; and
- under the age of 75 (retirement at 75 is mandatory).
Election rules
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.[9] 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.[10][11]
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.[12]
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.[13]
Footnotes
- ↑ Florida State Courts, "Circuit Courts," accessed October 8, 2014
- ↑ Fifth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida, "Citrus County Courthouse," accessed August 13, 2014
- ↑ Fifth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida, "Hernando County Courthouse," accessed August 13, 2014
- ↑ Fifth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida, "Lake County Courthouse," accessed August 13, 2014
- ↑ Fifth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida, "Marion County Courthouse," accessed August 13, 2014
- ↑ Fifth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida, "Sumter County Courthouse," accessed August 13, 2014
- ↑ Fifth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida, "Courthouse Locations," accessed August 13, 2014
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial selection: Florida," archived October 2, 2014
- ↑ Florida Election Law, "Sec. 105.035(e)," accessed April 29, 2014
- ↑ Florida Division of Elections, "Frequently Asked Questions," accessed May 4, 2014
- ↑ Florida State Legislature, "2017 Florida Statutes, Chapter 105, Nonpartisan Elections," accessed September 25, 2017
- ↑ Florida Election Code, "Sec. 105.09," accessed May 4, 2014
- ↑ Florida Election Law, "Sec. 105.051," accessed April 29, 2014
