Lody Jean (born October 20, 1978) is a judge in Florida's 11th Judicial Circuit Court, Criminal Division. She was appointed to the court on April 17, 2020 by Governor Ron DeSantis.[1] to replace John Schlesinger. Jean served on the Miami-Dade County Court, Civil Division,[2] from April 2019, until her appointment to the circuit court. She was the first Haitian-American woman to be appointed on the Miami-Dade County Court and is the first Haitian-American to be appointed to the Eleventh Circuit Court.[3]
While in law school, Jean interned with Legal Services of Greater Miami where she worked with staff on the Haitian Citizenship Project,[4] a program for individuals of primarily Haitian descent who needed assistance applying for naturalization. Jean also interned at the Third District Court of Appeal, the Miami-Dade Public Defender's Office, and the Broward State Attorney's Office.
From 2012-2018, Jean served on the Florida Bar's Unlicensed Practice Law Committee,[5] a voluntary committee of non-attorneys and attorneys who investigate the unlicensed practice of law in Miami-Dade County. Between 2004 and 2012, Jean served with the State Attorney of Miami-Dade County as an Assistant State Attorney and then as a Felony Division Chief.[6] On November 16, 2018, Governor Rick Scott appointed Jean as Judge to the Miami-Dade County Court.[7] Two years later, on April 17, 2020, Governor Ron DeSantis elevated Jean to serve on Florida's 11th Judicial Circuit Court in Miami-Dade County, becoming the first Haitian-American to serve in Florida's 11th Judicial Circuit Court. She is currently assigned to the Circuit's criminal division[8]
