| United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida | |
|---|---|
| (N.D. Fla.) | |
| Location | Tallahassee
More locations |
| Appeals to | Eleventh Circuit |
| Established | February 23, 1847 |
| Judges | 4 |
| Chief Judge | Mark E. Walker |
| Officers of the court | |
| U.S. Attorney | Jason R. Coody |
| U.S. Marshal | R. Don Ladner Jr. |
| www | |
The United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida (incase citations, N.D. Fla.) is a federal court in the Eleventh Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appealed to the Federal Circuit).
The District was established on February 23, 1847, with the division of the state into a Northern and Southern district.[1]
As of December 26, 2021[update] the United States attorney for the District is Jason R. Coody.[2]
The United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida is one of three federal judicial districts in Florida.[3] Court for the District is held at Gainesville, Panama City, Pensacola, and Tallahassee. The court serves approximately 1.75 million people.[4]
Gainesville Division comprises the following counties: Alachua, Dixie, Gilchrist, Lafayette, and Levy.
Panama City Division comprises the following counties: Bay, Calhoun, Gulf, Holmes, Jackson, and Washington.
Pensacola Division comprises the following counties: Escambia, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, and Walton.
Tallahassee Division comprises the following counties: Franklin, Gadsden, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty, Madison, Taylor, and Wakulla.
As of April 3, 2023[update]:
| # | Title | Judge | Duty station | Born | Term of service | Appointed by | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Active | Chief | Senior | ||||||
| 24 | Chief Judge | Mark E. Walker | Tallahassee | 1967 | 2012–present | 2018–present | — | Obama |
| 22 | District Judge | M. Casey Rodgers | Pensacola | 1964 | 2003–present | 2011–2018 | — | G.W. Bush |
| 25 | District Judge | Allen Winsor | Tallahassee | 1976 | 2019–present | — | — | Trump |
| 26 | District Judge | T. Kent Wetherell II | Pensacola | 1970 | 2019–present | — | — | Trump |
| 15 | Senior Judge | William Henry Stafford Jr. | Tallahassee | 1931 | 1975–1996 | 1981–1993 | 1996–present | Ford |
| 19 | Senior Judge | Lacey A. Collier | Pensacola | 1935 | 1991–2003 | — | 2003–present | G.H.W. Bush |
| 20 | Senior Judge | Robert Hinkle | Tallahassee | 1951 | 1996–2016 | 2004–2009 | 2016–present | Clinton |
| # | Judge | State | Born–died | Active service | Chief Judge | Senior status | Appointed by | Reason for termination |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Isaac H. Bronson | FL | 1802–1855 | 1847–1855[Note 1] | — | — | Polk/Operation of law | death |
| 2 | McQueen McIntosh | FL | 1822–1868 | 1856–1861 | — | — | Pierce | resignation |
| 3 | Philip Fraser | FL | 1814–1876 | 1862–1876 | — | — | Lincoln | death |
| 4 | Thomas Settle | FL | 1831–1888 | 1877–1888 | — | — | Grant | death |
| 5 | Charles Swayne | FL | 1842–1907 | 1889–1907[Note 2] | — | — | B. Harrison | death |
| 6 | William Bostwick Sheppard | FL | 1860–1934 | 1907–1934[Note 3] | — | — | T. Roosevelt | death |
| 7 | Augustus V. Long | FL | 1877–1955 | 1934–1947 | — | 1947–1955 | F. Roosevelt | death |
| 8 | Curtis L. Waller | FL | 1887–1950 | 1940–1943[Note 4] | — | — | F. Roosevelt | elevation to 5th Cir. |
| 9 | Dozier A. DeVane | FL | 1883–1963 | 1943–1958[Note 5] | — | 1958–1963 | F. Roosevelt | death |
| 10 | George William Whitehurst | FL | 1891–1974 | 1950–1961[Note 4] | — | 1961–1974 | Truman | death |
| 11 | G. Harrold Carswell | FL | 1919–1992 | 1958–1969 | 1958–1969 | — | Eisenhower | elevation to 5th Cir. |
| 12 | George C. Young | FL | 1916–2015 | 1961–1966[Note 6] | — | — | Kennedy | seat abolished |
| 13 | Winston Arnow | FL | 1911–1994 | 1967–1981 | 1969–1981 | 1981–1994 | L. Johnson | death |
| 14 | David Lycurgus Middlebrooks Jr. | FL | 1926–1997 | 1969–1974 | — | — | Nixon | resignation |
| 16 | Lynn Carlton Higby | FL | 1938–1992 | 1979–1983 | — | — | Carter | resignation |
| 17 | Maurice M. Paul | FL | 1932–2016 | 1982–1997 | 1993–1997 | 1997–2016 | Reagan | death |
| 18 | Roger Vinson | FL | 1940–2023 | 1983–2005 | 1997–2004 | 2005–2023 | Reagan | death |
| 21 | Stephan P. Mickle | FL | 1944–2021 | 1998–2011 | 2009–2011 | 2011–2021 | Clinton | death |
| 23 | John Richard Smoak Jr. | FL | 1943–2022 | 2005–2015 | – | 2015–2022 | G.W. Bush | death |
Chief judges have administrative responsibilities with respect to their district court. Unlike the Supreme Court, where one justice is specifically nominated to be chief, the office of chief judge rotates among the district court judges. To be chief, a judge must have been in active service on the court for at least one year, be under the age of 65, and have not previously served as chief judge.
A vacancy is filled by the judge highest in seniority among the group of qualified judges. The chief judge serves for a term of seven years, or until age 70, whichever occurs first. The age restrictions are waived if no members of the court would otherwise be qualified for the position.
When the office was created in 1948, the chief judge was the longest-serving judge who had not elected to retire, on what has since 1958 been known as senior status, or declined to serve as chief judge. After August 6, 1959, judges could not become or remain chief after turning 70 years old. The current rules have been in operation since October 1, 1982.
|
|
|
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Active district judges of the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals
| |
|---|---|
| M. Alabama |
|
| N. Alabama |
|
| S. Alabama |
|
| M. Florida |
|
| N. Florida |
|
| S. Florida |
|
| M. Georgia |
|
| N. Georgia |
|
| S. Georgia |
|
|
Senior district judges of the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals
| |
|---|---|
| M. Alabama |
|
| N. Alabama |
|
| S. Alabama |
|
| M. Florida |
|
| N. Florida |
|
| S. Florida |
|
| M. Georgia |
|
| N. Georgia |
|
| S. Georgia |
|
|
| |
|---|---|
| |
| |
| Courts of appeals |
|
| District courts |
|
| Specialty courts |
|
| Territorial courts |
|
| Extinct courts |
|
| Note | American Samoa does not have a district court or federal territorial court; federal matters there go to the District of Columbia, Hawaii, or its own Supreme Court. |
30°24′48″N 87°12′58″W / 30.4133°N 87.2160°W / 30.4133; -87.2160
