Florida 15th Circuit Court
Ballotpedia provides comprehensive coverage of the 100 largest cities in America by population as well as mayoral, city council, and district attorney election coverage in state capitals outside of the 100 largest cities. This page is outside of that coverage scope and does not receive scheduled updates.
The Florida Fifteenth Circuit Court is one of twenty circuit courts in Florida. It is a trial court of general jurisdiction presiding over Palm Beach County. [1]
 |
This officeholder information was last updated on September 18, 2024. Please contact us with any updates. | |
Court
Judges
- Thomas H. Barkdull, III
- Peter D. Blanc
- Catherine M. Brunson
- Charles E. Burton
- Cheryl Caracuzzo
- Howard K. Coates
- Martin Colin
- Joseph Curley
- Luis Delgado
- James Ferrara
- David E. French
- Jeffrey Dana Gillen
- Jaimie Goodman
- Donald W. Hafele
- Bradley Harper
- Laura Johnson
- John S. Kastrenakes
- Dina Keever
- Glenn Kelley
- Gregory M. Keyser
- Janis Keyser
- Kathleen J. Kroll
- James Martz
- Karen M. Miller
- James Nutt
- John L. Phillips
- Rosemarie Scher
- Samantha Schosberg Feuer
- Darren Shull
- Lisa Small
- Amy Smith
- Scott Suskauer
- Kirk C. Volker[2]
Contact/Locations
|
Main Judicial Complex North County Courthouse |
West County Courthouse South County Courthouse |
Criminal Justice 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.[4]
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:[4]
- 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.[5] 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.[6][7]
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.[8]
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.[9]
Footnotes
- ↑ Florida State Courts, "Circuit Courts," accessed January 8, 2015
- ↑ Fifteenth Judicial Circuit of Florida, "The Judiciary," accessed August 18, 2014
- ↑ 15th Judicial Circuit, "Facilities," accessed November 20, 2014
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 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