April 21, 2021
The Florida Courts released their 2020 Annual Report on State of Florida Courts this February. As part of a new blog series, we'll be discussing some of these changes and how they affect our clients.
The Florida Court System is compromised of 20 Judicial Circuits. In total, there are 605 judges a part of the Circuit Court system in Florida who are required to serve a six year term. The number of judges delegated to each Circuit is determined by the caseload of each circuit. The total headcount of judges has steadily increased over the years in the Florida Court System. This is good a good sign as it allows for quicker processing times and opportunities for diversity in the Florida Court System.
Orange County, FL Courthouse (Circuit 9)
In the State of Florida, both County Court and Circuit Court Judges are Trial Judges. Circuit Court Judges deal with Probate Cases and Civil Cases which the amount in dispute is greater than $15,000. Currently in Florida there are a total of 605 Circuit Judges and 330 County Judges. The Circuit Court System has only added 2 total judges in the past 3 years.
As mentioned in the previous blog, although we serve all of Florida, the 5 relevant circuits we most commonly deal with are, Circuit 7, 9, 10, 17, and 18. Below, we have identified the Judge Headcounts for the relevant circuits.
Circuit 7
- Circuit = 27 Judges
- County = 16 Judges (Added 1 Judge in FY 2019-20)
- Total = 43 Judges
Circuit 9
- Circuit = 44 Judges (Added 1 Judge in FY 2019-20)
- County = 22 Judges
- Total = 66 Judges
Circuit 10
- Circuit = 28 Judges
- County = 12 Judges
- Total = 40 Judges
Circuit 17 (Largest Circuit in FL)
- Circuit = 58 Judges
- County = 32 Judges
- Total = 90 Judges
Circuit 18
- Circuit = 26 Judges
- County = 17 Judges
- Total = 43 Judges