Florida Second District Court of Appeal

The Florida Second District Court of Appeal is headquartered in Tampa, Florida on the campus of Stetson University College of Law. It will move to St. Petersburg when the new Pinellas courthouse is complete.^[1]

There are nine counties in the Second District, which includes a population of over 5.0 million people. The Second District covers Pasco and Pinellas (6th judicial circuit); Hardee, Highlands, and Polk (10th judicial circuit); DeSoto, Manatee, and Sarasota (12th judicial circuit); and Hillsborough (13th judicial circuit). The counties of Charlotte, Glades, Collier, Hendry, and Lee (20th judicial circuit) became part of the new Florida Sixth District Court of Appeal in January, 2023.^[1]

Florida DCA map

History

The initial territorial jurisdiction of the Second District, with its headquarters in Lakeland, encompassed twenty-eight counties, ranging from Lake County in the north, to Collier County and Broward County in the south.

In 1965, the Fourth District was established, reducing the Second District's territory, which was further reduced by the establishment of the Fifth District in 1979. There are now fourteen counties in the Second District.

Temporary location of the Florida Second District Court of Appeal

When the District Court of an Appeal for the Second District first convened, its headquarters were in the old Florida Citrus Commission building in Lakeland. In 1980 a branch headquarters for the Second District was authorized and in that same year was established in Tampa where the court maintains an additional courtroom and where eight of the court's judges now have their chambers. The chambers of six judges, the clerk's office, the marshal's office, and the court records are located in the court's Lakeland headquarters. The court hears oral arguments in both its Lakeland and Tampa courtrooms. Periodically, the court also hears oral arguments in county courthouses in various counties within the district.

Originally there were three judges in the Second District. There are now 14 judges on the court.

Active Judges

Name[2]	Appointed	Chief Judge	Term expires	Appointing Governor
Robert Morris	August 1, 2009	2021–Present	2023	Charlie Crist, Republican
Stevan T. Northcutt	January 6, 1997	2007–2009	2023	Lawton Chiles, Democrat
Darryl C. Casanueva	February 16, 1998	2009–2011	2025	Lawton Chiles, Democrat
Morris Silberman	January 2, 2001	2011–2013	2021	Jeb Bush, Republican
Patricia J. Kelly	December 3, 2001	—	2023	Jeb Bush, Republican
Craig C. Villanti	February 3, 2003	2015–2017	2023	Jeb Bush, Republican
Edward C. LaRose	February 1, 2005	2017–2019	2025	Jeb Bush, Republican
Nelly Khouzam	August 1, 2008	2019–2021	2023	Charlie Crist, Republican
Anthony K. Black	April 1, 2010	—	2025	Charlie Crist, Republican
Daniel H. Sleet	December 21, 2012	—	2021	Rick Scott, Republican
Matthew C. Lucas	December 23, 2014	—	2023	Rick Scott, Republican
Susan H. Rothstein-Youakim	May 2, 2016	—	2025	Rick Scott, Republican
J. Andrew Atkinson	January 19, 2018	—	2021	Rick Scott, Republican
Andrea Teves Smith	February 1, 2019	—	2022	Ron DeSantis, Republican
Suzanne Labrit	July 29, 2020	—	2022	Ron DeSantis, Republican

Chief Judges

Judges who have served as Chief Judge of the Second DCA include but are not limited to:

• Abram Otto Kanner (1957–?)^[3]
• George T. Shannon ^[4]
• William P. Allen ^[5]
• David F. Patterson (2000–2001)
• Morris Silberman
• Nelly Khouzam (July 1)

Past Judges

Judges who have served on the Second DCA include:

• Charles T. Canady
• David F. Patterson
• John Scheb
• John Badalamenti

See also

• Florida District Courts of Appeal (for history and general overview)
• Florida First District Court of Appeal
• Florida Third District Court of Appeal
• Florida Fourth District Court of Appeal
• Florida Fifth District Court of Appeal
• Florida Sixth District Court of Appeal