United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida
The United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida (in case citations, S.D. Fla. or S.D. Fl.) is the federal United States district court with territorial jurisdiction over the southern part of the state of Florida.[1]
United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida
Wilkie D. Ferguson, Jr. U.S. Courthouse
- C. Clyde Atkins U.S. Courthouse(Miami)
- James L. King Federal Justice Building(Miami)
- Fort Lauderdale
- West Palm Beach
- Fort Pierce
- Sidney M. Aronovitz United States Courthouse(Key West)
February 23, 1847
18
Gadyaces S. Serralta
Appeals from cases brought in the Southern District of Florida are to the United States Court of Appeals for 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).
Jurisdiction[edit]
The court's jurisdiction comprises the nine counties of Broward, Highlands, Indian River, Martin, Miami-Dade, Monroe, Okeechobee, Palm Beach, and St. Lucie. The district includes the South Florida metropolitan area of Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach. It comprises 15,197 square miles (39,360 km2) and approximately 6.3 million people. Courthouses, corresponding to the five divisions of the district, are located in Fort Lauderdale, Fort Pierce, Key West, Miami, and West Palm Beach. The court's offices are located in Miami.
Organization of the court[edit]
The United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida is one of three federal judicial districts in Florida.[10] The District has five divisions:
Fort Pierce Division comprises the following counties: Highlands, Okeechobee, Indian River, St. Lucie, and Martin.[11]
West Palm Beach Division comprises Palm Beach County.[11]
Fort Lauderdale Division comprises Broward County.[11]
Miami Division comprises Miami-Dade County.[11]
Key West Division comprises Monroe County.[11]
Chief judges[edit]
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.