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Florida lawyers support retention of Supreme Court justices, appeals judges

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 18, 2006
CONTACT: Susannah Lyle,
The Florida Bar
TELEPHONE: 850/561-5666

    Florida lawyers overwhelmingly recommend retaining three Florida Supreme Court justices and 17 district court of appeals judges in office, according to results of The Florida Bar’s biennial merit retention judicial poll announced today.

    "I am pleased to see that those most familiar with the qualifications of these jurists give them high marks," said Henry M. Coxe, III, president of The Florida Bar.

    Supreme Court Chief Justice R. Fred Lewis and Justices Barbara J. Pariente and Peggy A. Quince will be on the ballot statewide Nov. 7 with voters being asked whether they should be retained or not for six-year terms. The 17 DCA judges will appear on ballots in the counties over which their courts have jurisdiction with voters likewise being asked if they should be retained for six-year terms.

    A secret ballot mailed in August to all lawyers residing and practicing in Florida asked respondents whether the incumbent justices and judges should be retained or not and asked that they consider eight attributes in their ratings. They are quality and clarity of judicial opinions; knowledge of the law; integrity; judicial temperament; impartiality; freedom from bias/prejudice; demeanor; and courtesy.

    Only lawyers indicating at least limited knowledge or greater of the judges were included in the poll results. The Bar sent out 58,682 ballots; a total of 4,779 lawyers participated. In all, the Bar has 79,363 members. Some live out of state; others are inactive.

    For the Supreme Court, poll results indicate:
    -- 89 percent support retaining Chief Justice Lewis
    -- 84 percent favor retaining Justice Pariente
    -- 83 percent support retaining Justice Quince.

    For the First District Court of Appeal, the results were:
    -- 90 percent favor retaining Judge Edwin B. Browning Jr.
    -- 75 percent support retaining Judge Bradford L. Thomas
    -- 88 percent support retaining Judge Peter D. Webster
    The 1st DCA covers the counties of Alachua, Baker, Bay, Bradford, Calhoun, Clay, Columbia, Dixie, Duval, Escambia, Franklin, Gadsden, Gilchrist, Gulf, Hamilton, Holmes, Jackson, Jefferson, Lafayette, Leon, Levy, Liberty, Madison, Nassau, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, Suwannee, Taylor, Union, Wakulla, Walton and Washington.

    For the Second District Court of Appeal, the results were:
    -- 90 percent favor retaining Judge Darryl C. Casanueva
    -- 87 percent support retaining Judge Charles A. Davis Jr.
    -- 89 percent support retaining Judge Edward C. LaRose
    -- 87 percent support retaining Judge E.J. Salcines
    -- 91 percent support retaining Judge Thomas E. Stringer
    The 2nd DCA covers Charlotte, Collier, DeSoto, Glades, Hardee, Hendry, Highlands, Hillsborough, Lee, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk and Sarasota counties.

    For the 3rd District Court of Appeal, the results were:
    -- 78 percent favor retaining Judge Angel A. Cortinas.
    -- 72 percent support retaining Judge Leslie Rothenberg
    -- 87 percent support retaining Judge Richard J. Suarez
    The 3rd DCA covers Miami-Dade and Monroe counties.

    For the 4th District Court of Appeal, the results were:
    -- 89 percent support retaining Judge Bobby W. Gunther.
    -- 91 percent support retaining Judge Fred A. Hazouri
    -- 91 percent support retaining Judge Larry A. Klein
    -- 90 percent support retaining Judge Barry J. Stone.
    -- 88 percent support retaining Judge Carole Y. Taylor.
    The 4th DCA covers the counties of Broward, Indian River, Okeechobee, Palm Beach, St. Lucie and Martin.

    For the 5th District Court of Appeal, the results were:
    -- 90 percent support retaining Judge Emerson R. Thompson Jr.
    The 5th DCA covers the counties of Brevard, Citrus, Flagler, Hernando, Lake, Marion, Orange, Osceola, Putnam, Seminole, St. Johns, Sumter and Volusia.

    Since the first merit retention election in 1978, The Florida Bar has published results of its polls as a public service. In merit retention elections, the justices and judges run unopposed – with voters casting ballots to “retain” or “not retain” judges in office. If the judge is not retained, a vacancy is created and will be filled through the merit selection process through which the governor will appoint one of three to six nominees submitted by the respective judicial nominating commission.

    Biographies and photos of the Supreme Court justices and DCA judges can be found on The Florida Bar’s Web site at www.FloridaBar.org along with answers to frequently asked questions about merit retention.

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EDITORS: Please note The Florida Bar is not an association and "Association" is not part of our name. Proper reference is "The Florida Bar." Local bar organizations are properly termed "associations."

[Revised: 09-20-2007 ]