The Third District Court of Appeal has a new chief judge
Judge Kevin Emas was unanimously elected by his colleagues as chief judge of the Third District Court of Appeal.
This followed the appointment of Chief Judge Barbara Lagoa as a justice of the Florida Supreme Court by Gov. Ron DeSantis on January 9.
Chief Judge Emas is the 19th chief judge of the Third District Court of Appeal since the court opened in 1957 and will serve in this capacity until June 30, 2021. He will be responsible for all administrative matters of the court.
Judge Kevin Emas has been appointed to the judiciary by three different governors. Gov. Lawton Chiles appointed Emas to the Miami-Dade County Court in 1996. Five years later, Gov. Jeb Bush appointed Judge Emas to the 11th Circuit and on November 24, 2010, Gov. Charlie Crist appointed Judge Emas to the Third DCA.
Judge Emas received his J.D. (cum laude) from the University of Miami, School of Law in 1982, where he served as an editor of the University of Miami Law Review. He was a member of the Law School Honor Court and the Order of Barristers. Judge Emas received his B.A. (with honors) from the University of Florida in 1979.
