Supreme Court of Florida | |
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Established | 1845 |
Country | Florida , United States |
Location | Tallahassee, Florida |
Composition method | Gubernatorial appointment |
Authorized by | Florida Constitution |
Decisions are appealed to | Supreme Court of the United States only for federal issues; otherwise cases cannot be appealed. |
Judge term length | 6 years |
No. of positions | 7 |
Website | Official Website |
Chief Justice | |
Currently | Jorge Labarga |
Since | July 1, 2014 |
Lead position ends | June 30, 2016 |
Coordinates: 30°26′17″N 84°17′01″W / 30.438092°N 84.283585°W
The Supreme Court of Florida is the highest court in the U.S. state of Florida. It consists of seven members—the Chief Justice and six Justices. They are chosen from five districts around the state to foster geographic diversity, with two members selected at-large.
The Justices are appointed by the Governor to set terms that do not exceed six years. Immediately after appointment, the initial term is three years or less, because the Justices must appear on the ballot in the next general election that occurs more than one year after their appointment. Afterward they serve six-year terms and remain in office if retained in the general election near the end of each term. Citizens vote on whether they want to retain each Justice in office, or not.
Chief Justices are elected by the members of the Court to two-year terms that end in every even-numbered year. Chief Justices can succeed themselves in office if re-elected by the other Justices.
The Court is the final arbiter of Florida law, and its decisions are binding authority for all other Florida state courts and for federal courts when they apply Florida law. In most instances, the only appeal from the Florida Supreme Court is to the U.S. Supreme Court on questions of federal law.
Established upon statehood in 1845, the court is headquartered across Duval Street from the state capitol in Tallahassee. Throughout the court's history it has undergone many reorganizations as Florida's population has grown. The Florida Supreme Court has heard many historic cases, most notably the 2000 presidential election Florida recount case Bush v. Gore.