Gov. Ron DeSantis has appointed a dozen Judges across Florida, including several to newly created seats under a measure he signed last year that increased the number of circuit and county court Judges statewide.
Half of the appointees are taking seats under SB 2508, a law that significantly expanded the judiciary to address caseloads, creating 22 new circuit court judgeships, 15 new county court judgeships and two new Sixth District Court of Appeal positions.
Arguably the most eye-catching SB 2508 appointee is Andrew Bain of Orlando, who is taking a seat on the 9th Judicial Circuit bench in Orange County.
Bain previously served on the Orange County Court beginning in 2020 until DeSantis controversially appointed him to serve as Orange-Osceola State Attorney in 2023 following the Governor’s suspension of Democrat Monique Worrell.
After Worrell defeated Bain by a landslide the following year and Bain publicly refused — but then, facing backlash, agreed — to help Worrell transition back into office, DeSantis re-appointed Bain to the County Court.
Now Bain, who also declined to prosecute former state Rep. Carolina Amesty on felony forgery charges in late 2024, is getting another judicial post, courtesy of the Governor’s pen.
Other SB 2508 appointees include:
— Mark Skipper of Maitland to the 9th Judicial Circuit Court. Skipper has been a County Judge since 2024 and previously worked as a Senior Attorney for the Department of Children and Families.
— Guy Flowers of Port Charlotte to the 12th Judicial Circuit Court, which includes DeSoto, Manatee and Sarasota counties. A DeSoto County Judge since 2022, Flowers previously served as an Assistant State Attorney.
— Dane Leitner of Jupiter to the 15th Judicial Circuit Court, which exclusively serves Palm Beach County. Leitner is a GrayRobinson shareholder and former Ward Damon partner.
— Hillary Ellis of Lakewood Ranch to the Manatee County Court. Ellis has worked for The Law Place since 2023 and previously was an Assistant State Attorney.
— David Peters of Harmony to the Osceola County Court. Peters has worked for The Grosshans Group since 2024 and previously served as General Counsel for Rapha International, an anti-human trafficking nonprofit.
DeSantis appointed two to the 1st Judicial Circuit Court, which includes Escambia, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and Walton counties: Santa Rosa County Judge Matthew Gordon and lawyer Paul Bailey.
Gordon, who has served on the County Court bench since 2024, previously worked as an Assistant State Attorney in the 1st Circuit. He succeeds longtime Judge Jan Shackelford, who resigned in January.
Bailey, a shareholder at Welton Law Firm since 2015 and a former law clerk for the Third District Court of Appeal, replaces Judge Linda Nobles, who joined the bench alongside Shackelford in 2000 and resigned the same month.
Lawyers Sonia McDowell and Theresa Savona, both of Orlando, are also headed to the 9th Judicial Circuit.
McDowell, an attorney with The Grosshans Group and a former Assistant State Attorney, fills a vacancy created by the resignation of Judge Elizabeth Gibson, who informed DeSantis of her intention to step down from the bench in May 2023.
Savona, a partner at Cole Scott & Kissane P.A. and former Chief Appellate Counsel for the Florida Department of Health, replaces Judge Robert Egan, who retired April 23.
Lawyer Andrea Johnson, a partner and Chair at Barnes Walker Goeth Perron Shea & Johnson, will be donning robes in the 12th Judicial Circuit. She fills a vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Lon Arend.
And on the Palm Beach County Court, Marci Rex — now in her 15th year as Assistant U.S. Attorney — fills a vacancy created by the December elevation of Judge Danielle Sheriff.
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