Ask Judge Smith
Assigning judicial workloads: 26 judges are on the case
- Judge Smith, how do trial judges divide up their workloads? Ruth
- Florida’s Second Judicial Circuit covers Jefferson, Franklin, Gadsden, Leon, Liberty, and Wakulla counties. The legislature funds 16 circuit judges for these six counties. Leon County has five county judges, and the other five counties have one county judge each. Combined, these 26 judges elect a chief judge every two years to administer our courts and assign the judges their workloads.
The state’s constitution and statutes enacted by the legislature provide the county and circuit courts with their authority to hear and decide cases. Typically, the chief judge gives each judge a work assignment for two years. For example, one circuit judge handles the felony cases in Gadsden County. Another circuit judge is responsible for all other circuit cases there.
Sometimes a judge vacates a seat before the end of its term. If turnover happens, the chief judge makes a new assignment. When Judge James Hankinson retired, I was appointed to fill his seat. In response, the chief judge made me responsible for Leon County’s juvenile docket and 15 percent of its family law docket. When Judge Charlie Dodson retired, the chief judge assigned me to cover one-third of Leon County’s circuit civil docket.
Due to its population, Leon County generates more circuit and county cases than the other five counties combined.
Leon County circuit cases are assigned by type to the family law, felony, or civil trial divisions. The family law division hears divorces, child support, juvenile, protective injunctions, and probate cases. The felony division hears the criminal cases, and the civil division hears everything else, including lawsuits for damages. It takes at least 10 full-time circuit judges to cover Leon County’s three divisions. Account
Three of our six counties rank among the 10 least populated in Florida, and each county’s workload differs significantly. Covering the circuit criminal or circuit civil assignments in Franklin, Jefferson, and Liberty counties is not a full-time assignment.
The judges covering those duties handle additional tasks –often in multiple counties — to round out their workloads.
Like a hospital emergency room performing triage, trial courts prioritize hearing criminal and emergency family law cases first. Court staff assists the chief judge. He or she uses metrics, experience and a rotation schedule to decide each judge’s work assignment.
Serving as a chief judge is challenging. Judges answer to the voters, the Supreme Court and the state senate if things go very badly. Thus, being the chief judge is akin to being a cat herder.
The Second Judicial Circuit judges have re-elected Judge Jon Sjostrom to his third term as our chief. On behalf of my colleagues and me; thank you, sir, for your leadership and service.
The Honorable J. Layne Smith is a Circuit Judge and author. Send your questions to askjudgesmith@gmail.com.
