Kendall Coffey on Judicial Selection Process

Kendall Coffey chairs the JNC for Florida's Southern District

The Dade County Bar Association is hosting a luncheon next week on the judicial selection process in Florida.  The luncheon will take place in Miami on September 20th at the Hyatt Regency.  There will be a panel of experts at the event to discuss the judicial selection process and how to become a member of the judicial nominating committee.

The panel will be lead by the Hon. Robert Scola fromt he U.S. District Court.  Kendall Coffey, who is currently the chair of the Southern District of Florida's Judicial Nomination Commission, will also be a panelist.  They will also be discussing how attorneys can apply to become a judge or U.S. attorney.

Most judges in Florida are selected by the nomination commission and then put on local ballots every six years afterwards.  Recent research shows that the public is currently confused about the judicial selection process and frequently skip the ballot, so it is important as well that bar association members are able to communicate the role of the public in judicial selection.

State supreme court judges are appointed by the governor and have a forced retirement age of 70 years old.  Supreme court, court of appeals, and circuit court judges serve two year terms.

Judicial Nomination Commissions are appointed by the governor.  Each commission has nine members and there are twenty six total for each level and district in the state.