Page 112 - Akerman | 2016 Guide to Doing Business in Florida

court decisions is conducted by three-judge panels of the district
courts of appeal. Florida did not have district courts of appeal until
1957.

Florida’s Constitution now provides that the Legislature shall divide
the State into appellate court districts and that there shall be a district
court of appeal for each district. There are five districts and,
correspondingly, five district courts of appeal: the First District, the
Second District, the Third District, the Fourth District, and the Fifth
District. Roughly speaking, the First District encompasses Florida’s
Panhandle, the Second District encompasses southwest Florida, the
Third and Fourth Districts encompass southeast Florida (including the
Florida Keys), and the Fifth District encompasses northern and
middle Florida.

District court judges must meet the same eligibility requirements for
appointment to office, and they are subject to the same procedures
and conditions for discipline and removal from office as Justices of
the Florida Supreme Court. Like Florida Supreme Court Justices,
district court judges also serve terms of six years and will be eligible
for successive terms under a merit retention vote of the electors in
their districts.

In each district court, a chief judge, who is selected by the district
court judges within the district, is responsible for the administrative
duties of the court.

(ii) Jurisdiction. The district courts of appeal can hear appeals from final
judgments and can review specified non-final orders. By general law,
the district courts have been granted the power to review final actions
taken by state agencies in carrying out the duties of the executive
branch of government.
Finally, the district courts have been granted constitutional authority to
issue the extraordinary writs of certiorari, prohibition, mandamus, quo
warranto, and habeas corpus, as well as all other writs necessary to
the complete exercise of their jurisdiction.

As a general rule, decisions of the Florida district courts of appeal
represent the final level of appellate review. Review of a decision of a
district court of appeal would be to the Florida Supreme Court on
issues of state law or to either the Florida Supreme Court and then to
the United States Supreme Court or directly to the United States
Supreme Court on issues of federal constitutional law or federal law
as to which state and federal courts have concurrent jurisdiction.
Except for the very few issues where Florida Supreme Court review is
required (such as decisions invalidating a state statute), most
requests for appellate review beyond a district court of appeal are
denied.

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