A U.S. district court / Established 1962

U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida

Florida · A federal trial court, where federal civil and criminal cases are first heard. Appeals go to the Eleventh Circuit.

U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida is a United States district court, a federal trial court where most federal civil and criminal cases are first heard. It lies within the Eleventh Circuit, which reviews its decisions on appeal. This page lists every judge to serve on the court, current and former, with who appointed them and whom they succeeded.

48
Judges in history
32
Currently serving
15
Seats over time
21 / 23
Appointed D / R
Current judges
Former judges
JudgeAppointed byYears
Ralph Wilson Nimmons Jr.Bush (R)1991–2003
George Kendall SharpReagan (R)1983–2022
John Henry Moore IIReagan (R)1981–2013
Susan Harrell BlackCarter (D)1979–1992
William John CastagnaCarter (D)1979–2020
George Carter CarrCarter (D)1977–1990
Howell Webster Melton Sr.Carter (D)1977–2015
John Alton Reed Jr.Nixon (R)1973–1984
William Terrell HodgesNixon (R)1971–2022
Gerald Bard TjoflatNixon (R)1970–1975
Isaac Benjamin Krentzman Jr.Johnson (D)1967–1998
Charles Ray ScottJohnson (D)1966–1983
Joseph Patrick Lieb(reassignment) (N)1962–1971
William Allan McRae Jr.(reassignment) (N)1962–1973
John Milton Bryan Simpson(reassignment) (N)1962–1966
George Cressler Young(assignment) (N)1962–2015

How a judge gets here. Each judge is nominated by a president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate, then holds a numbered seat, for life, until they take senior status, or until they leave the bench. Open any judge to see who appointed them, how the Senate voted, and whom they succeeded, a chain that runs back to 1962.

Source: FJC Biographical Directory. Data last verified 2026-06-28. Verify against the primary source before relying.