As a result of the county court vacancy created by the elevation of Judge Cynthia Oster in the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit, Gov. Ron DeSantis has convened the Thirteenth Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission to select and submit the names of highly qualified candidates to fill the vacancies. The following individuals have applied for the vacancies:
County Court Vacancy Applicants
E. Christopher Abdoney
Adam L. Bantner, II
Alicia Whiting Bozich
Christine S. Brown
Cory L. Chandler
Travis J. Coy
Matthew Felix
E. Michael Isaak
Joseph W. Kudia
Elba C. Martin
Christina A. Pawlus
Shirin Rustomji
W. Michael Thornton
The Commission encourages and seeks comments regarding the qualifications of these applicants from the public and from members of the Bench and Bar. Comments may be addressed to Max Amster, Chair, Thirteenth Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission, and emailed to max@veridismgmt.com, or mailed to Max Amster, 1700 S. MacDill Ave, Suite 300, Tampa, FL 33629. Comments must be received no later than 12 p.m. on March 6, 2023, to be considered by the Commission.
Interviews will be conducted on March 20, 2023, at the Hill Ward Henderson Bayshore Conference Room. Bank of America Plaza, Suite 3700. 101 East Kennedy Boulevard in Tampa, FL. Applicants will be contacted to confirm the time and location of the interviews. A complete interview schedule will be published in advance of the interviews. A remote appearance option will also be made available for the public to attend the interviews.
All proceedings of the Commission are open to the public except for deliberations. Questions about the application or interview process should be directed to the Chair, Max Amster or Vice Chair, Pedro Bajo.
The members of the Thirteenth Circuit Judicial Nominating Commission are:
Maximillian Amster, Chair
Telephone: 813-575-2266
Pedro Bajo, Vice Chair,
Telephone: 813-223-3130
Michael Beltran,
Mike.Beltran@myfloridahouse.gov
Telephone: 813-653-7097
Elise Engle
Telephone: 813-463-4934
Andrew J. Mayts, Jr.
Telephone: 813-227-2248
Chad Mizelle
Telephone: 863-712-1833
Diego Pestana
Telephone: 352-346-1220
Matthew Hall
Telephone: 813-227-8479
Charles Reynolds
Telephone: 954-361-6984