2006 Know Your Candidates

Two face off to fill new seat on bench

5th Judicial Circuit Court: Runoff -- Group 31

By Jonathan Abel
Published October 25, 2006

Daniel B. "Tiger" Merritt Jr. was less than 1 percentage point away from avoiding a runoff in September's primary election.

He won 49.3 percent of the vote; he needed 50 percent plus one vote.

Now Merritt will have to face off against Jeff Kirk, an attorney for Hernando County, who got 33.5 percent of the vote.

The two are vying for the new circuit judgeship in Group 31, which will split time between Brooksville and Inverness.

The seat was added because of dramatic growth in the population - and dockets - of the 5th Judicial Circuit, which encompasses Citrus, Hernando, Lake, Marion and Sumter counties.

As an assistant county attorney for Hernando, Kirk largely handles land use and development issues.

He started his career as a real estate agent in South Florida and was elected to the Homestead City Council, on which he served from 1981 to 1995, before and after the city was demolished by Hurricane Andrew.

"My background as a public-elected decisionmaker and my legal education and service for 15 years would be an asset to the legal bench," Kirk said. "The highest aspiration for a lawyer is to serve as a judge."

He said he is particularly good at listening to complicated issues and weighing all of the facts at hand.

Kirk was pleased with his showing in the primary and said he could close the distance, with the extra time before the Nov. 7 election.

Merritt has been around the legal profession all of his life. He worked as a clerk and a runner before becoming a lawyer and spent many childhood hours at his father's law office.

He is also an accomplished athlete who went through college on tennis scholarships.

In his private practice at Merritt & Keller, he handles civil litigation and an occasional criminal case.

"I'd like to run an efficient courtroom - a professional courtroom and be professional with the attorneys and with the people that come before you," he said. "Nobody is going to be happy when they go to court, but we should make it as painless as possible."

He said he will continue to campaign hard over the stretch and was confident that he could win.

Times researchers Caryn Baird and Carolyn Edds contributed to this report.

THE CANDIDATES

Daniel B. Merritt Jr.

Merritt, 43, was born in Sulphur, La. He earned his bachelor's degree at the University of Tennessee at Martin and graduated in 1990 from Cumberland School of Law at Samford University in Alabama. Merritt has been practicing law for 16 years, the first seven with his father and the last nine on his own in Brooksville. His practice focuses on civil litigation and transactional matters. Merritt is married and has two sons. His father, Daniel B. Merritt Sr., is Hernando's administrative judge. Assets: Real estate, bank and investment accounts. Liabilities: Mortgages. Source of income: Law practice.

Jeff Kirk

Kirk, 46, was born in Coral Gables. He earned his bachelor's degree from Florida International University. He graduated from the University of Miami School of Law in 1990. Kirk served on the Homestead City Council from 1981 to 1995. He has worked in private practice and as an attorney for the Department of Community Affairs, as well as the State Land Planning Agency. Since 2003, he has been an assistant county attorney in Hernando. Kirk is single. Assets: Real estate, bank and retirement accounts. Liabilities: Mortgages. Source of income: Hernando County salary.

[Last modified November 3, 2006, 15:22:28]