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Veteran judge gets top position

Circuit Judge Robert J. Morris will be chief of the 6th Circuit.

By NICOLE HUTCHESON
Published March 14, 2007

Veteran Circuit Judge Robert J. Morris will take over as the chief judge of the 6th Judicial Circuit.

In July, Morris will replace Chief Judge David A. Demers, 61, who has served as chief for six years. Demers did not seek re-election to the post this year.

Morris, 53, was unanimously elected at a judges' meeting in February.

The 6th Judicial Circuit consists of courts in Pasco and Pinellas counties and serves about 1.5-million residents. It has 45 circuit judges and 24 county judges who preside over court proceedings in nine locations.

As chief judge, Morris will be responsible for the administration of the courts and their 250 staff members.

"We look forward to working with Judge Morris," said Greg Showers, a lawyer and president-elect of the Clearwater Bar Association. "And hopefully we can continue with the good relations among the bar and the judges."

With an ever-growing caseload, Morris said the challenges ahead include improving court technology, contending with overcrowded jails and courts operating at capacity, and responding to rapid growth in Pasco County, which creates a need for more courtroom space.

In the six years since Demers became chief judge, filings of new cases have risen 35 percent, to more than 407,000 last year.

Morris graduated from Tarpon Springs High School and earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Florida College of Journalism and a law degree from DePaul University's College of Law.

Morris has been married to his wife, Anne Marie, for 31 years.

Before becoming a judge, Morris practiced law privately for 17 years and served as an assistant state attorney. His first judicial appointment came in 1997, when Gov. Lawton Chiles named him to fill a vacant county judge's seat.

In 2002, Gov. Jeb Bush appointed him circuit judge. In addition to his judgeship duties, Morris served on the Supreme Court Steering Committee on Families and Children in 2004 and is currently serving a six-year appointment to the Trial Court Budget Commission.

At the beginning of this year, Morris was appointed as the administrative judge of the 6th Judicial Circuit's criminal division where he kept track of the court's calendar, including the integration of probation violation cases.

Nicole Hutcheson can be reached at njohnson@sptimes.com or 727 445-4162.

[Last modified March 13, 2007, 23:10:00]