This is a list of the first minority male lawyer(s) and judge(s) in Florida. It includes the year in which the men were admitted to practice law (in parentheses). Also included are other distinctions such as the first minority men in their state to graduate from law school or become a political figure.
Firsts in Florida's history
Law degree First African American male law graduate: W. George Allen in 1962
Lawyers First Jewish American male: David Levy Yulee (1832) First African American male: Harvey S. Harmon (1869) First African American male (licensed): Matthew M. Lewey First African American male (after Reconstruction Era): James Weldon Johnson (1897) First Italian American male: Anthony J. DiMedio (1925) First Native American males to work directly with the Governor’s Office of Florida: John Chaves and Osley B. Saunooke (c. 1974) First openly gay male: Robert Eimers (1976) First undocumented male: Jose Godinez-Samperio (2014)
State judges First African American male elected: James Dean (1884) in 1888 First Jewish American male (circuit court): Harry N. Sandler in 1933 First African American male (municipal court): Lawson E. Thomas (1923) in 1950Thomas was also the first African American judge in the South since Reconstruction (1950) First Cuban American male: Carlos Benito Fernandez in 1961 First Chinese American male: Dominic Koo in 1972 First blind male: Louis Corbin in 1972 First African American male (Florida Supreme Court): Joseph W. Hatchett (1959) in 1975 First Hispanic American male (Industrial Claims Court): Mario P. Goderich (1969) in 1975 First Jewish American male (Florida Supreme Court; justice and chief justice): Arthur J. England, Jr. (1961) in 1975 and 1978 respectively First Hispanic American male (Seventeenth Judicial Circuit): Jose Alejandro Gonzalez Jr. (1957) First African American male (Eleventh Judicial Circuit Court): Wilkie D. Ferguson (c. 1960s) in 1977 First Hispanic American male (Eleventh Judicial Circuit Court): Mario P. Goderich in 1978 First African American male (Fourth Judicial Circuit): Henry Lee Adams Jr. (1969) in 1979 First African American male (Third District Court of Appeal): Wilkie D. Ferguson (c. 1960s) in 1980 First Hispanic American male (Third Judicial Circuit Court): Mario P. Goderich in 1980 First African American male (Seventh Judicial Circuit): Hubert Grimes in 1988 First African American male (Chief Justice; Florida Supreme Court): Leander J. Shaw Jr. (1952) in 1990 First openly gay male: Rand Hoch in 1992 First Muslim American male (appointed judge): A.B. Majeed in 1993 First African American male (Twelfth Judicial Circuit): Charles Williams in 1998 First Haitian American male: Fred Seraphin in 2001 First Korean American male: Sonny Im (1991) in 2002 First Hispanic American male (Florida Supreme Court): Raoul G. Cantero III (1985) in 2002 First African American male (Eighteenth Judicial Circuit): James E.C. Perry in 2003 First Hispanic American male (Seventh Judicial Circuit): Raul A. Zambrano in 2005 First Hispanic American male (U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit): Adalberto Jordan (1987) in 2012 First Muslim American male (elected judge): Christopher Benjamin in 2025
Federal judges First African American male (Northern District Court of Florida): Stephan P. Mickle in 1970 First Hispanic American male (U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida): Jose Alejandro Gonzalez Jr. (1957) in 1978 First openly gay African American male (U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida): Darrin P. Gayles (1993) in 2014 First openly gay male (U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida): Mac McCoy in 2015 First South Asian American male (U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida): Anuraag Singhal (1989) in 2019
Attorney General of Florida First Jewish American male: Robert Shevin in 1971
Assistant Attorney General of Florida First African American male: Charles F. Wilson in 1963
United States Attorney First Cuban American male (Southern District of Florida): Roberto Martinez First Haitian American male (Southern District of Florida): Markenzy Lapointe in 2023
Assistant United States Attorney
First African American male: Joseph W. Hatchett (1959) in 1966
State Attorney First Hispanic American male: E.J. Salcines
Assistant State Attorney First African American male (Second Judicial Circuit): Roosevelt Randolph First African American male (Chief Assistant State Attorney; Fourth Judicial Circuit): Brian J. Davis (1980) in 1994
Public Defender First Hispanic American male elected: Carlos J. Martinez in 2008
Assistant Public Defender First African American male: Delano Stewart in 1966
Florida Bar Association First African American male admitted (post-Reconstruction Era): James Weldon Johnson (1897) First Jewish American male president: Burton Young in 1970 First Hispanic American male (Cuban descent) president: Stephen Zack in 1989 First Cuban-born male president: Frank Angones in 2007 First African American male president: Eugene K. Pettis in 2013
Firsts in local history Charles Wilson: First African-American male in Tampa Bay appointed to the Eleventh Circuit of Florida Elijah Smiley: First African American male to serve as the Chief Judge of the Fourteenth Judicial Circuit in Florida (2015) [Bay, Calhoun, Gulf, Holmes, Jackson and Washington Counties, Florida] James E.C. Perry: First African American male to serve on the Eighteenth Judicial Circuit in Florida (2003) [Brevard and Seminole Counties, Florida] Hubert Grimes: First African American male to serve on the Seventh Judicial Circuit in Florida (1988) [Flagler, Putnam, St. John's and Volusia Counties, Florida] Stephen Everett: First African American male to serve on the Second Judicial Circuit in Florida (2019) [Franklin, Gadsden, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty and Wakulla Counties, Florida] Stephan P. Mickle (1970): First African American male judge in Alachua County, Florida. He later became the first African American district judge of the Northern District of Florida. Theodore R. Bowers (1962): First African American lawyer in Bay County, Florida A.B. Majeed: First Muslim American male judge in Brevard County, Florida (1993) Jose Alejandro Gonzalez Jr. (1957): First Hispanic American male to serve on the Broward Circuit Court (1964) Thomas J. "T.J." Reddick Jr.: First African American male lawyer in Broward County, Florida. He later became the first African American male to serve as a circuit court judge in Broward County, FloridaReddick was also the first African American to serves as an Assistant Public Defender, judge of the Court of Record, and judge of the Fourth District Court of Appeal. Zebedee Wright: First African American male appointed as a County Court Judge in Broward County, Florida (1982) Robert Lee: First openly LGBT male judge in Broward County, Florida (1997) Anuraag Singhal (1989): First South Asian American male judge in Broward County, Florida (2011) Harold F. Pryor: First African American male to serve as the Broward State Attorney (2020) Earl Hall: First African American male to serve as the Lauderhill City Attorney, Broward County, Florida Abraham Bellamy (1822): First male lawyer to settle in Jacksonville, Duval County, Florida Joseph E. Lee (1873): First African American male lawyer in Jacksonville, Duval County, Florida Francis M. Robles (c. 1890): First Hispanic American male lawyer in Hillsborough County, Florida. He would later become a judge. M. Henry Cohen (1894) and Samuel Borchardt (1895): First Jewish American male lawyers in Hillsborough County, Florida Peter W. Bryant (c. 1898): First African American male lawyer in Hillsborough County, Florida George Edgecomb: First African American male judge in Hillsborough County, Florida Ignatio C. "Nelson" Spoto: First Italian American male judge in Hillsborough County, Florida (1949) Martin Caraballo: First Latino American male to serve as the President of the Hillsborough County Bar Association (1919) Lanse Scriven: First African American male to serve as the President of the Hillsborough County Bar Association. He is also the first African American member of the Florida Bar Board of Governors from Hillsborough County. Ted Taylor: First African American male lawyer in Plant City, Hillsborough County, Florida William Castagna: First Italian American male to serve as a federal judge in Tampa, Hillsborough County, Florida Warren Dawson: First African American male to serve as the Assistant City Attorney of Tampa, Hillsborough County, Florida Casimiro Hernandez: First Latino American male to serve as the judge of the Ybor City Justice of the Peace Court Armstrong Purdee: First African American male lawyer in Jackson County, Florida James Durden: First African American male lawyer in Lake County, Florida Isaac Anderson, Jr.: First African American male judge in Lee County, Florida (1981) Augustus D. Aikens: First African American male judge in Leon County, Florida Remus Allen: First African American male to serve as the Assistant Public Defender of Leon County, Florida Layon Robinson: First African American male lawyer in Manatee County, Florida Willie E. Gary: First African American male lawyer in Martin County, Florida Lawson E. Thomas (1923): First African American male judge in Miami, Florida (1950) [Miami-Dade County, Florida] Calvin Mapp: First African American male county court judge in Miami-Dade County, Florida Carlos Benito Fernandez: First Hispanic American male lawyer and judge (1961) in Miami, Miami-Dade County, Florida Dominic Koo: First Chinese American male judge in Miami, Miami-Dade County, Florida (1972) Wilkie D. Ferguson (c. 1960s): First African American male to serve on the Dade County Circuit Court (1977) Fred Seraphin: First Haitian American male judge in Miami-Dade County, Florida (2001) Frank Angones: First Cuban-born male to serve as the president of the Miami-Dade County Bar Association, Florida Christopher Benjamin: First Muslim American male judge in Miami-Dade County, Florida (2025) James Dean (1884): First African American male elected as a county court judge in Monroe County, Florida (1888) James C. Collier (c. 1950): First African American male lawyer in Orlando, Orange County, Florida Emerson R. Thompson Jr.: First African American male judge in Orange County, Florida (1976) Mel Martínez (1973): First Hispanic American male lawyer in Orlando, Orange County, Florida Jose Rodriguez: First Hispanic American male to serve as a Judge of the Orange-Osceola Judicial Circuit (1987) William Meredith "Bill" Holland Sr.: First African American male lawyer in West Palm Beach, Palm Beach County, Florida Joseph Lesser (1927): First Jewish American male lawyer in Palm Beach County, Florida Edward Rodgers: First African American prosecutor, judge, and chief judge in Palm Beach County, Florida Bradley Harper: First African American male elected as a Judge of the Palm Beach County Circuit Court (2016) Luis Delgado: First Hispanic American male elected as a Judge of the Palm Beach County Circuit Court (2016) James B. Sanderlin (1963): First African American male judge in Pinellas County, Florida Thomas E. Stringer, Sr.: First African American male to graduate from the Stetson University College of Law (1974) [Pinellas County, Florida] David Wilson III: First African American male lawyer in Winter Haven, Florida [Polk County, Florida] Charles P. Benton (1950): First African American male lawyer in Fort Pierce, St. Lucie County, Florida Ralph Flowers: First African American male judge in St. Lucie County, Florida Emerson R. Thompson Jr.: First African American male to serve as a Judge of the Fifth District Court of Appeal in Daytona Beach, Florida (1993) [Volusia County, Florida]
See also List of first minority male lawyers and judges in the United States