On September 2, 2022, Governor Ron DeSantis appointed Gunster Shareholder Joe Jacquot to the Fifth District Court of Appeal Judicial Nomination Commission (DCA JNC). This involves a nine-member commission of lawyers who evaluate and nominate individuals to the Governor for appointment to the Fifth District Court of Appeal. Following his appointment from the Governor, on September 8, Joe was elected as Chair by the commission.
With the reorganization of Florida’s appellate courts, the newly constituted Fifth DCA JNC will provide the Governor with a list of candidates to fill four judicial appointments. The jurisdiction of the new Fifth DCA will stretch from the greater Jacksonville area to Orlando.
Joe Jacquot served as the first General Counsel to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis from 2019 through 2020. In that role, he ran the Governor’s appointment process for six Florida Supreme Court justices and over 100 Florida judges.
Joe Jacquot co-chairs Gunster’s appellate practice. He has argued successfully in the U.S. Supreme Court, and regularly argues before the Florida Supreme Court and throughout the state in the Florida’s District Courts of Appeal (DCA). Joe served as the general counsel to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, from the Governor’s inauguration in January 2019 through October 2020.