November 20, 2000 PROFILES: FLORIDA SUPREME COURT JUSTICES Florida's seven-member Supreme Court hears arguments on whether manual recounts should be included in final tallies from the unsettled presidential race.

Online NewsHour Special Report: Election 2000   Florida State Courts	Background Florida's high court consists of seven members and is based in Tallahassee. Five of the seven judges were appointed by the state's former Democratic governor, the late Lawton Chiles. One was appointed jointly by Chiles and then-Governor-elect Jeb Bush, a Republican. Former Governor and current Democratic Senator Bob Graham appointed another. The court includes two women and two blacks. In the 1970s Florida eliminated direct election of justices and switched to a "merit retention" system. Under this system, the governor appoints justices from a list of three nominees selected by the Judicial Nominating Commission. At the end of each judge's term, voters are simply asked whether a justice should remain in office. If a majority of votes are not in favor of retention, the governor appoints another person from a Commission-approved list. Chief justice is a rotating two-year position voted on by the justices themselves.
	The justices
	Charles T. Wells Charles T. Wells is the current chief justice of Florida's Supreme Court. Originally appointed in 1994 by Gov. Chiles, Wells began his two-year stint as chief justice in July. Wells, 61, is a native Floridian and has 28 years of experience in private legal practice but had not previously served as a judge. R. Fred Lewis R. Fred Lewis was appointed to the Supreme Court by Gov. Chiles in December 1998. Born in West Virginia, Lewis attended college and law school in Florida. He won an NCAA post-graduate grant as one of the nation's top scholar-athletes and also graduated top of his class from the United States Army A.G. School, which he attended after law school. Lewis, 52, worked in private practice until his Supreme Court appointment. Peggy A. Quince Peggy Quince was appointed to the Florida Supreme Court in December 1998 by Gov. Chiles and Republican Governor-elect Jeb Bush. Quince, 52, is the first black woman on the state Supreme Court. She received her degrees from Howard University and the Catholic University of America. Born in Norfolk, Virginia, Quince moved to Florida in 1978 to open a law office and practice general civil law. Leander J. Shaw Leander Shaw is the Supreme Court's most senior justice. Former Governor and current Senator Bob Graham, a Democrat, appointed Shaw in 1983. Shaw, 70, served as chief justice from 1990 to 1992. Born in Virginia, he earned his law degree at Howard University in Washington, D.C., and moved to Florida to teach law at Florida A&M University. Major B. Harding Gov. Chiles named Major Harding to the Supreme Court in January 1991. Florida voters retained him to a six-year term that began in 1999 and he finished a turn as chief justice in June 2000. Harding, 65, is a native of Charlotte, N.C. He first joined Florida's bench in 1968 as a county juvenile court judge. Barbara J. Pariente Appointed in December 1997 by Gov. Chiles, Pariente is one of two women on the Supreme Court. Pariente, 51, is a native of New York and has 18 years of private practice experience. Her law degree is from George Washington University. Harry Lee Anstead Harry Lee Anstead has served on the Supreme Court since his 1994 appointment by Gov. Chiles. Anstead, 63, was born in Jacksonville and earned a law degree from the University of Florida and an advanced degree from the University of Virginia. Before law school he served with the National Security Agency in Washington, D.C.