by David Ball
Staff Writer
As an 18-year veteran in the U.S. Attorney’s office, Jim Klindt said there wasn’t much he needed to prepare for to assume his new duty as Jacksonville magistrate judge of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.
But there’s always the little things.
“Someone said to me, ‘hey, you’ve got a courtroom, but you don’t have a robe yet,’” said Klindt. “I didn’t even know where to get a robe.”
Luckily, Klindt found a cap and gown retailer in Arlington and purchased a robe, and he said he is ready to begin his eight-year term hearing federal criminal and civil cases in about a week.
The transition from prosecutor to judge was short following his official swearing in on Oct. 31, but the intensely competitive process that resulted in Klindt’s appointment should prove him up to task.
Colleagues in the Jacksonville legal community said Klindt’s leadership, sound judgment and reputation from both allies and adversaries in the courtroom will make him a respected magistrate judge, which is often an overlooked, but important, position within the federal court system.
The magistrate judge position was created by Congress in 1968 (replacing federal commissioners) to conduct a wide range of judicial proceedings to expedite the disposition of the civil, criminal and social security caseloads of the U.S. district courts.
In the federal courthouse in Jacksonville, four magistrate judges handle most preliminary aspects of cases, including arraignment, determining release on bond, overseeing the discovery phase and pleas. Upon agreement from the parties, magistrates can also preside over an entire jury trial from arraignment to sentencing.
Klindt said the civil cases will present the biggest learning curve, but he is relying on his wealth of federal court experience – and time at “judges’ school” in May - to help him preside over the hundreds of cases that are sure to fill his docket at any one time.
An Orlando native who previously worked as an elementary teacher, Klindt got his first judicial experience right after graduation from Florida State University College of Law in 1986, when he served as a law clerk for District Court Judge Howell Melton.
“To this day, I look back on those two years as the best two years in my career,” said Klindt about the mentor who swore him into The Florida Bar in 1986. “It was an unbelievable education in law, in life and how you treat people.”
The experience convinced Klindt to pursue a career in the federal courts, and he began as a line assistant U.S. attorney in 1988. In 1999, he was chosen as the deputy managing assistant attorney in the Jacksonville office. He then rose to the first assistant for the entire Middle District and was later named acting U.S. Attorney when Paul Perez left that post in 2002.
In February, former Jacksonville Magistrate Judge Marcia Morales Howard was appointed to a U.S. District Judgeship, and a local merit selection panel was formed to nominate a new magistrate.
Dozens applied, but panel member Patricia Dodson said Klindt’s application stood out immediately.
“There were probably 10 recommendation letters,” said Dodson, an attorney at Terrell Hogan. “You could tell each person who sat down to write a letter took it so seriously and thoughtfully chose the exact words they wanted to use.”
Fellow panel member and attorney Hank Coxe said the panel is prohibited from divulging much about the selection process, although he did say his experience on other selection committees shows the ability to gain praise from adversaries is one of the best tests of a candidate’s qualities – and it is a quality possessed by Klindt.
“One of his talents was the ability as a prosecutor to see and appreciate a legitimate defense argument and analysis, which obviously leads to the best decisions,” said Coxe. “He’s never vindictive, never retaliatory and always willing to listen.”
One of Klindt’s longtime rivals in the courtroom is defense attorney Bill Sheppard. He said Klindt’s intellect and integrity made every case an honest fight, and those same qualities will add to one of the more respected group of magistrate judges in the state.
“He’s an absolute challenge when opposing him, and in being challenged you are being dealt with in a very fair and honest way,” said Sheppard. “We got this system and we all need to respect it. He’s that kind of lawyer, and he’ll be the kind of judge who will command that respect.”
Sheppard said the District Court would be well off to “lock his ass in for life,” and to eventually move Klindt to a District Judgeship. However, Klindt said he has the support of his wife, Sheila, and his son, Phillip, and doesn’t have his sights set any higher than his new position.
“I’m 52, and I’m at the right time in my life to move into this position,” he said. “I can definitely see working as a magistrate judge for the remainder of my career – if the district judges are pleased with my performance.”