DeSantis picks new Florida Supreme Court justice who is his sixth appointee to 7-member court

SEMINOLE, Fla. (AP) — Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday named to the Florida Supreme Court a state appellate court judge who pledged his allegiance to a legal theory that a law’s meaning doesn’t change over time, giving the Republican governor his sixth conservative appointee to the seven-member court.

Adam Tanenbaum, a judge on the First District Court of Appeal in Tallahassee, promised to adhere to the principles of “originalism” during a speech announcing his appointment to Florida’s highest court at Seminole High School in the St. Petersburg area, where he had graduated.

Judges shouldn’t be afraid to fix, and shouldn’t have to follow, an “erroneous interpretation of the text,” said Tanenbaum, who previously was general counsel for the Florida House of Representatives and had served on the legal staff of other state agencies.

“Sometimes the circumstances require boldness to restore our jurisprudence to its historical roots,” he said.

Before announcing the new justice, DeSantis said the Florida Supreme Court should exert its administrative powers over the state’s legal profession, citing the Texas Supreme Court’s recent decision to no longer require that Texas law schools be accredited by the American Bar Association.

“I think that there’s room, you know, to be really, really bold,” DeSantis said.