Joe Boatwright

Judge Boatwright joined the Fifth District Court of Appeal in 2023, following his appointment by Governor Ron DeSantis.

Judge Boatwright received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida in Political Science. He received his Juris Doctor degree from the Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law, in Washington DC, graduating Summa Cum Laude. Judge Boatwright was a member of the Catholic University Law Review and clerked for the American Center for Law and Justice.

Thereafter, he earned an LL.M. in Taxation from the University of Florida’s Levin College of Law and an LL.M. in Judicial Studies from Duke Law School. While at Duke, he was the editor in chief of the Judicature Law Journal and a member of the Judicature’s editorial board.

Prior to becoming a trial court judge, Judge Boatwright practiced law for ten years in both the public and private sectors. He served as an assistant state attorney for the Seventh Judicial Circuit prosecuting both misdemeanor and felony cases and managed the State Attorney’s Office in Putnam County. In addition, he practiced law in the private sector representing individuals as well as local governmental entities. His practice focused primarily on the areas of family, real property, tax, and local government law.

Prior to his appointment to the Fifth District Court of Appeal, Judge Boatwright served as a county court judge in Putnam County for ten years and as an acting circuit court judge in the Seventh Judicial Circuit. He presided over cases in all of the county court divisions. As an acting circuit court judge, he was assigned to cases in the family law, probate, and guardianship divisions. Judge Boatwright was the designated administrative judge in Putnam County. While a trial court judge, he served as an associate judge on the Fourth and Fifth District Courts of Appeal on multiple occasions.

For over fifteen years, Judge Boatwright has taught legal courses as an adjunct professor at Florida Coastal School of Law, Regent University Law School, Liberty University, and St. Johns River State College.