In the Aug. 18 election, 9th Circuit Court Judge Alan Apte will be running for re-election for his Group 21 seat, continuing a 27-year mission of serving the Central Florida community.

Apte has been a member of the Florida Bar since 1993, and after serving as an assistant State Attorney, was first elected as a Circuit Court judge in 2002. He has served in Orange and Osceola Counties since taking the bench he has presided over more than 100 jury trials, and served or worked in every single division of the 9th Circuit and in every courtroom in Orange and Osceola County. He currently serves in a division called the Guardianship, Mental Health, Risk Protection Order, and Civil Commitments under “Jimmy Ryce Act”, which deals with cases involving all orders of mental health.

During his time on the bench, he has taught and mentored fellow local and statewide Circuit and County Judges and lawyers on a variety of legal topics including ethics, criminal law, evidence code, family law, domestic violence law, and expert witnesses.

Apte’s extensive legal background proves that experience matters. Much like a doctor, not everyone wants or needs to see a judge, but if you have to, it helps to work with one of the best.

“My role is not to just make decisions, but to help people,” he said. “I’m not just a ‘grant or deny’ judge. I explain the facts and the law, and those who come through my courtroom know why and how I came to my decisions.

“I love my job and want to help people. I was a public school kid and come from a background of giving back. This is my career.”

Outside the courtroom, Apte has represented the community throughout the State of Florida by serving in leadership positions with the Florida Conference of Circuit Judges for the last 12 years.

Pushed by a blue-collar family to get an education, Apte received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Chemistry with minors in Computer Science and Fine Art from the University of Miami, took a year off from school, interned at a law office, chose to go to law school and got his Juris Doctorate law degree from the Nova University Shepard Broad Law Center.

Because he enjoys the impact that local organizations have on the community, Apte is a member of the Silver Spurs Rodeo and has sat on the Board of Directors of Central Florida Boys and Girls Clubs and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Florida, among other community service boards.

For more information about Judge Alan Apte, visit Reelectjudgeapte.com