TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – From roots in a segregated
school system in her native Virginia to the highest
judicial office in Florida, Peggy A. Quince's career has
taken a remarkable path as America moved from the
20th to the 21st Century. She now has been
unanimously named Chief Justice-Elect of Florida by
her six colleagues.
"It is an honor and a privilege being a member of the
Court," said Quince, 60, "and serving with outstanding
Florida public servants. I thank my colleagues for their
trust in me and look forward to serving the people of
this state in this new capacity."
Quince will become Florida's 53rd Chief Justice since
statehood in a ceremony tentatively scheduled for
Friday, June 27. Her two-year term will begin July 1.
"Justice Quince has distinguished herself in her work
here at the Court," said Justice Barbara J. Pariente,
currently the only other woman serving on the
Court. "She is the epitome of a great colleague and
outstanding jurist. And now she will make history by
becoming the first African-American woman to lead
the Third Branch of government."
Quince hails from Norfolk, Virginia, where she grew
up the daughter of a longshoreman. There, she
attended a segregated school system at the time
Brown v. Board of Education was decided – but long
before it was fully implemented.
She went on to graduate in 1970 from Howard
University and received her law degree from the
Catholic University of America in 1975.
