Federal judicial service
President Richard Nixon nominated Tjoflat to the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida on October 7,1970,to a new seat created by 84 Stat. 294. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on October 13,1970 and received his commission three days later. His service terminated on December 12,1975,due to his elevation to the Fifth Circuit.
President Gerald Ford nominated Tjoflat to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on November 3,1975,to a seat vacated by Judge John Milton Bryan Simpson. He was confirmed by the Senate on November 20,1975,received his commission the next day,and began serving on the court on December 12,1975. [4] Tjoflat was reassigned by operation of law to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit on October 1,1981,when that court was established.
Tjoflat served as Chief Judge of the Eleventh Circuit from 1989 to 1996. [4] Shortly after Tjoflat assumed the role of Chief Judge,Eleventh Circuit Judge Robert Smith Vance was murdered when a pipe bomb was mailed to his house. [5] Tjoflat helped to organize the investigation with then Deputy Attorney General Robert Mueller. [5] Walter Moody was ultimately convicted for the crime,which was motivated by the Eleventh Circuit's refusal to expunge an earlier conviction. [5]
On November 19,2019,Tjoflat assumed senior status. His successor,Robert J. Luck,was confirmed and received his commission the same day. Tjoflat was the last federal judge in active service appointed by President Ford, [a] and the last federal judge in active service appointed to the bench by President Nixon. [b] Measured by time in active service,Tjoflat remains as of 2025 the fourth-longest-serving federal judge. [c] Tjoflat continues to regularly sit on cases and author opinions. [6]
Notable cases
While on the District Court,Tjoflat decided Mims v. Duval County School Board,which ordered the immediate desegregation of the Duval County Public Schools. [2] In the wake of Mims,Tjoflat and his family received death threats,and there were calls for his impeachment. [2]
In Hishon v. King &Spalding, Tjoflat dissented,arguing that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 applied to a law firm's decision to admit a person to a partnership. The Supreme Court agreed with Tjoflat and reversed the panel's majority. [2]
Tjoflat served on the Eleventh Circuit panel that decided Moody v. NetChoice,LLC. There,the court upheld an injunction against a Florida law that sought to limit social media companies' ability to moderate user content. It held that the law would "chill platforms' protected speech" under the First Amendment. [11] The Supreme Court remanded the case for further analysis on the remedy. [12]
Notable law clerks
Tjoflat has had over 200 law clerks during his tenure on the federal bench. [2]
Personal life
Tjoflat met his first wife,Sarah,while attending Duke Law School. [2] He has two children. After Sarah's passing,Tjoflat married his second wife,Marcia Tjoflat. [2] His father,an electrical engineer,was of Norwegian ancestry,and his mother was an immigrant from Chile. [3] His Chilean ancestry makes Tjoflat the first Hispanic circuit judge in the United States. [3]
His reputation for asking difficult questions during oral argument led Tjoflat to receive the moniker "Tjoflatosaurus Rex." [2]
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