Governor Ron DeSantis appointed Andrew Sheeran, a Tallahassee lawyer who has served as general counsel for the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration since 2023, to serve as a judge on the Second Judicial Circuit Court. Sheeran’s appointment fills the vacancy created by Judge John C. Cooper’s retirement in December 2025. The Second Judicial Circuit, based in Tallahassee, includes Franklin, Gadsden, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty and Wakulla counties.
“Previously, Sheeran served AHCA as Deputy General Counsel, Chief Litigation Counsel, and as a Senior Attorney,” according to the announcement from DeSantis’ office. Sheeran received both his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Florida and was admitted to practice law in Florida in 2006. Circuit judges are paid $200,836 a year and serve six-year terms after being appointed.
Sheeran bested five other finalists for the position, including Sarah Kathryn Dugan, one of the prosecutors in the high-profile Dan Markel murder trials that took place in Tallahassee. As AHCA’s top lawyer, Sheeran was involved in the drafting and circulation of a $67 million Medicaid settlement agreement that directed money to the Hope Florida Foundation. The deal resolved allegations that Centene overbilled Florida’s Medicaid program and ultimately routed $10 million to the nonprofit.
Some of those funds moved through other groups and into a political committee tied to then DeSantis chief of staff James Uthmeier, now the state’s attorney general, which successfully campaigned against the 2024 recreational marijuana ballot initiative. “The chain of transfers triggered allegations by some lawmakers that Medicaid settlement money had effectively been funneled into political spending,” according to reports. The deal became a focus of a Leon County grand jury and a House committee investigation.
“The grand jury has yet to issue any findings and Sheeran has never been accused of wrongdoing,” according to the reports. Circuit judges handle felony and juvenile cases and civil lawsuits worth $50,000 or more. Judges who are appointed must run as no party-candidates in the next general election before serving their six-year terms.
Sheeran will begin his judicial duties immediately upon taking the oath of office. The appointment represents DeSantis’ continued effort to reshape Florida’s judiciary with conservative-leaning appointees throughout his tenure as governor.