As an undergraduate student studying history education at 麻豆传媒社区,
Robert W. Lee 鈥�82 wouldn鈥檛 ever have imagined he鈥檇 become a
lawyer, then a judge, and somehow spoofed on Saturday Night Live for his work at
the center of the 2000 presidential election recount in Broward County.
If it weren鈥檛 for one JU professor, Dr. Richard Cromwell, Lee鈥檚 life may have turned out quite differently. Dr. Cromwell, Lee鈥檚 undergraduate advisor, thought he鈥檇 make a great lawyer and encouraged Lee to take the LSAT.
鈥淚 didn't want to, I was studying to be a teacher,鈥� Lee said. 鈥淚n any event, I wound up taking the LSAT without studying at all. I did very well, shockingly.鈥�
Dr. Cromwell pushed him to apply for law school, and Lee was accepted to both schools he applied to. He attended the University of Florida Levin College of Law. From there, Lee went into practice - focusing on commercial litigation. He went on to become a judge, and after 27 years on the bench, he will retire at the end of 2024.
鈥淚 always tell people that if it wasn't for Dr. Cromwell saying, 鈥楬ey, look, you owe it to yourself to give it a shot,鈥� I wouldn't have had the career I did,鈥� Lee said. 鈥淎fter going into practice, I got asked to apply to be a judge. I didn't think that was ever going to happen. And it happened.鈥�
It wasn鈥檛 just Dr. Cromwell that made an impact on him. Professors like Sharon Scholl, who taught humanities, instilled in Lee a desire to travel the world. Suzanne Corre, who taught French, inspired him to minor in the language. He鈥檚 since traveled to France nearly 15 times in his life and maintains the language skills to this day.
Those three professors were really key to the things that I've enjoyed about my life,鈥� Lee said.
Just three years after becoming a judge in 2000, Lee was assigned to chair the on the Broward County Election Canvassing Board - which at the time was reserved for the lowest ranking judges in the county. He soon found himself in the middle of a weeks-long recount to decide the next president of the United States.
鈥淚 always tease people, I say I sometimes feel like I'm going to wake up one day and find out this was all the charade,鈥� Lee said. 鈥淪o from that kid at JU who wasn't sure what he wanted to do, it kind of turned out all right.鈥�
