Hon. Melissa Souto

Circuit Court
Seminole County
18th Circuit

Rate a judge
Attorney Average Rating:   2.0 - 3 rating(s)
Non-Attorney Average Rating:   1.0 - 3 rating(s)


General Rating Criteria

* Temp. Temperament (1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Sch. Scholarship (1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Indu. Industriousness (1=Not at all industrious,10=Highly industrious)
* Comp. Ability to Handle Complex Litigation (1=Awful,10=Excellent)
* Punct. Punctuality (1=Chronically Late,10=Always on Time)
* Ab-Pr. General Ability to Handle Pre-Trial Matters (1=Not all Able, 10=Extremely Able)
* Ab-Tr. General Ability as a Trial Judge (1=Not all Able, 10=Extremely Able)
Flex Flexibility In Scheduling (1=Completely Inflexible,10=Very Flexible)
    

Criminal Case Rating Criteria (if applicable)

* Ev-Cr. Evenhandedness in Criminal Litigation (1=Demonstrates Bias,10=Entirely Evenhanded)
Bail General Inclination Regarding Bail (1=Pro-Defense,10=Pro-Government)
Plea Involvement in Plea Discussions (1=Not at all Involved, 10=Very Involved)
Inc.-Pr. General Inclination in Criminal Cases Pretrial Stage (1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)
Inc.-Tr. General Inclination in Criminal Cases Trial Stage (1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)
Inc.-S. General Inclination in Criminal Cases Sentencing Stage (1=Pro-prosecution,10=Pro-defense)


Civil Case Rating Criteria (if applicable)

* Ev-Cv. Evenhandedness in Civil Litigation (1=Not at all Evenhanded,10=Entirely Evenhanded)
Settle Involvement in Settlement Discussions (1=Not at all Involved,10=Very Involved)
Inc. General Inclination (1=Pro-defendant, 10=Pro-plaintiff)
    
  

General Rating Criteria

Criminal Case Rating Criteria
(if applicable)

Civil Case Rating Criteria
(if applicable)

EvaluatorIDDate*Temp.*Sch.*Indu.*Comp.*Punct.*Ab-Pr.*Ab-Tr.Flex
Civil Litigation - Private10049211/10/2021111   4 
Civil Litigation - Private8389503/03/20201  1    
Civil Litigation - Private7372708/05/20195    333
Criminal Defense Lawyer6212111/26/2018        
Category Average  2.31.01.01.0 3.03.53.0
   
ID*Ev-Cr.BailPleaInc.-Pr.Inc.-Tr.Inc.-S.
100492      
83895      
73727      
62121      
       
ID*Ev-Cv.SettleInc.Average
1004923112.0
838951 11.0
737271 103.0
62121   0.0
 1.71.04.01.5

Only items marked with (*) are averaged into the displayed overall rating.

Non-attorney Rating
(if applicable)

EvaluatorIDDateJudgeIDOvr.AverageReadComment
Other11709203/30/202324737  Read Comment
Litigant10266002/05/20222473711.0Read Comment
Other9264002/17/20212473711.0Read Comment
Court Staff8036912/15/20192473722.0Read Comment
Category Average   1.31.3