“The Miami Dade County Courthouse is scheduled to close soon,” the announcement read last August. As a retired legal secretary and avid Miami history fan, I decided to visit there one last time.
Entering the Courthouse, at 73 West Flagler Street, I was flooded with memories. Admiring its massive pillars, gold-plated elevators, checkerboard tile floors and shiny wooden benches, I took a “sentimental journey” to recall my Courthouse “duties,” which I performed from 1970s to the 21st century.
First, I visited the third floor Law Library, where I used to photocopy case law. Its glass-plated front doors were already closed to the public. I could see stacks of packing boxes sealed and ready for moving. Next was the Clerk’s Office, where I used to file pleadings and have copies date-stamped. Aside from some evidence of the upcoming move, it looked much the same as ever.
As William Shakespeare once wrote, “All the world’s a stage and all the men and women merely players.” That is such an accurate portrayal of the Courthouse! As we all know, there are the plaintiffs, defendants, judges, court reporters and bailiffs. But let’s not forget the other “players” over the decades: the quadriplegic, sitting in his wheelchair at the foot of the Courthouse steps, selling caramels and bubble-gum; the double amputee, seated on a blanket on the sidewalk playing an accordion, singing “Take it to the Lord in prayer,” the elderly African-American shoe-shine man, the security guards screening and X-raying bags, and the Division of Blind Services food vendors? They, too, deserve to be remembered!
In December, 2025, the last “All rise” was exclaimed, the last gavel struck, the last jury verdict read and the Courthouse finally closed its doors to the public. (They’re still doing some packing and moving). No one seems to know how this 100-year-old, historic building will be reincarnated: possibly a condo, or hotel or office building? Will the vultures still make their annual pilgrimage to circle the tower every winter?
But life goes on! In January, 2026, a brand-new, gleaming Osvaldo V. Soto Miami-Dade County Courthouse, 600,000 square feet, 24 stories high, and with 46 juried courtrooms welcomed the arrival of its new tenants. Let’s pray that, in their new home, plaintiffs, defendants, judges and all other participants will be honest and fair and do what God knows is right and just.