[7][8] Within a few weeks of assuming office as Attorney General in July 1868, Westcott was appointed to the Florida Supreme Court by Republican Governor Harrison Reed, making him the youngest justice in the Court's history.

For one, it was important for Reed to appease the Southern Democrats by appointing one of their own to the Court, as it was filled with carpetbagger Republicans.

Additionally, Westcott's friendly disposition on the one hand and thoroughness in researching the law and precedent on the other made him invaluable to the Court, and earned him respect from members of both parties.

[9] Westcott continued to serve on the Florida Supreme Court until illness forced him to resign in 1885.

[6] Westcott died in Tallahassee, Florida, on April 19, 1887, from the same illness that forced him to resign just two years earlier.

Westcott, a lifelong bachelor, left his entire estate to his Alma mater, the West Florida Seminary, which was struggling at the time.