Small Claims Rules Committee 2019 Regular-Cycle Amendments
Small Claims Rules Committee 2019 Regular-Cycle Amendments
The Small Claims Rules Committee invites comments on the proposed rule amendments anticipated to be included in the Committee’s regular-cycle report. The full text of the proposals can be found on The Florida Bar’s website at www.FloridaBar.org/rules/ctproc /. Interested persons have until August 1, 2018, to submit any comments, electronically, to Christina M. Magee, Chair of the Small Claims Rules Committee, at [email protected], and to the Bar staff liaison, Heather Savage Telfer, at [email protected].
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Rule
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Vote
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Explanation
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| Rule 7.020. | 19-0 | Subdivision (b) amended to use “not represented by an attorney” consistently throughout the rules set. |
| Rule 7.040. | 27-0 | Subdivision (a)(2) amended to consolidate references to minute book, docket book, and judgment book into “records” to better reflect the practice across the state. Existing subdivisions (a)(3) and (b) are deleted. Proposed a committee note. |
| Rule 7.050. | (a)(2) 18-0
(b) 19-0 (d) 20-0 |
Subdivision (a)(2) amended to provide notice that a non-attorney may not represent a business entity in appeal proceedings.
Subdivision (b) amended to specify the Florida Rules of Judicial Administration that require attorneys to include an e-mail address and a Florida Bar number on pleadings. Title of subdivision (d) amended to replace the reference to “Memorandum on Hearing Date” with “Summons/Notice to Appear for Pretrial Conference” for consistency throughout the rules set. Subdivision (d) amended to replace “memorandum” with “notice” and “hearing” with “pretrial conference” for consistent reference to notice of pretrial conference. |
| Rule 7.060. | 13-0 | The title of subdivision (a) is amended to add “/Notice to Appear” after “Summons” for consistency throughout the rules set. In the body of subdivision (a), “/notice to appear” is added after “summons” for consistency. In the same sentence entitled “Notice to Appear” is deleted as it is now duplicative. In the second sentence, “or” is replaced with “/” for consistency. |
| Rule 7.070. | 27-0 | Divided the rule into subdivisions to make the rule easier to read. Added “as provided by Florida Statutes,” after “as provided by law” in the first sentence to include all methods to effectuate service of process. Deleted the “s” in Florida Rules of Civil Procedure as only one rule is referenced. In the third sentence, deleted “only” before “may”; added “with a” before “return receipt”; and “that is” before “signed” to make the rule easier to read. Added a colon after “by” and replaced the comma with a semicolon after “defendant” to conform to In re: Guidelines for Rules Submissions, AOSC06-14 (Fla. 2006) (“Guidelines”). |
| Rule 7.080. | 13-0
(c) 22-0 (f) 19-0 |
Subdivisions (a) and (b) amended to add “summons/” for consistency throughout the rules set.
Subdivision (c) amended to delete “original” before “pleadings” to indicate the move towards electronic documents. Subdivision (c) further amended to delete the second sentence to indicate the move towards electronic documents. Amended title of subdivision (f) to replace “Unrepresented Party” with “a Party Who is Not Represented by an Attorney” for consistency throughout the rules set. |
| Rule 7.090. | 13-0 | Subdivision (a) amended to add “summons/” before “notice to appear” for consistency throughout the rules set. The title of subdivision (b) is amended in the same way and for the same reason. |
| Rule 7.100. | 18-1 | Title amended to replace commas with semicolons to be consistent with other rules in the rules set. Subdivisions (a) and (b) amended to remove passive voice and to add punctuation. Subdivision (c) amended to make it clear with whom the counterclaim or set off should be filed and upon whom it should be served. Subdivision (d) amended to make the language more active and direct. |
| Rule 7.130. | 13-0 | Subdivision (a) is amended to replace “but the court may require that it be reduced to writing” with “unless the court requires that it be written” to make the rule easier to understand for pro se litigants. |
| Rule 7.150. | 20-0 | Changed the timeframe to ask for a jury trial from 5 days to 10 days to conform to Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.430(b). Replaced “notice of suit” with “summons/notice to appear” for consistency throughout the rules set. |
| Rule 7.160. | 13-0 | Subdivision (b) is amended to clarify that if both parties fail to appear “on the initial appearance date (pretrial conference)” the judge may continue or dismiss the action. |
| Rule 7. |
20-0 | Renumbered Rule 7.175 as 7.095 to place the rule after 7.090 (Appearance; Defensive Pleadings: Trial Date) to bring more attention to the deadlines for filing pleadings for costs and attorneys’ fees. Rule title amended to “Costs and Attorneys’ Fees” as a motion is not required if the costs or attorneys’ fees were sought in the statement of claim. |
| Rule 7.180. | 22-0 | Subdivision (a) amended to change the timeframe for filing a motion for new trial to correspond to the timeframe in the Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.530. |
| Rule 7.190. | 22-0 | Subdivision (b) amended to make subdivisions (b)(1)–(b)(5) separate paragraphs to conform to the Guidelines. |
| Rule 7.200. | 20-0 | In first sentence, “praecipe” is replaced with “a formal written demand” to make the rule easier to understand for pro se litigants. Removed passive voice in the second sentence. |
| Rules 7.221. | 20-0 | Subdivision (a) amended to spell out reference to Florida Rule of Civil Procedure to conform to the Guidelines. Subdivision (a) and (b) amended to change the timeframe from 30 days to 45 days to conform with Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.560. |
| Rule 7.230. | 18-1 | Rule amended to create subdivision (a) “Review” and subdivision (b) “Party Not Represented by Attorney.” New subdivision (a) contains the existing contents of the rule. New subdivision (b) provides notice to pro se litigants that a non-attorney may not represent a business entity in appellate court. |
| Form 7.315. | 26-0 | A new form is proposed for parties not represented by an attorney to designate an e-mail address. |
| Form 7.316. | 26-0 | A new form is proposed for a change of address. |
| Form 7.322. | 22-0 | Layout of the form is amended to make it easier to understand how to fill it out. Form is further amended to include an advisement regarding accommodations pursuant to Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.540. |
| Form 7.323. | 22-0 | Layout of the form amended to make it easier to understand how to fill it out. Additional amendments notify the parties that if they want a court reporter, they are responsible for hiring one at their own expense. Also amended to include an advisement regarding accommodations pursuant to Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.540. |
| Form 7.330. | 20-0 | Form amended to add lines after “plaintiff” and “defendant” to allow the names to be inserted. Replaced “says” with “alleges” for consistency throughout the rules set. |
| Form 7.331. | 20-0 | Replaced “A.B.” and “C.D.” with lines to allow the plaintiff’s and defendant’s names to be inserted into the form. |
| Form 7.332. | 20-0 | Replaced “A.B.” and “C.D.” with lines to allow the plaintiff’s and defendant’s names to be inserted into the form. |
| Form 7.333. | 20-0 | Replaced “A.B.” and “C.D.” with lines to allow the plaintiff’s and defendant’s names to be inserted into the form. |
| Form 7.334. | 18-1 | Replaced “A.B.” and “C.D.” with lines to allow the plaintiff’s and defendant’s names to be inserted into the form. In number 1, replaced “sum of $ ___ (insert jurisdictional amount of court)” with a reference to Florida Small Claims Rule 7.010(b) regarding the jurisdictional amount of the court to avoid confusion on the part of pro se litigants. Deleted number 5 as it is not required in all cases. |
| Form 7.335. | 20-0 | Amended to avoid confusion with Florida Small Claims Rule 7.310 (Caption) by removing the existing caption and beginning the form with “(Caption)” to indicate that the caption should be inserted. Replaced “says” with “alleges” for consistency throughout the rules set. |
| Form 7.337. | 18-1 | Created a new form entitled “Statement of Claim (Account Stated)” that parallels Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.933. Committee note references Farley v. Chase Bank, 37 So. 3d 936 (Fla. 4th DCA 2010). |
| Form 7.342. | 20-0 | Amended the form to include a reference to Florida Small Claims Rule 7.343 (Fact Information Sheet) for greater clarity for pro se litigants. Amended number 2 to capitalize Fact Information Sheet for consistency throughout the rule. |
| Form 7.343. | 20-0 | Amended subdivision (a) to correctly refer to “Driver License Number.” Further amended to require the issuing state of the driver license. Added “(VIN”) to paragraph on motor vehicles. Amended subdivision (b) to correctly refer to “limited liability company.” Replaced “Vehicle I.D. Nos. #” with “Vehicle ID (VIN)” for consistency between the subdivisions. Replaced “camper” with “mobile home/RV.” |
| Form 7.345. | 26-0 | Amended the first sentence to require the total of the indebted sum, interest, and attorneys’ fees. Provided a signature line for the defense counsel and require a telephone number. Replaced “cause” with “case” in the stipulation portion of the form both in the title and the paragraph. Amended the jurisdictional portion of the order to add “including to enter a final judgment” to make it clear that the court does have the authority to enter a final judgment. Added the requirement that any attorney for the defendant should be served a copy of the order. |
| Form 7.351. | 22-0 | Adopted a new format for a defendant’s motion. |
| Form 7.352. | 22-0 | Adopted a new format for a defendant’s motion to continue. |
| Form 7.353. | 22-0 | Adopted a new format for a defendant’s motion to invoke the rules of civil procedure. |
