Electronic Filing in the Florida Courts

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The Florida Supreme Court this week issued an administrative order (.pdf) setting standards for electronic access to the courts. By Ocober 1, 2009, the clerks of court are supposed to implement The Florida Courts E-Portal, which will serve as a central location for filing and retrieving court dockets.

There are some interesting tidbits. If the system is down for more than an hour, the due date of a filing may be automatically moved to the next business day. The court intends to adopt a rule to establish when an e-filing is accomplished for purposes of the record. Like the federal courts, the new state court system will allow for electronic signatures in the “s/John Doe” format, from litigants as well as judges.

In the meantime, all five of Florida’s intermediate appellate courts have a standing administrative order about when electronic filing of motions or briefs to that court is required or encouraged. Until the new standards are implimented, such filing is accomplished by e-mail. And since there is no mention of these requirements in the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure, they can be a gotcha if you are not aware. For your reference, here are links to all of the standing orders on e-filing in the Courts of Appeal.

Chief Judge Dubina

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I have fond memories of Judge Dubina from my time as a clerk on the Eleventh Circuit. He’s served as a Federal judge at every level, and the Eleventh Circuit couldn’t have a finer judge serving as its newest Chief Judge.

Appealing Confirmation of an Arbitration Award? No Rule, No Jurisdiction

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The Third District Court of Appeal held (.pdf) it has no jurisdiction to review a trial court order confirming an arbitration award. What makes the case slightly interesting is that there is a provision of the Arbitration Code, Section 682.20, Fla. Stat., that purports to specifically allow such appeals. The Court joined its sister District, however, in holding that the statute doesn’t meet the jurisdictional requirements of the Florida Constitution, which holds that review of non final orders can be made only ‘the extent provided by rules adopted by the supreme court.’ Without a Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure, there is no jurisdiction.