Fourth DCA Allows Pro Se Parties to File Electronically

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The Fourth District Court of Appeal will now allow pro se parties — that is, parties representing themselves on appeal — to file documents electronically using the Court’s eDCA system. The Court made the announcement in its revised Notice to Attorneys and Parties Representing Themselves (Rev. June 25, 2014) [.pdf]. Pro se litigants can sign up for eDCA filing at the Court’s website.

Parties should note that filing using the eDCA system does not effectuate service as required by Fla. R. Jud. Admin. 2.516. Pro se parties can participate in service by e-mail, if they follow the rules. You can find my description of those rules in my prior post on pro se service.

Appeals 101: How do you pronounce certiorari?

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I never realized quite the level of controversy over the pronunciation of an important appellate term: certiorari. Check out this fascinating article that analyzes that the ways that various United States Supreme Court Justices pronounce the term [.pdf]. I’ve always thought it was pronounced ““ser-shee-or-RAHR-ee” and that appears to be the majority view of the Supreme Court justices as well. Still, when in doubt, follow Justice Ginsburg and just avoid saying the word all together!

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The Fourth District has implemented a new procedure for requesting emergency consideration before the court. In re: Requests for Emergency Treatment, AO No. 2014-1 (Fla. 4 DCA June 11, 2014) [.pdf]. The Administrative order requires that any party seeking emergency treatment of a treatment file a separate “Request for Emergency Treatment,” not exceeding two pages in length, and certifying that the request is made in good faith. The order defines an emergency:

an “emergency” is a matter of extreme urgency that requires immediate action by this Court in order to avoid imminent, irreparable, and material harm. An exigency that is caused by the lack of diligence of the moving party shall not constitute an “emergency.”

The order also warns that parties or attorneys requesting emergency treatment without an objectively reasonable basis may be sanctioned.