Florida Appeals 101: What is a PCA?

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Dead End by Dineen Pashoukos Wasylik All Rights Reserved


A PCA is usually the end of the road for your appeal.

A while back, I shared the story of a Florida appellate judge using a “PCA” stamp on his iPad, and a colleague in New York asked, “What’s a PCA”? I think it’s a sign that I have been practicing in Florida for more of my career than not at this point, because I didn’t realize that the term PCA is not a nationwide appellate term of art. An informal poll of attorneys in other jurisdictions confirms that the term PCA is not common amongst other states’ appellate courts.

Here in Florida, PCA stands for Per Curiam Affirmed, and it means that one of Florida’s intermediate District Courts of Appeal has affirmed the trial court’s decision without explanation. Instead, the opinion contains one word — “Affirmed” — and is listed as being the opinion of the entire panel per curiam, or by the Court.

So that’s what it means literally — what does it mean practically? If the District Court has issued a PCA, the appeal is most likely over. The Florida Supreme Court is a high court of limited jurisdiction. Unless your case involves declaring a statute valid or involves constitutional issues, the discretionary jurisdiction constitutionally and by rule is pretty much limited to review of:

decisions of district courts of appeal that…(iv) expressly and directly conflict with a decision of another district court of appeal or of the supreme court on the same question of law;

Fla. R. App. P. 9.030(a)(2)(A). Without a decision explaining the court’s reasoning, there is no way to argue that the decision “expressly and directly” conflicts with existing court precedent.

There is a procedure to ask the DCA to issue an opinion, but even that is an uphill battle. The rule states:

When a decision is entered without opinion, and a party believes that a written opinion would provide a legitimate basis for supreme court review, the motion may include a request that the court issue a written opinion. If such a request is made by an attorney, it shall include the following statement:

I express a belief, based upon a reasoned and studied professional judgment, that a written opinion will provide a legitimate basis for supreme court review because (state with specificity the reasons why the supreme court would be likely to grant review if an opinion were written).

Fla. R. App. P. 9.330(a). Not every case sets up that kind of potential conflict, and so motions for an opinion should be brought sparingly. And the majority of the time, PCA means you’ve hit a Dead End, and your appeal is over.

President’s Day is Not a Holiday in Florida State Court

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Back in October, I pointed out that Columbus Day is not a holiday in Florida state courts. A pro se appellant has learned the hard way that neither was President’s Day. See Harold v. State, 110 So. 3d 451 (Fla. 2d DCA March 27, 2013). Luckily for the appellant, it is a criminal case and he has the opportunity to apply for a belated appeal pursuant to Fla. R. App. P. 9.141(c). But a civil litigant would be out of luck, so be sure to analyze those deadlines carefully!

Service by and On Pro Se Litigants

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The Florida state appellate courts handle thousands of pro se appeals annually.  How do the new e-service rules affect service by and on litigants who are not represented by an attorney?

Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.516(c) [.pdf] has an answer to that question, and it’s pretty straight forward. If the pro se litigant chooses to send and receive by e-mail, the pro se litigant need only serve an e-mail designation notice. That is, the party should serve a notice on the opposing attorney (or if the opponent is not represented, the litigant) stating which primary and up to two secondary e-mail addresses at which they want to receive service, and follow up by filing that notice with the court. From then on, the pro se litigant will receive documents in the case by e-mail, and will also be requires to send them by e-mail if the other side is represented by an attorney or is pro se but has sent a designation. If the pro se litigant would rather stick to fax, mail, or hand delivery, just don’t serve an e-mail designation. Any pro se litigant who has not served a designation must serve and be served as set out in Fla. R. Jud. Admin. 2.516(b)(2).

Bonus: Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.080 states that in civil trial matters, all service should be made in accordance with Fla. R. Jud. Admin. 2.516. So the answer to how do you serve a pro se litigant is the same in the civil trial context and in appeals.

Caution: This post only applies to service of court documents. What about filing? That will have to be the subject of a different blog post. Whatever you read here, be sure to check the rules and do your own investigation. This blog is not legal advice, and the rules are constantly changing.