Even if you aren’t normally a rules geek, this is the year to order new rules books. On December 1, 2009, a far-reaching shift in time calculation rules goes into effect across all of the Federal rules of procedure. Referred to as the Days are Days approach, the intent is to remove confusion over when weekends are counted in time calculations, and when they are not. This basic principle has been implimented in both the rules of appellate procedure and the rules of civil procedure. Be aware of the changes in both sets of rules, as the calculation of some jurisdictional deadlines may be affected.
The Record: Journal of the Appellate Practice Section published a more detailed article about this change written by yours truly in its Fall 2009 issue. I’ve uploaded a .pdf of the article for your reading pleasure.
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.