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2012 UPDATE ON THE
FLORIDA RULESOF CIVIL PROCEDURE
By:Brian Willis
Published January 1, 2012Resources:
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Brian Willis is a commercial litigation attorney in Tampa, Florida. He graduated from theGeorge Washington University Law School in 2007 and is admitted to practice law in Floridaand Washington, DC. He is the creator of and an author at FloridaCivPro.com,FloridaLegalWiki.com and the Florida Rules Decisions Reporter.
2012 UPDATE ON THE FLORIDA RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE
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By: Brian Willis
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I.INTRODUCTIONII.CHANGES MADE IN 2011a.
Who Must Attend Mediation – Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.720
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Filing Discovery with the Court – Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.280, 1.310,1.340, 1.350c.Protecting Private Information – Fla. R. Jud. Admin. 2.425
III.CIVIL PROCEDURE CASES OF NOTE
a.Case Dismissed for Failure to Follow Statutory Pre-suitAlternative Dispute Resolution Proceduresb.Motion to Set-aside Default Requires Showing of a MeritoriousDefensec.Default Judgment cannot be Entered Until The Court Rules onAny Pending Motions to Set-aside Defaultd.Interpretation of Requirements to Bring a Class Action of Homeowners Association Memberse.Any Filing of Record Will Prevent a Case From Being Dismissedfor Failure to Prosecute
IV.OTHER CHANGES OF NOTE
a.Statutory Interest Rate
2012 UPDATE ON THE FLORIDA RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE
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By: Brian Willis
I.INTRODUCTION2011 saw three major changes applicable to the Florida Rules of CivilProcedure. First, at the very end of the year, the Florida Supreme Court amendedFla. R. Civ. P. 1.720 to require the advance designation of party representativesattending mediation and clarifying what it means for a representative to have fullsettlement authority. Second, Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.280, 1.310, 1.340, and 1.350 wereamended to address what discovery documents should be filed with the court. Third, Fla. R. Jud. Admin. 2.425 was adopted to require attorneys to screendocuments for private information before filing with the court. All three changes arediscussed in depth below.II.CHANGES MADE IN 2011a.
Who Must Attend Mediation – Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.720
Effective January 1, 2012, the Florida Supreme Court has amended Rule1.720 to add additional provisions governing who must attend mediation. Theamended rule specifies what it means for a party to have full authority to settle,requires the party representative attending mediation to be designated ten days inadvance of the mediation date, and enhances sanctions for non-compliance with therule. These changes are made by adding four new subsections to Rule 1.720, whichprovide:
1.720(c)
– New section c, defines what it means for the party attendingmediation to have full authority to settle. Full authority to settle means: “the finaldecision maker with respect to all issues presented by the case who has the legalcapacity to execute a binding settlement agreement on behalf of the party.” Thenew comments to Rule 1.720, further explain the intent of the amendment:First, the party representative must be the final decision maker withrespect to all issues presented by the case in question. Second, theparty representative must have the legal capacity to execute a bindingagreement on behalf of the settling party. These are objectivestandards. Whether or not these standards have been met can be
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