Amendments to civil procedure rules.

The Civil Procedure Rules Committee invites comment on the proposed three-year-cycle amendments to the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure. The full text of the proposals can be found at the Bar's Web site at www.floridabar.org. The proposed amendments will be filed with the court by February 1, 2010. Interested persons have until August 15 to submit comments electronically to Mark Romance, chair, Civil Procedure Rules Committee, [e-mail].

RULE    COMMITTEE         REASONS FOR CHANGE
        VOTE

1.071   36-0              To conform to section 86.091, Florida
                          Statutes, which requires notice to the
                          state when a constitutional challenge
                          to a statute is being made.

1.080   (b): 40-2         (b)--so service by delivery is treated
        (d): 45-0         the same as by mail. (d)--to permit
                          filing at a time other than service, if
                          required by a statute or rule of
                          procedure. The proposal reconciles rule
                          1.080(d) with statutes or rules that
                          either direct that papers not be filed,
                          or that the papers be filed after certain
                          time periods elapse or events occur.

1.100   35-0              To authorize a case style for forfeiture
                          Proceedings consistent with that
                          described in F.S. 932.704(5)(a).

1.285   43-3              At the request of The Florida Bar
                          Attorney-Client Privilege Task Force,
                          to address inadvertent disclosure of
                          privileged communications.

1.310   (b)(4)(A): 46-1   (b)(4)(A)--to require that any subpoena
        (b)(5): 43-1      served on the person to be examined state
                          the method for recording the testimony.
                          (b)(5)--to clarify that the procedure
                          in rule 1.351 must be used when
                          requesting or receiving documents or
                          things without testimony from nonparties
                          pursuant to subpoena; to prevent the use
                          of rules 1.310 and 1.410 to request
                          documents from nonparties pursuant to
                          subpoena without giving the opposing
                          party the opportunity to object to the
                          subpoena before it is served.

1.340   49-0              To provide that standard form
                          interrogatories do not need to be
                          propounded exactly as set forth by the
                          Supreme Court, when a particular
                          approved interrogatory is not necessary
                          or appropriate.

1.351   (a): 43-1         (a)--to clarify that the procedure
        (c): 31-8         rule 1.351, not rule 1.310, is to be
                          followed when requesting or receiving
                          documents or things, without testimony,
                          from nonparties pursuant to subpoena.
                          See rule 1.310(b)(5) above. (c)--to
                          allow U.S. mail and other commercial
                          delivery for service of subpoenas on
                          nonparties.

1.360   48-1              To provide notice to opposing party
                          regarding who will attend an examination,
                          so the physician or health care
                          practitioner will know how many people
                          attend. This will decrease inconvenience
                          for examiners of having several lawyers,
                          videographers, and court reporters
                          present in their offices.

1.410   (d): 22-13        (d)--to conform to the proposed changes
        (e): 50-0         to rule 1.351(c), discussed above;
                          provides for alternative service of
                          subpoena on nonparties.
                          (e)--in conjunction with rule 1.310(b)
                          (4)(A) (see above), to require that any
                          subpoena served on the person to be
                          examined state the method for recording
                          testimony.

1.420   (a)(1): 27-9      (a)(1)--to allow voluntary dismissal
        (a)(1)(B): 28-4   of part, not just all, of a suit.
        (d): 39-0         (a)(1)(B)--so that only parties still
                          in litigation have to sign the
                          stipulation of dismissal
                          (d)--in conjunction with change to
                          (a)(1), allowing for assessment of costs
                          when an action is concluded as to a party
                          seeking taxation of costs but other
                          claims remain pending in the case.

1.442   32-0              To provide a proposal-for-settlement
                          procedure when one party is liable only
                          vicariously, constructively, derivatively,
                          or technically.

1.470   42-1              The language in form 1.985 regarding
                          judges' use of standard form jury
                          instructions is difficult to find among
                          the forms. The amendments relocate the
                          language to rule 1.470, update the
                          wording, make an applicable standard
                          instruction required unless a litigant
                          makes a showing otherwise, and add the
                          requirement for contemporaneous objection
                          to improper or misleading jury
                          instructions.

1.480   49-0              To track Fed.R.Civ.P. 50(b), eliminating
                          the requirement for renewing, at the
                          close of all the evidence, a motion for
                          directed verdict already made at the
                          close of an adverse party's

1.510   42-6              To improve the rule grammatically and
                          for clarity.

1.525   39-0              Necessitated by the proposed amendments
                          to rule 1.420 allowing voluntary dismissal
                          of part, not just all, of a suit.

1.901   38-0              See rule 1.100.

1.923   38-0              Amends eviction form to properly reflect
                          Florida case law and remove any
                          misleading language that might imply that
                          "posting" the summons is sufficient in a
                          claim for money damages.

1.975   30-0              New form to provide for notice to the
                          state when a constitutional challenge to
                          a statute is being made.

1.985   42-1              See rule 1.470.

1.986   38-0              This form is antiquated and unnecessary
                          in light of itemized verdicts and model
                          verdicts in the Florida Civil Standard
                          Jury Instructions (Civil). Those
                          instructions are incorporated by
                          reference in form 1.985 (which, in
                          proposed changes in this cycle report,
                          would be moved to rule 1.470(b)).