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Child support enforcement hearing officers handle Title IV-D support matters only. Custody, visitation and property disputes cannot be filed inside the Title IV-D case at all — they require a separate action.
Applies to Title IV-D child support matters in the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit (Hillsborough County), including East Circuit Divisions "P," "R," and "T" (Plant City). Effective June 1, 2026.
Under AO S-2026-025, Title IV-D proceedings for establishment, modification and enforcement of support, foreign support orders, and determination of arrears are heard by child support enforcement hearing officers, who may also establish paternity where paternity is uncontested. Contested paternity cases and disputes involving custody, visitation and property will NOT be heard by the hearing officers, will not be filed within the Title IV-D case, and must be brought as a separate action. All Title IV-D cases are filed in Child Support Enforcement Division "Y" and also assigned to a family law division by equitable random distribution. Any Title IV-D matter misfiled in a family law or juvenile division is transferred to Division "Y" by the clerk upon proper notification.
Contested paternity cases and disputes involving custody, visitation and property will not be heard by the hearing officers. Disputes involving custody, visitation and property will not be filed within the Title IV-D case but instead must be filed as a separate action. These issues will not be litigated in the Title IV-D case.
Parties in dissolution and most family financial cases must exchange a financial affidavit and specified financial documents within 45 days of service of the initial pleading, file a certificate of compliance, and supplement as circumstances change.
Small claims cases (up to $8,000) begin with a mandatory pretrial conference where the court narrows issues and typically orders mediation. Failure to appear can result in default or dismissal.
CV-E runs a structured 150-day case management conference track with published CMO templates for jury, non-jury, and complex settings, plus a projected-vs-actual trial period system and 2026–2027 published trial calendars.