N.D. Fla. Local Admiralty Rule A — General Provisions — FL · BenchPath

N.D. Fla. Local Admiralty Rule A — General Provisions

High confidence· verified September 26, 2026Local Rules

Summary

N.D. Fla. Local Admiralty Rule A — General Provisions: the court's own rule, verbatim from LOCAL RULES UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA (Effective November 24, 2015), official PDF, sha-custodied. Court-level requirement: applies in every case before the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida alongside the federal rules and any judge-specific procedures.

Requirement

(1) Scope of the Local Admiralty and Maritime Rules. The local admiralty and maritime rules apply to the procedures in admiralty and maritime claims within the meaning of Fed.R.Civ.P. 9(h), which in turn are governed by the Supplemental Rules for Certain Admiralty and Maritime Claims of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. (2) Citation Format. (a) The Supplemental Rules for Certain Admiralty and Maritime Claims of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure shall be cited as “Supplemental Rule (_____)”. (b) The Local Rules of the Northern District of Florida shall be cited as “Local Rule (____)”. (c) The Local Admiralty and Maritime Rules shall be cited as “Local Admiralty Rule (_____)”. (3) Application of Local Admiralty and Maritime Rules. The Local Admiralty Rules shall apply to all actions governed by Local Admiralty Rule A(1), and to the extent possible should be construed to be consistent with the other local rules of this Court. To the extent that a Local Admiralty Rule conflicts with another local rule of this Court, the Local Admiralty Rule shall control. (4) Designation of “In Admiralty” Proceedings. Every complaint filed as a Fed. R. Civ. P. 9(h) action shall boldly set forth the words “IN ADMIRALTY” following the designation of the Court. This requirement is in addition to any statements which may be contained in the body of the complaint. (5) Verification of Pleadings, Claims and Answers to Interrogatories. Every complaint and claim filed pursuant to Supplemental Rules (B), (C) and/or (D) shall be verified on oath or solemn affirmation by a party, or an officer of a corporate party. If a party or corporate officer is not within the district, verification of a complaint, claim and/or answers to interrogatories may be made by an agent, an attorney-in-fact, or the attorney of record. Such person shall state briefly the source of his or her knowledge, or information and belief, and shall declare that the document affirmed is true to the best of his or her knowledge, and/or information and belief. Additionally, such person shall state that he or she is authorized to make this representation on behalf of the party or corporate officer, and shall indicate why verification is not made by a party or a corporate officer. Such verification will be deemed to have been made by the party to whom the document might apply as if verified personally. Any interested party may move the Court, with or without a request for stay, for the personal oath or affirmation of a party or all parties, or that of a corporate officer. If required by the Court, such verification may be obtained by commission, or as otherwise provided by Court order. (6) Issuance of Process. Except as limited by the provisions of Supplemental Rule (B)(1) and Local Admiralty Rule B(3) or Supplemental Rule (C)(3) and Local Admiralty Rule C(2); or in suits prosecuted in forma pauperis and sought to be filed without prepayment of fees or costs, or without security; all process shall be issued by the Court without further notice of Court. (7) Publication of Notices. Unless otherwise required by the Court, or applicable Local Admiralty or Supplemental Rule, whenever a notice is required to be published by any statute of the United States, or by any Supplemental Rule or Local Admiralty Rule, such notice shall be published at least once, without further order of Court, in an approved newspaper in the county or counties where the vessel or property was located at the time of arrest, attachment, or seizure, and if different, in the county within the Northern District of Florida where the lawsuit is pending. Publication of Notice of Sale shall be as provided in Local Admiralty Rule E(16). Upon a showing of good cause, the Court may require additional publications if necessary to provide reasonable notice. The newspaper of largest circulation in a county in the Northern District is rebuttably presumed to be a newspaper of general circulation in that same county. For purposes of this subsection, an approved newspaper shall be a newspaper of general circulation, designated from time to time by the Court. A listing of these approved newspapers will be made available in the Clerk’s Office during normal business hours. (8) Form and Return of Process in In Personam Actions. Unless otherwise ordered by the Court, Fed.R.Civ.P. 9(h) process shall be by civil summons, and shall be returnable twenty (20) days after service of process; except that process issued in accordance with Supplemental Rule (B) shall conform to the requirements of that rule. (9) Judicial Officer Defined. As used in these Local Admiralty Rules, the term “judicial officer” or “Court” shall mean either a United States District Judge or a United States Magistrate Judge. (10) Appendix of Forms. The forms presented in the Appendix provide an illustration of the format and content of papers filed in admiralty and maritime actions within the Northern District of Florida. While the forms are sufficient, they are neither mandatory nor exhaustive.

Source of truth

(1) Scope of the Local Admiralty and Maritime Rules. The local admiralty and maritime rules apply to the procedures in admiralty and maritime claims within the meaning of Fed.R.Civ.P. 9(h), which in turn are governed by the Supplemental Rules for Certain Admiralty and Maritime Cl

Official source: N.D. Fla. — Northern District of Florida
Source health: Healthy · checked October 4, 2026
Effective date: November 24, 2015
Last verified: September 26, 2026benchpath-appfed-flrules-2026-09-26

Change history

September 20, 2026Monitor could not safely verify the registered source.
September 8, 2026Monitor could not safely verify the registered source.
August 17, 2026Monitor could not safely verify the registered source.
August 6, 2026Monitor: content changed at N.D. Fla. — Northern District of Florida. Review before republishing dependent rules.
August 5, 2026Monitor: content changed at N.D. Fla. — Northern District of Florida. Review before republishing dependent rules.
August 3, 2026Monitor: content changed at N.D. Fla. — Northern District of Florida. Review before republishing dependent rules.
August 2, 2026Monitor: content changed at N.D. Fla. — Northern District of Florida. Review before republishing dependent rules.
August 1, 2026Monitor: content changed at N.D. Fla. — Northern District of Florida. Review before republishing dependent rules.
July 31, 2026Monitor: content changed at N.D. Fla. — Northern District of Florida. Review before republishing dependent rules.
July 30, 2026

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