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8 verbatim requirements from Eleventh Circuit administrative order 08-18.
Eleventh Judicial Circuit (Miami-Dade). Procedural information only; not legal advice.
Verbatim from the operative section of Eleventh Circuit administrative order 08-18, harvested 2026-08-02; whitespace normalised only. • Petitions for Approval of a Settlement of a Minor shall be filed in a pending action in the General Jurisdiction Division; or, in the absence thereof, the Petition for Approval of Settlement of a Minor (“Petition”) shall be filed in the Probate Division of the Circuit Court. If a Legal Guardianship preexists, the filing of the Petition, and said Petition is filed in a pending action of within the General Jurisdiction Division, the General Jurisdiction - 2 - Division Judge may transfer the Petition to the Probate Division. Motions to transfer a guardianship to another jurisdiction shall be made in the Probate Division. • The Guardian Ad Litem shall represent the interest of all plaintiffs under the age of 18 years with respect to the Petition and he/she shall file a written report with respect to the Petition and he/she shall file a written report with respect to the proposed apportionment of the settlement proceeds, and with respect to the determination of attorney’s fees and costs and the apportionment thereof. Said written report shall be served on all interested parties. The Order approving the Petition may also award costs to the Guardian Ad Litem. The Guardian Ad Litem should serve on a pro bono publico basis, unless the Court determines that the matter is unusually time consuming or complex, or the Court finds that other extraordinary circumstances warrant a fee being allowed. If a fee is to be awarded, the Court may consider the reasonably anticipated remaining services to be performed by the Guardian Ad Litem. The Guardian Ad Litem shall be given an opportunity to testify at the hearing or telephonically at the discretion of the Court. Part II Re: Court approval and appointment of the Guardian Ad Litems. • The appointment of the Guardian Ad Litem must be without the necessity of bond or notice. See §744.3025(1)(c), Fla. Stat. (2006). • Unless waived, the court shall award reasonable fees and costs to the Guardian Ad Litem to be paid out of the gross proceeds of the settlement. See §744.3025(2), Fla. Stat. (2006). • A Guardian Ad Litem appointed with respect to a proposed settlement affecting the interests of a minor shall, not later than 5 days prior to the hearing on a petition for order authorizing settlement, file and serve a report indicating the Guardian Ad Litem’s determination regarding whether the proposed settlement will be in the best interest of the minor. See Fla. Prob. R. 5.636(f) for details of what the report must contain. Part III Re: Disbursement of settlement proceeds and Legal Guardianship. • Upon approval of the petition for settlement of the minor’s claim including attorney’s fees and costs the Judge before whom the civil action is pending in the General Jurisdiction Division shall enter an appropriate order which shall authorize the payment of the gross settlement proceeds into an interest-bearing trust account under the control and supervision of the attorney for the Plaintiff. Said order shall authorize such attorney to disburse to all plaintiffs, other than the minor(s) plaintiff(s) who are subject of a guardianship proceeding, the settlement proceeds which have been apportioned to such persons, and shall further authorize the disbursement of the approved attorney’s fees and costs attributable to the minor’s settlement. However, as to any net settlement proceeds which will be used to fund a tax-free structured settlement for the benefit of the minor, upon agreement of the parties, said proceeds may be held by the Defendant pending the funding of the structured settlement and a court order approving such. (See attached form order) The attorney’s fees spent for the opening of the guardianship shall be included as a general rule in the attorney’s fees in the personal injury case. When there is minimum compensation to the attorney in the personal injury case, then the Court may exercise its discretion and award additional attorney’s fees. • After the guardianship is established by the Probate Division Judge and the attorney’s trust account is in receipt of the minor’s net settlement share of the settlement, the Probate Division Judge shall have the sole discretion to direct further disbursements of the minor’s funds from the attorney’s trust account to an appropriate financial institution/depository; whether disbursements are structured settlements, special needs trust, or the like. Disbursements are only to be made pursuant to a court disbursement order. Copies of the signed closing statement, Guardian Ad Litem’s report, and the Final Order from the General Jurisdiction Division shall be served on all interested persons. Any costs involved with the purchase of an annuity shall be included in the closing statement. • Copies of the Guardian Ad Litem’s report, the closing statement, and final order of the General Jurisdiction Judge, and any other orders of disbursement, shall be promptly filed in the Probate guardianship file. After an order designating a restricted depository is entered by the Court, and after an order authorizing disbursement into a restricted depository is entered by the Court, the original depository receipt of assets shall be promptly filed into the Probate Division file. See generally §69.031, Fla. Stat. (1967).
Petitions for Approval of a Settlement of a Minor shall be filed in a pending action in the General Jurisdiction Division; or, in the absence thereof, the Petition for Approval of Settlement of a Minor (“Petition”) shall be filed in the Probate Division of the Circuit Court. If a Legal Guardianship preexists, the filing of the Petition, and said Petition is filed in a pending action of within the General Jurisdiction Division, the General Jurisdiction - 2 - Division Judge may transfer the Petition to the Probate Division. Motions to transfer a guardianship to another jurisdiction shall be made in the Probate Division.
Reviewer note: Order PDF sha256: 036e21fc9f3c9d8625cda94febca7131777900a1ed6a908b9f1df700b68f2c07. Read from the order's ORDERED section as numbered paragraphs.
18 verbatim requirements from 5th Jud. Cir., M-2018-65 — sha256-hashed 2026-07-25.
13 verbatim requirements from 5th Jud. Cir., Interpreter Services – English — sha256-hashed 2026-07-25.
25 verbatim mandatory provisions from AO 2022-004.