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47 verbatim requirements extracted from judge-michael-d-porter__Civil-Jury-Procedures-Porter-V3-060126.pdf, across 6 topics.
Nineteenth Judicial Circuit (Indian River, Martin, Okeechobee, St. Lucie). Check the order's own effective and rescission dates before relying on it. Procedural information only; not legal advice.
HEARING TIME & ARGUMENT LIMITS • Table of Contents A. Communication with the Judicial Office…………………………………………….. 2 B. Scheduling Procedures……………………………………………………………….. 3 C. Remote Appearance………………………………………………………………….. 5 D. Submission of Orders and Judgments………………………………………………... 5 E. Courtesy Copies of Case Law and Other Documents………………………………... 6 F. Emergency and Other Urgent Matters……………………………………………….. 6 G. Exhibits for Evidentiary Hearing Proceedings………………………………………. 7 H. Pretrial Procedures, Conferences, and Motion Practice……………………………… 7 I. Trial and E-Docket Procedures………………………………………………………. 8 J. General Magistrate…………………………………………………………………… 11 K. Interpreting Services…………………………………………………………………. 11 L. Other Division Procedures…………………………………………………………… 11 M. Other Helpful Links………………………………………………………………….. 12 • • Method of Communication : The preferred method of communication is via email and emails will receive the quickest attention. Correspondence and/or emergency motions should be emailed to SLCJudge4@circuit19.org. You must carbon copy the opposing counsel or party (if pro se) on all email correspondence. Email sent to this office must contain the following in the subject line: - Case Short Style Name (Jones v. Jones) - Case Number (short case number is okay – example: 21CA234) - Purpose of Email (Order, Notice of Cancellation of Hearing, Request for Hearing more than one hour, etc.) - If you are requesting an Emergency Hearing, you MUST indicate in the subject line “Request for EMERGENCY Hearing” • The body of the email must contain a brief description of the purpose of the email. If a hearing date and time over one (1) hour is requested, then you must include a good faith estimate of time needed for the time for the entire hearing (after consultation with opposing counsel/party). • B. SCHEDULING PROCEDURES All motions must be filed with the Clerk before you set the motion on the online calendaring system or contact this office for hearing time. • If you are scheduling a hearing on objections, the good faith conferral must be listed in the Notice of Hearing. • Failure to include this certification will result on the motion and/or hearing being stricken from the docket. • • Uniform Motion Calendar (“UMC”) Procedures: These hearings are non -evidentiary (no witnesses) and will not be permitted to exceed ten (10) minutes in length. This means that each side will have five (5) minutes to argue their position. Hearings are limited to ten (10) minutes per case and only one motion per “UMC” slot. All UMC Motions will be conducted via Zoom only. Meeting ID: 553 306 8943 • Scheduling UMC Hearings: Attorneys may schedule UMC hearings using the online scheduling program at Attorney Calendar Login. • • Scheduling Hearings of less than 1-hour: All hearings of one (1) hour or less may be scheduled online at Attorney Calendar Login. You must first register to obtain you r user ID and password on the site. Additional motions may not be “piggy-backed” without permission from the Judicial Assistant. • • Scheduling Hearings of more than 1 -hour : Please note any hearings that require more than one hour must be requested by email to SLCJudge4@Circuit19.org. A copy of the motion MUST be attached. All EVIDENTIARY hearings will be conducted in person without exception. Non- Evidentiary hearings may be noticed for Zoom or in person. If a NON -EVIDENTIARY hearing is noticed in person and you would like to appear via Zoom, a motion must be filed. Meeting ID: 553 306 8943. • • Notice of Hearing: a notice of hearing must be filed and served immediately after reserving hearing time. A notice of hearing involving any remote appearance must list the judicial Zoom credentials. All notices of hearing must contain the ADA notification required by Florida Rule of General Practice and Judicial Administration 2.540. • • Submission Deadlines: A copy of the motion, notice of hearing, (and a proposed order if a UMC hearing) MUST also be emailed to the Judicial Assistant at SLCJudge4@Circuit19.org within five (5) CALENDAR days of scheduling the hearing. All proposed orders must be submitted in WORD format. Failure to timely provide a copy of the notice, motion, (and proposed order if a UMC hearing), to the court will result in the matter being stricken from the docket. If your case is stricken from a docket, it will not be rescheduled on that same date. • • Coordinating Hearings and Unilaterally Setting Hearings : The moving party is responsible for contacting the opposing party to coordinate the hearing date. If after three (3) business days you are unable to coordinate the hearing date, you may unilaterally schedule the hearing setting forth in your good faith certificate the attempts that were made to coordinate the hearing. • • Cancelling Hearings: If you cancel your hearing, you must file a Notice of Cancellation and advise the Judicial Assistant by email no later than noon, the day before the hearing, with a copy to all parties, so that it may be removed from the Court’s docket. It is the responsibility of the moving party to remove any hearing from the Court’s calendaring system. Simply filing a Notice of Cancellation does not remove the hearing from the • Court’s docket. Attorneys who repeatedly abuse the online calendaring by not removing hearings from the online calendar may be denied the privilege of self-scheduling. • • Requirements for Court Reporters : All evidentiary matters (both trials and hearings) must be reported by a court reporter. Counsel for the Petitioner is responsible for having a court reporter present. If counsel for the Petitioner does not plan on asking to have the proceedings reported, then he/she MUST timely notify the opposing party so that they may obtain a reporter, should they wish to do so. Failure to do so may be grounds for cancellation of the trial and may be grounds for sanctions. • • Remote Appearance Procedure: The court maintains a hybrid virtual courtroom, allowing parties to appear either in person or remotely, as provided by Florida Rule of General Practice and Judicial Administration 2.530. However, ALL EVIDENTIARY HEARINGS AND TRIALS WILL BE CONDUCTED IN PERSON, unless otherwise permitted by the Court prior to the hearing. A Non-Evidentiary hearing may be noticed as a virtual or in person hearing. The Notice of Hearing MUST indicate the type of appearance (i.e. In Person or Remote). • Platform Used: The court uses Zoom for remote appearances. • • Deadline for Submissions: If counsel is asked to prepare an order, the order shall be drafted and circulated to opposing counsel or pro se party within fourteen (14) business days of the hearing and must be submitted to the Court in WORD format and to all counsel and pro se parties within seven (7) days of the hearing, unless otherwise ordered at the hearing. • • When Required: When counsel/ party intends to rely on case law or other documents in a hearing, a courtesy electronic copy submitted to the court and the opposing party in advance is required. Please do NOT send courtesy copies of documents that have been filed and docketed in the court file. • • Deadline for Submissions: Courtesy copies of case law, legal memoranda, and/ or hearing materials must be submitted no later than five (5) business days prior to the hearing. • • Scheduling: If the court determines that an emergency exists, a hearing will be scheduled unilaterally by the court . All parties shall make themselves available for the emergency hearing, barring exigent circumstances. • G. EXHIBITS FOR EVIDENTIARY HEARING PROCEEDINGS: • At least five (5) business days prior to the evidentiary hearing, a witness list and an exhibit list should be e -filed and e -mailed to the Court and all parties. Exhibits should not be emailed to the Court in advance of an in-person hearing. Exhibits shall also be exchanged between the parties at least five (5) business days prior to the day of trial or evidentiary hearing. The exhibits will be marked by the Clerk at the beginning of the trial/hearing alphabetically for identification by the side seeking to offer the exhibit into evidence. If the exhibit is admitted into evidence, the Clerk will sequentially number the exhibit in evidence. If the exhibit is not admitted, the Clerk will retain it with only the alphabetical identification. Once exhibits are marked, either for identification or in evidence, and given to the clerk, they become the property of the Clerk of Court a nd may not be altered or removed from the courtroom without order of the Court. • • Case Management Conference/ Status Conference: Any party may request or schedule a case management conference (CMC) or Status Hearing when a case requires. The court strongly encourages the early use of CMC in more complex cases, multiple-party litigation, or any case that might benefit from court intervention. Unless excused by the court in advance, all CMC’s are mandatory for attorneys and self -represented litigants. Parties represented by counsel are not required to appear at a CMC. Any request for a CMC or status conference must articulate the reasons for the necessity of the conference. • • Continuance of E -Docket Call: If your case is continued or rolled over to another date for trial and/ or E-Docket Call this does not extend the cut-off dates set out in the original Case Management Plan and Order Setting Trial. You must obtain a Court order either by stipulation or hearing to extend the cut-off dates as set forth in the Case Management Plan and Order Setting Trial. • K. INTERPRETING SERVICES: If you are in need of translation services, it is your responsibility to being a Florida Supreme Court certified interpreter to your court hearing. Your notification of the need of an interpreter to either the judicial assistant of the clerk is greatly appreciated at the time of scheduling of the hearing and/ or trial for planning purposes. • • Motions for Rehearing, Reconsideration, or New Trial : Upon filing said motion the moving party shall send a copy to the Judicial Assistant for review. The copy of the motion sent to the Judicial Assistant shall be accompanied by a generic order granting/denying the motion. If the moving party fails to comply, any party may furnish a copy of the motion and the required documents to the Court. If the Court determines that a hearing is necessary, the movant will be advised to schedule and hearing and file appropriate notices. Do not set a Motion for Rehearing, Reconsideration, or New Trial for hearing without first receiving permission from the Court. • • Withdrawal or Substitution of Counsel : You must follow the provisions of Fla.R.Jud.Ad. 2.505. You must obtain the client’s consent in writing which shall be filed with the Court, or a hearing must be held after proper notice to the client. PROPOSED ORDERS • • Response to Inquiries: The judicial assistant is not authorized to provide legal advice. All inquiries received that are in compliance with the court ’s division procedures will be responded to in the order in which they are received. • • Certificate of Service of All Court Filings and Proposed Orders: All court filings and proposed orders MUST contain proper address certification i.e. the FULL address of ALL parties or email address where the motion was served (or order will be served.) “I certify that a copy of the foregoing was emailed to all parties through the e-service portal” is NOT sufficient. Likewise, listing a party on the order “cc:” without listing the address is insufficient. If the party does not have an e-service address, then the moving party will be required to mail a copy of the court filing or order to that party. • • Format: All proposed orders must be submitted in WORD format . All proposed orders must be accompanied by a cover letter either (1) certifying that all parties agree to the order or (2) containing a statement identifying any disagreement of the parties as to the proposed order. All proposed orders and motion MUST contain proper address certification – i.e. the FULL address or email address where the motion was served (or order will be served.) “I certify that a copy of the forgoing was emailed to all parties through the e -service portal” is NOT sufficient. Likewise, listing a party on the order “cc:” without listing the address is insufficient. The order will reflect that counsel will be required to mail copies of any orders that require US mail. • • Submission Method: All proposed orders shall be submitted to the Court via email to SLCJudge4@Circuit19.org. • • Agreed Orders: If you have reached an agreement/stipulation, a separate agreed order in WORD must be provided to the Court with language approving the agreement/stipulation. If you have exhibits to include in the agreed order, you must also submit the agreed order in .pdf format and include all necessary attachments. The Court will not execute agreed orders, or stipulations without a written verification or cover letter stating the action requested, that a copy was provided to all counsel of record and pro se parties, and if there is a stipulation or an agreed order, that there are no objections to the entry of the order. Do not state in a cover letter words to the effect: “By copy of this cover letter to opposing counsel, opposing counsel is requested to advise the Court if there is an objection to the proposed order” OR “No objection was received.” Instead, advise the Court if there is an objection to the proposed order. Agreed Orders shall be submitted to the Court via email to SLCJudge4@Circuit19.org along with a copy of the corresponding motion. Motions must be in in compliance with rule 1.202. • • Discovery Motions and Motions to Compel: Motions to Compel, as well as all discovery motions must comply with the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure 1.202. Motions to Compel must also comply with Administrative Order 94-10. • When a motion to compel discovery alleges a complete failure to respond or object to discovery, and the time for complying with the discovery request has lapsed and there has been no request for an extension of time, an ex parte order may be entered requiring compliance with the original discovery demand. The movant shall submit a copy of the motion and proposed order(s) shall be emailed to the Judicial Assistant (copies to other side) in WORD format. CASE MANAGEMENT • • Pre-Trial Conference: All cases will be referred to the General Magistrate for a pretrial conference according to the timeline set out in the Case Management Plan. The parties are to schedule the conference before the General Magistrate using his online calendar. The pretrial conference must be scheduled no later than the third week of the month prior to the e-docket date. • • Pre-Trial Compliance: This Court requires full compliance with the Case Management Plan and Order Setting Trial, which includes, without limitation, timely submission of a joint pre-trial statement. Your case will be subject to removal from the trial docket if a joint pre-trial statement is not filed in compliance with the Case Management Plan and Order Setting Trial. Motions in limine and other motions concerning how the trial is to be conducted will not be entertained during trial or on the day of jury selection, unless the Court is satisfied that with due diligence, the matter could not have been heard pre-trial. • • Notices for Trial are not required, as trial dates are set by the Case Management Plan and Order Setting Trial. • • All E -Docket Calls will be held in Chambers on the first business day of each month. Counsel will not attend E-Docket Call. Instead, counsel with cases on each month’s docket will fill out the E-Docket Call Form found in your Case Management Plan and Order Setting Trial, and e-mail it to SLCJudge4@Circuit19.org. The Court will make its best effort to place you on the Trial Schedule during the week(s) you have selected. Cases will be stacked during your selected week(s) according to the year that the case was filed, with the older cases being placed at the top of that week’s trial schedule. • • All other trial specific information is found on your Case Management Plan and Order Setting Trial or your Trial Order. • • Jury Instructions: Jury instructions are to be prepared by both sides and exchanged prior to the E -Docket Call pursuant to the Case Management Plan and Order Setting Trial. A final draft in Word format shall be provided to the Court by e -mail (SLCJudge4@Circuit19.org), no later than noon the Friday prior to the start of the trial. The Court intends to provide the jury with a written copy of all jury instructions when the jury retires to deliberate. Therefore, there should be enough copies of the final instructions for each juror and the Court, counsel and the court reporter. In addition, the final instructions (the instructions that go back with the jury for deliberations) should not contain any citations, jury instruction titles, or information as to who requested the instruction. In certain cases, and with the agreement of all counsel, the Court may provide some substantive law instructions to the jury during preliminary instructions and/or before closing arguments. EXHIBITS & EVIDENCE • This procedure does NOT change or modify the Court’s Case Management Plan and Order Setting Trial stating the deadline to meet and exchange documents and the deadline to list all witnesses and exhibits. • • Opening and Closing: Only demonstrative aids or exhibits marked by the Clerk, agreed to by all counsel, or approved by the Court may be used in either opening or closing. The Court will discuss with counsel the time requirement of both opening and closing and will expect th at a reasonable estimate be provided by counsel. Please note that opening statements will begin immediately after a jury is selected and sworn unless otherwise ordered by the Court. • • Exhibits: If counsel has questions regarding submitting exhibits to the Court, please contact the Clerk of Court/Civil Division. All exhibits are to be marked for identification by the clerk prior to the start of trial. Exhibits which will be stipulated into evidence may • be marked in evidence. Once exhibits are marked, either for identification or in evidence, they become the property of the Clerk of Court and may not be altered or removed from the courtroom without order of the Court. No exhibits are to be published or exhibited to the jury until admitted into evidence and authorized by the Court. Objections to exhibits not preserved in the pre-trial stipulation shall be deemed waived. • • Demonstrative Aids: Any demonstrative aid that is to be used at trial must be marked by the clerk and exhibited to opposing counsel and the Court prior to the start of trial. The Court will hear argument of any counsel opposing the use of the demonstrative aids prior to the start of trial. No aids are to be shown to the jury without prior approval of the Court. FILING & INITIATION • • Ex-Parte Communication: Please do not ask the Judicial Assistant or other Court personnel to communicate any message to the Judge as this is prohibited ex-parte communication. All communication with the Judge shall be in open Court with all parties present, in writing/ email copied to opposing counsel/party, and/or filed with the Clerk and served on the opposing party/ counsel. No party or attorney shall otherwise communicate directly with the Judge. All emails must include all parties (even if pro-se) and the style of the case, or they will be discarded. DISCOVERY DISPUTES • J. GENERAL MAGISTRATE: This court refers discovery matters, attorney’s fees motions, and all non dispositive matters to the General Magistrate. You may obtain an order of referral by requesting one from the magistrate’s assistant by email at civil_magistrate@circuit19.org.
Table of Contents A. Communication with the Judicial Office…………………………………………….. 2 B. Scheduling Procedures……………………………………………………………….. 3 C. Remote Appearance………………………………………………………………….. 5 D. Submission of Orders and Judgments………………………………………………... 5 E. Courtesy Copies of Case Law and Other Documents………………………………... 6 F. Emergency and Other Urgent Matters……………………………………………….. 6 G. Exhibits for Evidentiary Hearing Proceedings………………………………………. 7 H. Pretrial Procedures, Conferences, and Motion Practice……………………………… 7 I. Trial and E-Docket Procedures………………………………………………………. 8 J. General Magistrate…………………………………………………………………… 11 K. Interpreting Services…………………………………………………………………. 11 L. Other Division Procedures…………………………………………………………… 11 M. Other Helpful Links………………………………………………………………….. 12
Reviewer note: Document sha256: e908d5b3c305db0ae61c7fef33045f96f1abb5c679e5c1864c0277984c17d920. One rule per order rather than per topic, so an order's requirements stay together. Published during the completeness pass. | Title normalised 2026-07-26 for readability; the court's own asset name was "19th Cir. — judge-michael-d-porter__Civil-Jury-Procedures-Porter-V3-060126.pdf: published requirements". Only the display title changed — the requirement text, source URL and hash are untouched. Text layer cleaned 2026-09-08 (Phase 3g): 7 kerning-split words rejoined; wording untouched. Verbatim from the order, captured 2026-07-24; whitespace normalised only. No OCR was used anywhere in this chain. [moved from the text 2026-09-14]
4 verbatim requirements on hearings.
2 verbatim requirements on hearing time in LAUREN N. PEFFER's division.