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7 verbatim requirements extracted from media-11836__2025-Probate-and-Guardianship-Guidelines-and-Procedures.pdf, across 1 topic.
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 • The email address for submitting probate checklists, petitions/motions, proposed orders, and letters of administration for processing is: ProbateSLC@Circuit19.org The email address for submitting all guardianship matters for processing is: SLCJudge11@circuit19.org Emails regarding notices of hearing and proposed orders directly relating to hearings is: SLCJudge11@circuit19.org COMMUNICATIONS WITH JUDGE’S OFFICE: Please do not ask the Judicial Assistant or other Court personnel to communicate any message to the Judge. This is prohibited ex- parte communication. The Court’s staff is not permitted to relay ex-parte information to the Judge. This office can best respond to all communications via e -mail to: SLCJudge11@circuit19.org or ProbateSLC@circuit19.org. E-mails must contain the case name, case number, subject matter and relevant date(s). Please ensure that all e-mails are also copied to all opposing counsel and/or pro se parties and indicate same in the body of your e-mail to prevent ex-parte communication to the Court. ORDER PREPARATION & SUBMISSION: Proposed orders must be submitted in Microsoft Word format with a transmittal letter confirmation to all counsel and pro se parties and copy of motion/petition. All proposed orders shall include the proper jurisdiction in the heading, the proper case style, case number, as well as the service language and list . Please do not use un- editable tables in the order. The proposed order’s title must describe the subject and ruling of the Court, i.e. “Order Granting Plaintiff’s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment on Liability ” and shall contain the name and e-mail service address for all parties. See, Fla.R.Civ.P., Rule 1.100(c)(1). If any party does not have an e -mail service address, that party’s physical service address shall be contained in the proposed order, and it must be noted that the moving party shall serve each party who does not have an email address and file a certificate of such service. If counsel is asked to prepare an order, the order shall be drafted and circulated within 2 business days of the hearing and submitted to the Court via e -mail to the Judicial Assistant, with a transmittal letter confirmation to all counsel and pro se parties within 7 business days of the hearing, advising the Court in writing of any objection to the form of the proposed order. The Court will not execute proposed orders, agreed orders, or stipulations without transmittal confirmation to all counsel of reco rd and pro se parties . The transmittal letter shall be authored by counsel of record versus an office paralegal or other staff. Do not include Certificate of Service by the Clerk. Please include the following language as the service language for all proposed orders: A COPY OF THIS ORDER IS BEING SERVED ON THE FOLLOWING PARTIES VIA THE E-FILING PORTAL: (Include all parties with e-mail addresses). • COUNSEL FOR (Insert the moving party, e.g. PLAINTIFF’S, DEFENDANT’S, etc.) SHALL SERVE A COPY OF THIS ORDER ON THE FOLLOWING PARTIES IMMEDIATELY AND FILE A CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE IN THIS COURT FILE: (Include parties that only have physical addresses). COURT REPORTERS: Fla. R. Jud. Admin. 2.535(b) requires that the party requesting a court reporter must arrange for and pay the reporting fees for any hearing or trial. This requirement shall not preclude taxation of costs as authorized by law, A. PROBATE DIVISION PROCEDURES: Checklists are required for both Opening and Closing Estates. The checklists are posted on Judge Levin’s web page under “forms” on https://www.circuit19.org/judges/steven-levin-j: 1. Opening a Formal Estate; 2. Closing a Formal Estate (Discharge); 3. Summary Administration; and 4. Disposition of Personal Property with Administration Attorneys must verify completion and correctness of the Checklists by personal signature. No signature stamps are allowed. Once the checklist is complete, the attorney’s office shall submit via email only to ProbateSLC@circuit19.org : 1. Completed checklist 2. Proposed Order(s) in Word format; and 3. A description of the documents being provided, as well as the action you wish to be taken. Original documents and monies are not to be sent to the Judge’s office, and the Judge’s office takes no responsibility for such items. B. GUARDIANSHIP DIVISION PROCEDURES: • INCAPACITY PROCEEDINGS: You MUST submit the following in WORD format via e-mail to: SLCJudge11@circuit19.org within 5 days of filing your petition: 1. Notice of Petition to Determine Incapacity with the Hearing date filled in, if possible (refer to and schedule using the online scheduling system); 2. Application to Determine Indigency Status 3. Order Appointing Attorney/Elisor; and 4. Order Appointing Examining Committee. If there is information on the proposed orders that can be filled in by your office, please do so before submitting to the Court, including case number and e-mail service addresses. Do not include Certificate of Service by the Clerk. • In order for the Court to determine who shall be appointed to represent the AIP, an Application to Determine Indigency Status MUST be submitted to the Clerk of Court at the time of filing. A sample can be found on our webpage. If a hearing date for the Petition to Determine Incapacity has not been set at the time of submitting the documents referenced above, the Court will select a date of his own choosing approximately 28 days out from the date the orders are entered. If you have a pending Guardianship or Mental Health case that needs to be set for hearing and there is no time available on the online scheduling calendar, please email the Judicial Assistant at SLCJudge11@circuit19.org with the details of your request, including a copy of the petition/motion and the total time needed for hearing. C. CONTESTED PROBATE • I. REQUIREMENTS FOR COURT REPORTERS: All evidentiary matters (both trials and hearings) must be recorded by a court reporter. It is the moving party’s responsibility to arrange to have a court reporter present. II. TRIALS: If a probate matter needs to be set for trial, a notice for trial shall be filed in the court file and a copy shall be submitted to the Judges’ Judicial Assistant via email at SLCJudge11@circuit19.org. The matter will be scheduled for a case management conference on ce the Notice of Trial is received by the Court. The matter will not be set for case management conference if the Notice of Trial is not submitted to the Judge’s office. III. SETTLEMENT OF CASES: If your case settles, immediately notify the Court’s Judicial Assistant via e -mail at SLC Judge11@circuit19.org, with a transmittal confirmation to all parties, ATTACHING AN ALREADY E-FILED NOTICE OF SETTLEMENT, DISMISSAL DOCUMENTS AND FINAL DISPOSITION FORM. IV. HEARING SCHEDULING/HEARING CANCELLATION/APPEARANCE BY ZOOM FOR PROBATE AND GUARDIANSHIP MATTERS: PAPERLESS OFFICE: This office is paperless. All notices of hearing must be emailed to SLCJudge11@circuit19.org, no later than 5 business days prior to the scheduled hearing and the notice of hearing must be served on opposing counsel 5 business days prior to the scheduled hearing. Proposed orders do not need to be sent to the Court prior to the hearing unless requested. All other hearing materials and trial materials shall be filed in the court file for the Court to review. Case law and memorandum provided to the Court during the hearing may not be considered. There is no need to submit a copy of the motion via mail or email. • *All motions must be e-filed PRIOR to setting a hearing; however, the mere filing of a motion is insufficient to set a motion for hearing. The motion must be set for hearing to bring the matter to the Court’s attention. You are required to provide the Judge’s office with the Notice of Hearing and file all hearing materials in the court file for the Court to review. All hearings for 45 minutes or less, including Uniform Motion Calendar and Special Set Hearings must be scheduled online by counsel. Please refer to Judge Levin’s online scheduling calendar posted at https://slccjis.stlucieco.gov/attorney_calendar to confirm and schedule available dates. You must register to obtain your User ID and password on the site. When registering on the site, please include your e-mail address. Parties will be restricted to the time allotted for the hearing. The Court reserves the discretion to reject any scheduling. Attorneys who repeatedly abuse the online scheduling may be denied further privileges of self -scheduling. Any hearings requiring more than 45 minutes must be scheduled by contacting Judge Levin’s Judicial Assistant via e- mail. The motion shall already be e-filed in the court file and the email shall include a statement from counsel explaining exactly why more than 45 minutes is needed. Cancellation of any hearing must be done: 1) through the online court scheduling calendar; 2) by e-filing a Notice of Cancellation of Hearing in advance of the hearing date; and 3) by sending a courtesy copy of your Notice of Cancellation of Hearing to the Judicial Assistant e-mail, once you have e-filed same. UMC Hearings and Special Set Hearings may be attended via Zoom. To appear via Zoom parties must notify the Judicial Assistant via email at: SLCJudge11@circuit19.org at least 3 days prior to the hearing. V. UNI FORM MOTION CALENDAR: Uniform Motion Calendar hearings are for 5 to 10 minutes, non-evidentiary motions only. Uniform Motion Calendar hearings must be scheduled online . Please refer to Judge Levin’s calendar posted at https://slccjis.stlucieco.gov/attorney_calendar to confirm and schedule available dates. Uniform Motion Calendar hearings will normally be held on designated days from 9:30 A.M. to 10:00 A.M. All Uniform Motion Calendar hearings must be noticed for 9:30 a.m. UMC’s for Probate and Guardianship cases should only be scheduled on the days designated for Probate and Guardianship. Please contact the Judicial Assistant prior to setting UMCs on any day not designated for Probate and Guardianship cases. Hearings on UMC are limited to ten (10) minutes per case ( not per motion). Additional motions may not be “piggy-backed” by cross-notice unless counsel first confirms with opposing parties and the online calendar, that sufficient additional time is available and can be reserved for same. UMC is heard on a “first come, first serve” basis. After proper not ice, failure of any party to appear at the hearing shall not prevent a party from proceeding with the matter when the case is called. If the party noticing the matter for hearing chooses to wait for the absent party, the matter may be passed over until the end of the calendar. If UMC time expires, any remaining hearings will need to be rescheduled. • Contested motions for summary judgment, evidentiary motions and complex, highly contested motions will not be heard at UMC. The types of motions suitable for hearing on the Uniform Motion Calendar include simple motions, such as motions to strike affirmative defenses, amend pleadings, short discovery motions, etc. UMC is available to pursue a summary final judgment for liquidated damages, after a default based upon a proper motion with supporting documentation, unless a party appears to contest it. In that instance, the parties must reset on the on -line “special set” calendar. Please do not set a non -qualifying motion on UMC simply because special set hearing time is not available immediately. VI. SPECIAL SET HEARINGS For motion(s) which are not appropriate for UMC because the motion(s) require more than the allotted ten (10) minutes for UMC but less than one hour, please refer to the calendar posted at https://slccjis.stlucieco.gov/attorney_calendar to confirm and schedule available dates. You must register to obtain your User ID and password on the site. When registering on the site, please include your e-mail address. Special Set hearings are able to be schduled starting at 10:00 A.M and 1:30 P.M. on the days designated for Probate and Guardianship proceedings. Special Set Hearings for Probate and Guardianship cases should only be scheduled on the days designated for Probate and Guardianship on the online calendar. Please contact the Judicial Assistant prior to setting any Special Set Hearings on any day not designated for Probate and Guardianship cases. VII. COOPERATION OF COUNSEL AND NOTICES OF HEARING Hearings must be cleared with opposing counsel and/or pro se parties. Good faith cooperation is expected from counsel, their support staff, and pro se litigants. Should counsel, their staff, or pro se litigants fail to respond within 3 business days or refuse to cooperate in obtaining or in setting a hearing, the difficulty should be set forth either in the motion or in the notice of hearing. After 3 days, the requesting party may unilaterally set a hearing. Notice of the hearing must be provided at least five (5) business days prior to the hearing. All motions must comply with the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, including, but not limited to, a certification that the movant, in good faith, has conferred or attempted to confer with the person or party failing to make discovery in an effort to secure the information without Court action. See, Fla.R.Civ.P., Rule 1.380(a)(2). All notices of hearing shall contain a certification signed by the scheduling attorney in substantially the following form: I HEREBY CERTIFY that I have personally contacted opposing counsel in an effort to resolve the issue(s), however, the matter cannot be resolved, and a hearing is necessary. Please note that certifications containing language to the effect that an effort will be made to resolve the issue in the future is NOT sufficient. Failure to comply with this requirement may result in cancellation of the hearing by the Court. If it is determined that the certification is not true, other sanctions may be imposed, including a referral to the Florida Bar or local professionalism panel. • VIII. EMERGENCY HEARINGS: If an emergency situation arises, counsel may request that a hearing be set on short notice. The body of the motion must contain a detailed explanation of the circumstances constituting the emergency as well as the substance of the motion. The motion must be e -mailed to the Court at SLCJudge11@circuit19.org, along with a transmittal confirmation from counsel, before a hearing will be set. The Court will review the motion and, if it is determined an emergency exists, the Judicial Assistant will contact counsel to set the hearing. In light of the short setting, opposing counsel may attend the hearing via Zoom appearance if their schedule will not allow them to appear in person.
The email address for submitting probate checklists, petitions/motions, proposed orders, and letters of administration for processing is: ProbateSLC@Circuit19.org The email address for submitting all guardianship matters for processing is: SLCJudge11@circuit19.org Emails regarding notices of hearing and proposed orders directly relating to hearings is: SLCJudge11@circuit19.org COMMUNICATIONS WITH JUDGE’S OFFICE: Please do not ask the Judicial Assistant or other Court personnel to communicate any message to the Judge. This is prohibited ex- parte communication. The Court’s staff is not permitted to relay ex-parte information to the Judge. This office can best re spond to all communications via e -mail to: SLCJudge11@circuit19.org or ProbateSLC@circuit19.org. E-mails must contain the case name, case number, subject matter and relevant date(s). Please ensure that all e-mails are also copied
Reviewer note: Document sha256: 543a1dd93aab27c71b5f97e64feb7180eaa35b1378c1c6fe9110c2f511e3a21f. 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. — media-11836__2025-Probate-and-Guardianship-Guidelines-and-Procedures.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): 11 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.