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40 verbatim requirements from admin. order AO 1.14 - Homestead Mediation Program for Residential Homestead Mortgage Foreclosure Actions (4/16/12) [Civil].
20th Judicial Circuit. Procedural information only; not legal advice.
Verbatim from https://www.ca.cjis20.org/pdf/ao/ao_1_14.pdf, harvested 2026-07-25; whitespace normalised only. • This Administrative Order shall apply to all residential homestead mortgage foreclosure actions filed in the Twentieth Judicial Circuit in which the origination of the note and mortgage sued upon was subject to the provisions of the federal • Mediation in commercial or residential non-homestead foreclosure actions shall be governed by 2 .C .ail • Administrative Order, in all actions to foreclose a mortgage on residential homestead property, the Clerk of Court shall attach to the summons to be served on each defendant a notice regarding mediation in the format of • If the Borrower elects to contest the action and file a responsive pleading, and if the Borrower would like to paiiicipate in early mediation, the Borrower shall, within twenty (20) days of service of the summons and notice: a. file with the Clerk a written response to the Complaint, with a copy to Plaintiff's attorney. b. file with the Clerk a completed and signed Homestead Mediation • Plaintiff's attorney. c. in addition, the Borrower shall complete and sign the Financial • In Form, the Clerk shall forward a copy to the Court's Mediation • When more than one individual is named as a party in the foreclosure action as the primary obligors on the promissory note secured by the m01igage being foreclosed, those individuals must jointly elect to opt-in to the HMP and each individual must participate in the mediation session. • However, the mediation process must be completed prior to entry of a final judgment. • Upon (1) the filing of a written response to the complaint to foreclosure the mortgage, (2) the filing of a completed and signed Homestead Mediation Program Opt-In Form, and (3) the proper and timely submission of a completed Financial Worksheet, with attachments, the Court's Mediation Department shall submit to the presiding judge a proposed Order of Referral to Mediation in the form of Exhibit 4. • If the Borrower applies to one of those agencies and is coupled with an attorney, or ifthe Borrower otherwise retains an attorney, the att01ney shall file a notice of appearance with the 4 .·.QB ••e • The appearance may be limited to representation only to assist the B01rower with mediation, but, if a Borrower secures the services of an attorney, counsel of record must attend the mediation. • Mediation Department shall schedule a mediation session to be held within sixty (60) days of entry of the Order of Referral, in accordance with Rule l .700(a)(l), Florida Rules of Civil Procedure. • The date, time, and location of the mediation shall be included as part of the Order of Referral, which shall be filed with the Clerk, and copies mailed to all parties as notice. • If it is necessary for a party to reschedule a mediation session, notice must be filed and submitted to the Court Mediation Depmtment at least three (3) full business days prior to the mediation date (exclusive of the mediation date). • When rescheduling a mediation session, a mutually agreeable date and time must be asce1tained between the parties and confirmed with the • As per Rule 1.7 lO(a), Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, the mediation process shall be completed within forty-five (45) days of the first scheduled mediation conference, unless extended by order of the Court or by stipulation of the parties. • The fee for mediation shall be $300.00 for the first two (2) hours, to be equitably and propo1iionately divided between the Plaintiff and the Borrower, as provided for by Rule l .720(g). • The Borrower's portion of the mediation fee, $150.00, is due at the beginning of the mediation session, and shall be payable directly to the Mediator. • The Plaintiffs po1tion of the mediation fee, $150.00, is due at the beginning of the mediation session, and shall be payable directly to the Mediator. • Any additional fees for mediation in excess of the initial two (2) hours shall be app01tioned equally between the Bonower and the Plaintiff and shall be payable directly to the Mediator. • The following persons are required to be physically present at the mediation session: a Plaintiffs representative with 5 ma e • GEi. 0 0 c;..) pl -- 5 of 18 -- full authority to settle; • At the time that the mediation is scheduled to physically commence, a staff member of the Court Mediation Department shall, prior to any discussion of the case, take a written roll. • If it is determined that anyone is not present, that party shall be reported as a non-appearance by that patiy on the written roll. • If it is determined that the Plaintiffs representative present does not have full authority to settle, it shall be repmied as a non-appearance by the Plaintiffs representative with full settlement authority on the written roll.. • If it is determined that either patiy does not have sufficient payment of that patiy's portion of the mediation fee at the beginning of the mediation session, it shall be reported as a non-appearance by that party. • Appearance by any patiy at mediation through the use of communication equipment must be by stipulation of the patiies or at the discretion of the • Any party appearing through the use of communication equipment shall be responsible for ensuring that the communication equipment functions properly and shall be responsible for all charges incurred. • Mediator cannot be held responsible for the failure of any cmmnunication equipment, and failure of the communication equipment shall not constitute good cause for failing to appear at mediation. 6 :·GD cD • Borrower or Borrower's counsel of record, if any, fails to appear at mediation, this will be deemed as a waiver of the privilege offmiher patiicipation in the HMP, mediation will not be rescheduled, the case will proceed accordingly, and the Court Mediation Depmiment shall file a • If a patiial or final agreement is reached, it shall be reduced to writing and signed by the parties and their counsel, if any. • Pursuant to Rule 1. 73 O(b ), Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, if a partial or full settlement agreement is reached, the Mediator shall rep01i the existence of the signed or transcribed agreement to the Court without comment within ten (10) days after completion of the mediation. • If the paiiies do not reach an agreement as to any matter as a result of mediation, the Mediator shall rep01i the impasse to the Court without comment or recommendation and shall advise the Court who attended the mediation. • The Mediator's report to theDourt shall be in the format of Exhibit 5. • Mediator that is not filed with the Comi, shall be confidential and inadmissible in any subsequent legal proceeding pursuant to Chapter 44, • This Administrative Order shall become effective on May 1, 2012, and will remain in full force and effect unless and until otherwise ordered. • This Administrative Order shall be interpreted in a manner so as to be in compliance with all rules of the Florida Supreme Court and laws of the State of • To the extent that this Administrative Order may conflict with any rule, statute, or law, the iule, statute, or law shall prevail. • To participate in the Homestead Mediation Program, the borrower must provide all the following documents within 20 days after you were served the summons: • File with the Clerk a written response to the Complaint, with a copy to Plaintiffs attorney. • File with the Clerk a completed and signed Homestead Mediation Program Opt-In Form, with a copy to Plaintiffs attorney. 0 0 w "° • And, the Borrower shall complete and sign the Financial Worksheet, include all attachments requested, and submit the original to Plaintiffs counsel, with a copy to the Court's • The fee for mediation shall be $300.00 for the first two (2) hours, to be equitably and proportionately divided between the Plaintiff and the Borrower, as provided for by Rule l .720(g). • Any additional fees for mediation in excess of the initial two (2) hours shall be apportioned equally between the Borrower and the Plaintiff and shall be payable directly to the Mediator.
This Administrative Order shall apply to all residential homestead mortgage foreclosure actions filed in the Twentieth Judicial Circuit in which the origination of the note and mortgage sued upon was subject to the provisions of the federal
Reviewer note: Order PDF sha256: ce0df61053017b11692f1dab21a6df337385a59ab2441adcd69bf7ff73fbe840. Extracted from the order's own text layer.
Judge Bell caps motions and responses at 5 pages for UMC hearings and 12 pages for special-set hearings.
Judge Alijewicz requires every motion for attorney's fees and/or costs to attach a document detailing time records — no records, no fee award.
Judge Corlew bars informal contact: every communication with the Court must be in writing, filed with the Clerk, with copies furnished to all parties — and no calls to the JA to schedule or cancel UMC.