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28 verbatim requirements from Policy and Procedures.
Fourth Judicial Circuit (Duval, Clay, Nassau). Procedural information only; not legal advice.
Verbatim from https://www.jud4.org/getContentAsset/bbb3deee-b850-4393-8fd0-e9ad58ac3795/135b97c9-84fa-4e82-b956-0fbccec4aa1f/Judge-Hutton-Policy-and-Procedures.pdf?language=en, harvested 2026-07-25; whitespace normalised only. • All communications to the judicial office must be submitted by email to the Court’s Judicial Assistant at: dradtke1@coj.net. • The subject line must contain the case number, case name, and the relevant matter to be addressed. • Ex parte Communications: • All communications with the judicial office must comply with Canon 3 of the Code of Judicial Conduct, which prohibits a judge from initiating, permitting, or considering ex parte communications, and from considering other communications outside the presence of the parties concerning a pending or impending proceeding. • Accordingly, all parties must be copied on any email directed to the judicial office, unless an ex parte communication is otherwise specifically authorized by law. -- 1 of 6 -- 2 • Unsolicited Communications: • On calendar days when a trial is also scheduled, the Court will begin the calendar at 8:30 a.m. • Any waivers of appearance of the defendant shall be in writing and filed with the clerk. • Defense counsel shall not waive the presence of any in-custody defendant who has been transported to the courthouse from the jail without prior approval of the Court. • Jury Selections and Trial: • Counsel should arrive at least 10 minutes prior to any jury selection or trial start time. • When the Court is selecting multiple juries from the same panel, all parties must be present for the entire jury selection, unless otherwise excused by the Court. • Arraignment, the State shall be prepared to advise the Court of the following: a) the Defendant’s sentencing guidelines; b) the State offer, if one is to be made; c) the speedy trial date; and -- 2 of 6 -- 3 d) whether discovery has already been provided, and if not, the reason why it has not already been provided. • Pretrial Conferences may potentially be scheduled on any day of the week, • Please be advised that transport orders for defendants or witnesses must be provided in a timely manner. • Transport/Extradition orders require at least 10 business days to transport an incarcerated person from another facility or jurisdiction. • Final Pretrial Conferences are scheduled for Tuesdays, the week prior to the • At the Final Pretrial Conference, the Defendant shall be present (there shall be no waiver of Defendant’s appearance at the FPT), as well as the attorney(s) who are to try the case. • Counsel for each party shall be prepared to report on the following: a) whether each party is ready for trial; b) any state offers made, and rejected by the Defendant; b) any defense counteroffers made, and rejected by the State; c) the number of jury panelists needed for jury selection; d) the number of peremptory strikes allotted to each side; e) the estimated length of the total trial; f) any date/time restrictions in scheduling due to witnesses or attorneys; g) whether an interpreter or any other accommodation will be necessary; and h) whether there are any outstanding motions, late disclosed witnesses, or evidence requiring a Richardson hearing. • Motions to Continue: • Motions to continue must be in writing and filed with the clerk of court prior to the Final Pretrial Conference. • The motion must state that counsel has conferred with opposing counsel and include opposing counsel’s position on the motion. • Before attempting to schedule a hearing, the moving party must make a good-faith effort to resolve the issue with the opposing party. • If counsel files a substantive motion requiring an evidentiary hearing or argument during the pendency of the case, including motions to suppress, motions to dismiss, stand your ground motions, or any other similar substantive motion, counsel shall send a courtesy copy to the Court’s Judicial Assistant within three business days of filing the motion with the clerk of court. • The Court will assume that any motion filed during the pendency of the case is ready for hearing at the time it is filed. • At least two business days prior to any hearing that will involve argument, counsel for the parties shall email to the Court’s Judicial Assistant any case law or other legal authority the party will rely upon at the hearing. • However, if an attorney wishes to add, remove, or reschedule a case to another date, that attorney shall first consult with opposing counsel about the same. • If agreed to by both parties, the parties shall then notify the Court’s Judicial Assistant via email. • Preferred Method: • Prior authorization by the Court is required for all Zoom appearances. • Platform Used: • You must contact the Judicial Assistant to obtain the platform meeting ID#.” • Requirements: • While attending remote proceedings you must be in appropriate attire. • All proposed orders must be submitted in Word format by email to the • The email must indicate whether all parties agree as to the form of the order. • JAC Proposed Orders: • When counsel is submitting a proposed order related to a motion to which JAC has no objection, counsel shall attach JAC’s response to their proposed order, labeled as “Exhibit A”. • Deadline for Submissions: • Proposed orders must be submitted within 5 days after any hearing. • If a party believes there is a factual basis for setting an emergency hearing, a detailed motion setting forth the following must be filed: • All parties must make themselves available for the emergency hearing, barring exigent circumstances. -- 5 of 6 -- 6 • All exhibits for evidentiary hearings or trial must be provided to the clerk in advance of the hearing or trial for marking. • Please contact the ADA Coordinator at (904) 255-1695 or crtintrp@coj.net, at least 7 days before your scheduled court appearance, or immediately upon receiving this notification if the time before the scheduled appearance is less than 7 days; if you are hearing or voice-impaired, call 711. • Interpreter Requests:
All communications to the judicial office must be submitted by email to the Court’s Judicial Assistant at: dradtke1@coj.net.
Reviewer note: Document sha256: 4c91ffc6ae83e7bf6c616aaa8db90bd36de81a409f8eb71995648fdbb590320e. Extracted from the document'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.