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37 verbatim requirements from administrative order 2004-14-03 - Amended Order Re: Family Mediation Providing for Mandatory Referral of all Contested Family Law Cases to Mediation.
9th Judicial Circuit. Procedural information only; not legal advice.
Verbatim from https://ninthcircuit.org/sites/default/files/AO2004-14-03.pdf, harvested 2026-07-25; whitespace normalised only. • This program shall be conducted under the direction of the Office of the Court • However, any case in which the Department of Revenue (“DOR”) is a party, the action shall not be subject to the requirement of mandatory referral to mediation as contemplated by this Order. • DOR as a party shall continue to be referred to the Office of the Child Support Hearing Officers. -- 1 of 8 -- • Any party who seeks to schedule a temporary or final hearing for any matter referred to in Paragraph 2.A. above shall first participate in a mediation conference through DRS as established herein. • A list of staff and contract certified Family Mediators shall be maintained by the • If they choose a DRS Mediator, they shall notify DRS of the selection within the 10- day period. • If the parties have a combined income under $100,000 and they have not agreed on a mediator, DRS shall appoint a DRS contract or staff Mediator. • If the parties have a combined income of over $100,000 per year and have been unable to agree on a mediator, DRS shall appoint a DRS Contract Mediator by rotation. • Pursuant to section 44.102 (2)(c), Florida Statutes, upon motion or request of a person, the Court shall not refer any case to mediation if it finds there has been a significant history of domestic violence that would compromise the mediation process. • If mediation has already been scheduled, and the mediation is canceled by the Court, both parties shall notify DRS, in writing, of the waiver at least 10 calendar days prior to the scheduled mediation to cancel the mediation. • If the parties do provide appropriate notice of cancellation, there shall be no fee. • If both parties do not give proper notification of the judicial waiver or cancellation, neither party will be refunded, or if not paid, shall be required to pay a full session fee for the canceled mediation session which shall be paid to the Clerk of the Court. • Mediation sessions shall be scheduled and conducted in accordance with Florida Family • Each party shall bring to the initial mediation conference a current financial affidavit and the most current pay stub vouchers or letter from an employer stating current earnings. • If self-employed, the party must bring a copy of the most recent Form 1040 filed with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or other verification of income. -- 3 of 8 -- • If a state-funded court-connected mediation session is coordinated by DRS, the initial mediation session shall not exceed 180 minutes unless agreed to by the parties and the mediator. • The fee for up to 180 minutes shall be as follows: $60.00 per party if the sum of the gross annual earnings of both parties is under $50,000; and $120.00 per party if the sum of the gross annual earnings of both parties is over $50,000 but under $100,000. • If a case is scheduled with a DRS mediator, payment shall be made prior to the mediation session. • These fees shall not be credited to any future session fees. • The process for reset or cancellation must be completed and DRS must receive a stipulation prepared by DRS and signed by each party or his/her attorney or a judge’s order allowing the reset or cancellation at least 10 calendar days prior to the scheduled mediation -- 4 of 8 -- • If any session is cancelled or reset with less than one full business day’s notice, each party shall owe their regular session fee ($60.00 or $120.00 based on income). • No mediation shall be conducted until all prior unpaid fees due are remitted. • If the entire payment is made prior to the date and time of the show cause hearing, said hearing shall be cancelled. • Telephone calls or other written notice to reset or cancel a scheduled mediation shall be considered insufficient. • All cancellation and reset fees for cases with combined incomes of less than $100,000 shall be paid to the Clerk of the • If both parties fail to appear, each party shall owe the entire session fee for the scheduled mediation. • The non-appearing party shall be charged both fees and shall reimburse the party who appeared for the session, or if another mediation is scheduled, shall pay the entire session fee for the next session in addition to the fee for the original session. • If counsel is not present within 15 minutes after the scheduled mediation session time, and his/her client does not wish to proceed in the attorney’s absence, the mediation session may be canceled. • If the mediation is so canceled, the party who will not proceed shall receive no refund for the session, and if the fee has not paid, shall be charged for the session. • DRS shall keep a record of the case name, number, assigning judge, mediator, the attorneys and the outcome of the mediation session in all cases referred to DRS. -- 6 of 8 -- • If an agreement is not reached through mediation, the mediator shall report the lack of agreement to DRS who shall report to the Court. • If an agreement on all the issues is reached, the mediation report form shall note the full settlement and the parties may then proceed on the uncontested hearing calendar to request that the agreement be incorporated into the final judgment. • (1) An Order Approving Mediation Agreement incorporating the Agreement shall be prepared by the party, by the mediator, by a party’s attorney, or by DRS. • (2) The Order of Approval of Mediation Agreement and the executed Agreement shall be forwarded to the judge for consideration by DRS. • If a partial agreement is reached, the mediation report form shall note that the case has remaining issues and said form and the partial agreement shall be filed with the Court. • Pursuant to the Mediation Confidentiality and Privilege Act, with the exception of the parties’ signed financial affidavits and any other documents which are required to be filed in the public record, all communications, verbal or written, between the parties and from the parties made during the mediation session, shall be confidential and inadmissible as evidence in any subsequent legal proceeding, unless both parties agree otherwise. • If an agreement is reached regarding child support, the signed agreement with the Child Support Guidelines worksheet shall be filed with the Court.
This program shall be conducted under the direction of the Office of the Court
Reviewer note: Order PDF sha256: 70d26f40ea15397603bc4f3dc0b87edb030dc449b5143480997aa0e78aaaf965. 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.