In Re: Amendments to Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.420, the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure, and the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure—2020 Joint Fast-Track Report

CourtSupreme Court of Florida
DecidedMarch 4, 2021
DocketSC20-873
StatusPublished

This text of In Re: Amendments to Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.420, the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure, and the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure—2020 Joint Fast-Track Report (In Re: Amendments to Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.420, the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure, and the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure—2020 Joint Fast-Track Report) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

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In Re: Amendments to Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.420, the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure, and the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure—2020 Joint Fast-Track Report, (Fla. 2021).

Opinion

Supreme Court of Florida ____________

No. SC20-873 ____________

IN RE: AMENDMENTS TO FLORIDA RULE OF JUDICIAL ADMINISTRATION 2.420, THE FLORIDA RULES OF JUVENILE PROCEDURE, AND THE FLORIDA RULES OF APPELLATE PROCEDURE—2020 JOINT FAST-TRACK REPORT.

March 4, 2021

PER CURIAM.

This matter is before the Court for consideration of further amendments to

the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure, the Florida Rules of Judicial

Administration, and the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure. 1 Previously in this

case, The Florida Bar’s Rules of Judicial Administration Committee (RJA

Committee) and Juvenile Court Rules Committee (JCR Committee) filed a joint

“fast-track” report proposing amendments to the Florida Rules of Judicial

Administration and Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure in response to recent

legislation. See Fla. R. Jud. Admin. 2.140(e). The Court adopted the proposed

amendments with minor modifications, and on our own motion, we amended a

1. We have jurisdiction. See art. V, § 2(a), Fla. Const. Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure to conform with a proposed amendment to a

Rule of Juvenile Procedure. In re Amendments to Fla. Rule of Jud. Admin. 2.420,

Fla. Rules of Juv. Pro., & Fla. Rule of App. Pro. Form 9.900(f)—2020 Joint Fast-

Track Report, 302 So. 3d 746 (Fla. 2020).

Because the amendments were not published for comment prior to their

adoption, interested parties were permitted to file comments with the Court after

their adoption. Five comments were received. Thereafter, both the RJA

Committee and the JCR Committee filed responses to the comments. Upon

consideration of the comments and responses, the Court now further amends the

Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure and Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure as

discussed below.

BACKGROUND

In the July 2, 2020, opinion in this case, the Court amended Florida Rule of

Judicial Administration 2.420 (Public Access to and Protection of Judicial Branch

Records); Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure 8.805 (Commencement of

Proceedings), 8.810 (Petition), 8.815 (Counsel), 8.820 (Hearing), 8.830

(Transcripts), and 8.835 (Confidentiality of Records); and Florida Rules of

Juvenile Procedure Forms 8.987 (Petition for Judicial Waiver of Parental Consent

to or Notification of and Consent to Termination of Pregnancy), 8.988 (Sworn

Statement of True Name and Pseudonym), 8.990 (Final Order Granting Petition for

-2- Judicial Waiver of Parental Consent to or Notice of and Consent to Termination of

Pregnancy), 8.991 (Final Order Dismissing Petition for Judicial Waiver of Parental

Consent to or Notice of and Consent to Termination of Pregnancy), and 8.992

(Minor’s Petition to Chief Judge to Require a Hearing on Her Petition for Judicial

Waiver of Consent or Notice and Consent). These amendments were in response

to legislative changes to section 390.01114, Florida Statutes (2019), which as

amended in 2020 requires parental consent to the termination of pregnancy

procedure performed on a minor, and the creation of section 390.01118, Florida

Statutes (2020), which made any information held by a circuit or appellate court

that could be used to identify a minor who petitions the court for a waiver of

parental notice or consent for termination of pregnancy confidential and exempt

from the public’s right to access under article I, section 24(a) of the Florida

Constitution. Additionally, on our own motion, the Court amended Florida Rule of

Appellate Procedure Form 9.900(f) (Notice of Appeal of an Order Dismissing a

Petition for a Judicial Waiver of Parental Consent to or Notice of and Consent to

Termination of Pregnancy and Advisory Notice to Minor) for consistency with the

amendments to the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure and section 390.01114.

The amendments became effective immediately upon the release of the July

2, 2020, opinion. However, interested persons were given an opportunity to file

comments with the Court after the amendments were adopted. Four comments

-3- contend that the amended rules and forms are confusing because they imply that a

minor may seek waiver of and that a court may waive notice, consent, or both,

whereas section 390.01114 provides for a collective waiver of both notice and

consent only. Thus, these four commenters urge the Court to amend the relevant

rules and forms to reflect that only a collective waiver of notice and consent may

be sought. The fifth comment, filed by the Appellate Court Rules Committee

(ACR Committee), recommends amendments so that the language used in the rules

and forms is consistent with section 390.01114. Specifically, the ACR Committee

suggests that the title of the petition throughout the juvenile and appellate rules be

“Petition for Judicial Waiver of Parental Notice of and Consent for Termination of

Pregnancy.” Additionally, the ACR Committee requests that the Court consider

amendments to Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.147(a)–(c), which addresses

appellate proceedings for reviewing final orders dismissing petitions for judicial

waivers, and rule 9.300(d)(11), which provides that motions filed relating to

proceedings under rule 9.147 do not toll time, that are consistent with the July 2,

2020, amendments, so that references to the judicial waiver petition will be

consistent across all rule sets.

Both the RJA Committee and JCR Committee filed responses to the

comments. The RJA Committee declined to propose further amendments to Rule

of Judicial Administration 2.420(d)(1)(B)(vii). The JCR Committee declined to

-4- propose amendments to the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure to reflect that only

a waiver of notice and consent may be sought, because it can envision a scenario

where a minor seeks only a waiver of parental consent after a parent is notified by

the physician but denies consent. However, it did agree that the rules and forms

could be clearer and more concise. Thus, the JCR Committee proposes further

amendments to Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure 8.805 (Commencement of

Proceedings), 8.810 (Petition), 8.820 (Hearing), and 8.835 (Confidentiality of

Records), and forms 8.987 (Petition for Judicial Waiver of Parental Consent to or

Notification of and Consent to Termination of Pregnancy), 8.988 (Sworn

Statement of True Name and Pseudonym), 8.990 (Final Order Granting Petition for

Judicial Waiver of Parental Consent to or Notice of and Consent to Termination of

Pregnancy), 8.991 (Final Order Dismissing Petition for Judicial Waiver of Parental

Consent to or Notice of and Consent to Termination of Pregnancy), and 8.992

(Minor’s Petition to Chief Judge to Require a Hearing on Her Petition for Judicial

Waiver of Consent or Notice and Consent). The proposed amendments delete

language regarding judicial waiver of notice only and clearly distinguish between

seeking a waiver of notice and consent and consent only. The Executive

Committee of the Board of Governors of The Florida Bar unanimously approved

the JCR Committee’s proposals.

-5- Upon consideration of the comments and the committees’ responses to the

comments, we adopt the additional amendments as proposed by the JCR

Committee, with modifications. Additionally, we amend Florida Rules of

Appellate Procedure 9.147(a)–(c) and 9.300(d)(11) and form 9.900(f) (Notice of

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In Re: Amendments to Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.420, the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure, and the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure—2020 Joint Fast-Track Report, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-amendments-to-florida-rule-of-judicial-administration-2420-the-fla-2021.