Bill Text: FL S0130 | 2010 | Regular Session | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Judicial Proceedings in Civil Cases [SPSC]

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Failed) 2010-04-30 - Died in Committee on Criminal and Civil Justice Appropriations [S0130 Detail]

Download: Florida-2010-S0130-Introduced.html

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Florida Senate - 2010                                     SB 130 
 
By Senator Altman 
24-00065A-10                                           2010130__ 
1                        A bill to be entitled 
2         An act relating to judicial proceedings in civil 
3         cases; amending s. 25.073, F.S.; conforming provisions 
4         to changes made by the act; providing for the chief 
5         judge of a judicial circuit, subject to approval by 
6         the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, to establish a 
7         program for retired justices or judges to preside over 
8         civil cases and trials upon written request of one or 
9         more parties; providing for compensation of such 
10         justices or judges; providing for an additional court 
11         cost and for deposit thereof; amending s. 44.104, 
12         F.S.; providing for the procedures governing voluntary 
13         trial resolution to include a jury trial if there is a 
14         right to a jury trial and if at least one party has 
15         requested a jury trial; providing an effective date. 
16 
17  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 
18 
19         Section 1. Subsection (3) of section 25.073, Florida 
20  Statutes, is amended, and subsection (4) is added to that 
21  section, to read: 
22         25.073 Retired justices or judges assigned to temporary 
23  duty; additional compensation; appropriation.— 
24         (3) Payments required under subsection (2) this section 
25  shall be made from moneys to be appropriated for this purpose. 
26         (4) In addition to subsections (1)-(3), the chief judge of 
27  a judicial circuit may, subject to approval by the Chief 
28  Justice, establish a program for the optional use of retired 
29  justices or judges to preside over civil cases and trials 
30  pursuant to this subsection. The program shall be developed and 
31  operated so as to ensure that one or more parties to the lawsuit 
32  shall pay the cost of the retired justice or judge. The use of 
33  this program shall in no way diminish or otherwise affect the 
34  power and authority of the Chief Justice to assign justices or 
35  judges, including consenting retired justices or judges, to 
36  temporary duty in any court for which the justice or judge is 
37  qualified or to delegate to a chief judge of a judicial circuit 
38  the power to assign justices or judges for duty in that circuit. 
39  At a minimum, the program developed under this subsection shall 
40  be operated as follows: 
41         (a)1. Any party to the action may request a retired justice 
42  or judge to hear one or more motions. The request must be in 
43  writing and addressed to the chief judge of the circuit. The 
44  party may seek appointment of a retired justice or judge to hear 
45  more than one motion in that case or motions in multiple cases, 
46  or a lawyer or law firm may seek appointment of a retired 
47  justice or judge to hear motions in multiple cases. The chief 
48  judge of the circuit shall not appoint a retired justice or 
49  judge if the trial judge assigned to the case can accommodate 
50  the hearing or hearings within the following 2 weeks. 
51         2. All parties to an action may jointly request a retired 
52  justice or judge to conduct the trial of the action, including a 
53  trial by special setting. The chief judge of the circuit shall 
54  not appoint a retired justice or judge unless all parties agree 
55  to the request and sufficient court resources are available to 
56  accommodate the request. 
57         (b)1. A party or parties seeking to use a retired justice 
58  or judge shall submit a written request to the chief judge, 
59  stating the reasons for the request. 
60         2. Allowable grounds for use of a retired justice or judge 
61  include the unavailability of hearing time, scheduling 
62  difficulties, difficulties with the availability of witnesses, 
63  or the need to expedite the case. A request shall not be granted 
64  if it is apparent that a party is seeking an appointment only in 
65  order to avoid the assigned trial judge. 
66         3. The chief judge shall consider the reasons for the 
67  request and shall grant or deny the request in writing within 5 
68  days. 
69         4. Only retired justices or judges who are on the list that 
70  is approved by the Chief Justice are eligible for appointment in 
71  this program. Assignment of such retired justices or judges 
72  shall be made in accordance with current judge assignment 
73  procedures in each judicial circuit. A party may not seek or 
74  request that a particular retired justice or judge be appointed. 
75         5. An appointment shall be for the hearing time requested. 
76  However, the chief judge may appoint a retired justice or judge 
77  to hear multiple hearings in 1 day involving related or 
78  unrelated cases. 
79         (c)1. Upon granting a request, the chief judge of the 
80  applicable judicial circuit shall estimate the number of days 
81  required of the retired justice or judge to complete the 
82  hearings or trial and shall inform the requesting party or 
83  parties of the cost. 
84         2. The party or parties who requested the appointment of a 
85  retired justice or judge shall prepay the per diem rate of the 
86  retired justice or judge before the hearing or trial based on 
87  the per diem rate then in effect. The minimum charge for 
88  assignment of a retired justice or judge under this subsection 
89  shall be the per diem rate for 1 day, and any required time over 
90  1 day shall be charged in 1-day increments for any additional 
91  days at the per diem rate. The chief judge shall set a payment 
92  deadline sufficiently prior to the date of the hearing or trial 
93  so that the appointment may be timely canceled if prepayment is 
94  not received at least 1 business day before the scheduled 
95  hearing or trial. 
96         3. For purposes of this subsection, the term “per diem 
97  rate” means the cost to the state of 1 day of service by a 
98  retired justice or judge and shall be calculated by adding the 
99  regular daily rate set by the Chief Justice for retired justices 
100  or judges, plus the employer’s share of required federal taxes, 
101  and plus, if applicable, the justice’s or judge’s travel and 
102  other costs reimbursable under s. 112.061. 
103         4. Payments made by a party or parties under this program 
104  shall be deposited into the Operating Trust Fund within the 
105  state courts system under s. 25.3844. 
106         5. Once a hearing or trial is scheduled, prepayment is made 
107  as required under this subsection, and the state is required to 
108  make payment to the retired justice or judge, there shall be no 
109  refund. A refund is authorized only if the assigned retired 
110  justice or judge becomes unavailable for reasons unrelated to 
111  the conduct of the parties. 
112         6. A person who has been relieved of the requirement to 
113  prepay costs in an action may not be relieved of the requirement 
114  under this subsection to prepay the costs of a retired justice 
115  or judge prior to a request being granted. 
116         (d)1. If a party seeks appointment of a retired justice or 
117  judge to hear one or more motions, the cost of the retired 
118  justice or judge shall not be taxable against a nonprevailing 
119  party. 
120         2. If all parties sought the appointment of a retired 
121  justice or judge to hear motions or conduct the trial, the 
122  amounts paid for the retired justice or judge by a prevailing 
123  party shall be taxable against a nonprevailing party, as 
124  provided in chapter 57 and in the Florida Rules of Civil 
125  Procedure. 
126         Section 2. Present subsections (3) through (14) of section 
127  44.104, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (4) 
128  through (15), respectively, and a new subsection (3) is added to 
129  that section, to read: 
130         44.104 Voluntary binding arbitration and voluntary trial 
131  resolution.— 
132         (3) Voluntary trial resolution may include a jury trial if 
133  there is a right to a jury trial in the civil dispute and if 
134  there has been a request for a jury trial by at least one party. 
135  The trial resolution judge shall preside over the jury trial. 
136  The jury trial conducted as part of the voluntary trial 
137  resolution shall be conducted according to the laws applicable 
138  to civil jury trials. 
139         Section 3. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.