Florida Court Rules (2026)

Fla. R. Civ. P. 94 rules

Florida Rules of Civil Procedure

The Florida Rules of Civil Procedure govern civil litigation in Florida circuit and county courts, covering pleadings, motions, discovery, trial procedure, and judgment. Includes plain-English summaries and committee notes.

Updated 2026 Edition

Fla. R. Crim. P. 141 rules

Florida Rules of Criminal Procedure

The Florida Rules of Criminal Procedure govern criminal proceedings in Florida courts, covering arrest, bail, arraignment, discovery, trial, sentencing, and post-conviction relief. Includes plain-English summaries and committee notes.

Updated 2026 Edition

Fla. R. Gen. Prac. & Jud. Admin. 57 rules

Florida Rules of General Practice and Judicial Administration

The Florida Rules of General Practice and Judicial Administration govern court administration, e-filing, e-service, public records access, and the practice of law in Florida courts. Includes plain-English summaries and committee notes.

Updated 2026 Edition

Fla. Prob. R. 114 rules

Florida Probate Rules

The Florida Probate Rules govern the administration of decedents' estates, trusts, and guardianships in Florida courts. Includes plain-English summaries and committee notes.

Updated 2026 Edition

Fla. Evid. Code 88 rules

Florida Evidence Code

The Florida Evidence Code (Chapter 90, Florida Statutes) governs the admissibility of evidence in Florida courts, covering relevancy, privileges, witnesses, expert testimony, hearsay, and authentication. Includes plain-English summaries.

Updated 2026 Edition

Fla. R. App. P. 55 rules

Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure

The Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure govern appeals and original proceedings in Florida District Courts of Appeal and the Florida Supreme Court, covering jurisdiction, briefing, oral argument, and rehearings. Includes plain-English summaries and committee notes.

Updated 2026 Edition

Fla. Sm. Cl. R. 25 rules

Florida Small Claims Rules

The Florida Small Claims Rules govern civil actions for money damages not exceeding the jurisdictional limit in Florida county courts. Includes plain-English summaries and committee notes.

Updated 2026 Edition

Fla. R. Traf. Ct. 43 rules

Florida Rules of Traffic Court

The Florida Rules of Traffic Court govern criminal traffic offenses and civil traffic infractions in Florida courts. Includes plain-English summaries and committee notes.

Updated 2026 Edition

Fla. R. Juv. P. 143 rules

Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure

The Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure govern delinquency, dependency, termination of parental rights, and families and children in need of services proceedings in Florida courts. Includes plain-English summaries and committee notes.

Updated 2026 Edition

R. Regulating Fla. Bar 143 rules

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Legal Specialization and Education Programs

Board certification in Florida, and the largest chapter of the Rules Regulating The Bar at 143 rules. Subchapter 6-1 establishes the board of legal specialization and education, 16 members of The Florida Bar appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Board of Governors, and 6-3 is the Florida Certification Plan itself — the certification committees, their jurisdiction, the standards for certification and recertification, revocation, and the sunset of certification areas. The subchapters that follow are the standards for each certified area in turn, each with its own eligibility, experience, education and examination requirements: civil trial, tax, marital and family, wills trusts and estates, criminal, real estate, workers' compensation, and the rest. Also here: the Continuing Legal Education Requirement rule and the Basic Skills Course Requirement rule, which bind every member rather than only specialists.

Updated 2026 Edition

R. Regulating Fla. Bar 79 rules

Florida Rules of Professional Conduct

Chapter 4 of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — the Rules of Professional Conduct — governs the professional obligations of every lawyer admitted in Florida: competence and diligence, confidentiality of information, conflicts of interest, fees, trust accounts, the duties of a lawyer as advocate and as counselor, responsibilities within a firm, advertising and solicitation, and the reporting of professional misconduct. Florida numbers these rules on its own scheme — candor toward the tribunal is rule 4-3.3, not Rule 3.3 — and each rule carries its official Comment.

Updated 2026 Edition

R. Regulating Fla. Bar 40 rules

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — General

The constitution of The Florida Bar and the terms of membership in it, 40 rules in twelve subchapters. Subchapter 1-3 is membership: 1-3.1 makes the Bar's membership all persons admitted by the Supreme Court of Florida to the practice of law in this state who maintain the required status, and the rules that follow set the classifications, the official bar name and contact information a member must keep current, retirement, delinquency and reinstatement, and the right to inventory the files of a member who cannot practise. Subchapter 1-4 establishes the Board of Governors, 1-5 the officers, 1-6 the meetings of the Bar and 1-7 membership fees and fiscal control. Also here: the Bar's programs and functions, the Young Lawyers Division, the adoption of the Rules of Professional Conduct, the bylaws, amendments, the computation of time, and the Bar's records.

Updated 2026 Edition

R. Regulating Fla. Bar 40 rules

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Rules of Discipline

How a Florida lawyer is disciplined, 40 rules in seven subchapters. The Preamble states the premise in one line: a license to practice law confers no vested right but is a conditional privilege revocable for cause. Subchapter 3-3 sets the jurisdiction to enforce the rules — the Supreme Court of Florida, the disciplinary agencies, the Board of Governors, bar counsel, the grievance committees and the circuit courts. Subchapter 3-4 is the standards of conduct, 3-5 the types of discipline, and 3-6 the employment of certain lawyers or former lawyers. Subchapter 3-7 is the procedure and the bulk of the chapter: the processing of complaints and grievance committee action, the referee's trial and report, review by the Supreme Court, emergency and felony suspension, incapacity not involving misconduct, reinstatement and readmission, disciplinary revocation of admission, and the duties of a lawyer who is suspended or disbarred.

Updated 2026 Edition

R. Regulating Fla. Bar 20 rules

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Unlicensed Practice of Law

How Florida investigates and prosecutes the unlicensed practice of law, 20 rules in eleven subchapters. Rule 10-1.1 grounds the jurisdiction in article V, section 15 of the Florida Constitution, which gives the Supreme Court of Florida inherent jurisdiction to prohibit the unlicensed practice of law. Subchapter 10-2 defines the practice of law for these purposes and, at 10-2.2, what form completion by a nonlawyer may and may not involve. The standing committee and the circuit committees are 10-3 and 10-4, and the process runs through complaint processing and initial investigation, the procedures for investigation, and proceedings before a referee. Also here: confidentiality, the advisory opinions by which the Court answers whether given conduct is the unlicensed practice of law, immunity, and amendments.

Updated 2026 Edition

R. Regulating Fla. Bar 18 rules

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Florida Registered Paralegal Program

Who may call themselves a paralegal in Florida, 18 rules in nine subchapters. Rule 20-1.1 sets the purpose: to establish a definition that must be met in order to use the title paralegal and the requirements to become a Florida Registered Paralegal. The chapter defines the terms, sets the eligibility requirements and the registration process, states when a person is ineligible for registration or renewal, and requires continuing education with a duty to update. Subchapter 20-7 is the code of ethics and responsibility a registered paralegal is bound by, 20-8 the revocation of registration, and 20-9 the immunity that attaches. Paralegal committees are provided for here as well.

Updated 2026 Edition

R. Regulating Fla. Bar 14 rules

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Clients' Security Fund

What a client can recover when a lawyer takes their money, 14 rules. Rule 7-1.1 states the power: the board of governors may provide monetary relief to persons who suffer reimbursable losses as a result of misappropriation, embezzlement or other wrongful taking by a member of The Florida Bar. Subchapter 7-2 establishes the committee and its duties, 7-3 the fund itself — how claims are investigated and processed, the prerequisites to payment, the claims ordinarily denied, the limits on what may be paid, subrogation, and the confidentiality of proceedings. Also here: amendments and the records the committee keeps.

Updated 2026 Edition

R. Regulating Fla. Bar 13 rules

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Legal Services Plans

Prepaid and group legal services plans, 13 rules made by the Board of Governors under bylaw 2-3.2(d). The chapter states its policy and defines what a plan is, then sets the requirements for establishing one: the form and content of the application, its review by the committee, approval by the Board, renewal, and revocation. Also here: the standards a plan must meet in operation and the miscellaneous provisions governing amendment and reporting.

Updated 2026 Edition

Fla. R. Civ. P. – S.V.P. 25 rules

Florida Rules of Civil Procedure for Involuntary Commitment of Sexually Violent Predators

The procedure for the civil commitment of a sexually violent predator under part V, chapter 394, Florida Statutes — the Jimmy Ryce Act — in twenty-five rules. These apply to all such actions in the circuit courts and are cited Fla. R. Civ. P. – S.V.P. Rule 4.200 governs the appointment of counsel and Rule 4.220 the adversarial probable cause hearing; Rule 4.240 the trial proceedings that follow a finding of probable cause, including the time within which trial must be held. Discovery has its own substantial group — general provisions, depositions upon oral examination, the use of a deposition in court proceedings, sanctions for failure to make discovery, depositions of expert witnesses, and subpoenas. Rule 4.431 covers trial by jury and the unanimous verdict required, Rule 4.440 which rules of procedure and evidence apply, and the last three the routes after judgment: appeal, post-judgment habeas corpus, and post-commitment proceedings.

Updated 2026 Edition

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Law School Practice Program

Florida's student practice rule, nine rules. Rule 11-1.1 states the purpose: the bench and the bar are primarily responsible for providing competent legal services for all persons, including those unable to pay, and this chapter is one means of meeting that responsibility. It sets out what a certified law student may do, the requirements and limitations on that practice, how a student is certified and how a legal aid organization is approved, the supervision a student must have, practice after graduation while awaiting admission, and the certification of members of out-of-state bars.

Updated 2026 Edition

R. Regulating Fla. Bar 12 rules

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Grievance Mediation and Fee Arbitration

The Bar's alternative to a disciplinary proceeding and to a fee suit, 12 rules. Rule 14-1.1 establishes the Florida Bar Grievance Mediation and Fee Arbitration Program as a means to empower complainants and respondents to resolve their disputes, and the chapter then sets its jurisdiction, the authority of the Board of Governors over it, and how these rules relate to the arbitration statutes. Subchapter 14-2 is the standing committee, 14-3 the approval of program mediators and arbitrators, and 14-4 how a proceeding is instituted — arbitration proceedings and grievance mediation proceedings each have their own rules. Subchapter 14-5 governs the effect of agreeing to mediate or arbitrate, including what happens when a party fails to appear, and 14-7 the immunity and confidentiality that attach.

Updated 2026 Edition

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Foreign Legal Consultancy

Seven rules permitting a person admitted to practise in a foreign country as an attorney, counselor at law or the equivalent to act as a foreign legal consultant in Florida. The chapter sets the general certification regulations, the activities a consultant may undertake, the application, withdrawal or termination of certification, discipline, and the annual sworn statement a consultant must file.

Updated 2026 Edition

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Authorized House Counsel

Nine rules whose purpose is to facilitate the relocation to Florida of lawyers employed by a business organization, by allowing them to serve that single employer without full admission. The chapter defines the business organization and the authorized house counsel, sets the activities permitted and the certification required, and covers termination or withdrawal of certification, discipline, amendment or revocation of the rule, and the continuing legal education requirement that applies.

Updated 2026 Edition

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Review of Lawyer Advertisements

The standing committee that reviews Florida lawyer advertising, nine rules. Rule 15-1.1 states the basis: The Florida Bar, as an official arm of the Supreme Court of Florida, is charged with the duty of enforcing the rules governing lawyer advertising and solicitation. The chapter sets the committee's membership and terms, its functions, reimbursement for public members, recusal, and meetings, then the procedure by which an advertisement is reviewed and the report the committee makes.

Updated 2026 Edition

R. Regulating Fla. Bar 6 rules

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Military Spouse Authorization

Six rules by which the Supreme Court of Florida may certify a lawyer who is the spouse of a full-time active duty member of the United States armed forces to engage in the practice of law in Florida. The chapter sets the eligibility, the continuing legal education required, the activities permitted and their requirements, annual renewal, and termination of the authorization.

Updated 2026 Edition

R. Regulating Fla. Bar 2 rules

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Trust Accounts

Two rules, and between them the whole of Florida's trust accounting law. Rule 5-1.1 governs the nature of money or property entrusted to an attorney: a lawyer must hold in trust, separate from the lawyer's own property, the funds and property of clients or third persons held in connection with a representation, in a separate federally insured account in the state where the lawyer's office is situated and clearly designated as a trust account. It carries the narrow exceptions — enough of the lawyer's own money to cover bank charges, and a deposit to replenish a shortage, which the lawyer must report to the bar's lawyer regulation department immediately — and the rules on interest, on funds in dispute and on the Interest on Trust Accounts program. Rule 5-1.2 is the records and procedures a lawyer must keep, and the trust accounting a lawyer must be able to produce.

Updated 2026 Edition

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Emeritus Lawyers Pro Bono

How a retired lawyer may keep practising for those who cannot pay, seven rules. Rule 12-1.1 states the premise: individuals admitted to practice in Florida have a responsibility to provide competent legal services for all persons, including those unable to pay. The chapter defines the emeritus lawyer, the activities permitted, the supervision required and its limitations, and the certification, withdrawal of certification and discipline that go with it.

Updated 2026 Edition

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Authorized Legal Aid Practitioners

Seven rules whose stated purpose is to expand the delivery of legal services to poor people, by authorising attorneys licensed in other jurisdictions to practise in Florida through an approved legal aid organization. The chapter defines who qualifies, the activities permitted, the supervision required and its limitations, and the certification, withdrawal of certification and discipline that apply.

Updated 2026 Edition

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Military Legal Assistance Counsel

Seven rules whose purpose is to expand the delivery of legal assistance services to military personnel stationed in Florida, by authorising military legal assistance counsel admitted elsewhere to serve them. The chapter defines who qualifies, the activities permitted, the supervision required and its limitations, and the certification, withdrawal of certification and discipline that apply.

Updated 2026 Edition

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Lawyer Referral

The rules for a lawyer referral service sponsored by a local bar association, nine rules. Rule 8-1.1 gives the policy: every citizen of the state should have access to the legal system, and a person's access is enhanced by the assistance of a qualified lawyer. The chapter then sets the requirements for establishing such a service, the bylaws it must adopt, the contents of its application and the approval process, the supervision and reporting it owes the Bar, revocation of approval, and the immunity of those who operate it.

Updated 2026 Edition

R. Regulating Fla. Bar 4 rules

Rules Regulating The Florida Bar — Center for Professionalism

Four rules establishing the Bar's Center for Professionalism, adopted, as Rule 19-1.1 says, in recognition of the importance of professionalism as the ultimate hallmark of the practice of law. The chapter sets the Center's responsibility and authority, its funding, and its staffing, operation and reporting structure.

Updated 2026 Edition