IN RE: AMENDMENT TO FLORIDA RULE OF GENERAL PRACTICE AND JUDICIAL ADMINISTRATION 2.320. (2023)

The Court, in conjunction with the Florida Court Education Council, is conducting a review of the education program for new appellate judges. As part of that review, the Court is making new appellate judges’ participation in Phase I of the Florida Judicial College discretionary rather than mandatory.

We amend, on our own motion, Florida Rule of General Practice and Judicial Administration 2.320 (Continuing Judicial Education) as reflected in the appendix to this opinion.¹ New language is indicated by underscoring in the appendix, and the deletion is indicated by struck-through type. The amendment is effective immediately. Because the amendment was not published for comment previously, interested persons shall have seventy-five days from the date of this opinion in which to file comments with the Court.²

It is so ordered.

I strongly disagree with dropping the requirement that all new appellate judges “who ha[ve] never been a trial judge or who ha[ve] never attended Phase I of the Florida Judicial College as a magistrate must also attend Phase I of the Florida Judicial College.” Fla. R. Gen. Prac. & Jud. Admin. 2.320(b)(2).

Appendix

RULE 2.320. CONTINUING JUDICIAL EDUCATION

(a) [No Change]

(b) Education Requirements.

(1) [No Change]

(2) Minimum Requirements. Each judge and justice shall complete a minimum of 30 credit hours of approved judicial education programs every 3 years. Beginning January 1, 2012, 4 hours must be in the area of judicial ethics; prior to that date, 2 hours in the area of judicial ethics are required. The portions of approved courses which pertain to judicial professionalism, opinions of the Judicial Ethics Advisory Committee, and the Code of Judicial Conduct can be used to fulfill the judicial ethics requirement. Every judge new to a level of trial court must complete the Florida Judicial College program in that judge's first year of judicial service following selection to that level of court; every new appellate court judge or justice must, within 2 years following selection to that level of court, complete an approved appellate-judge program. Every new appellate judge who has never been a trial judge or who has never attended Phase I of the Florida Judicial College as a magistrate mustmay also attend Phase I of the Florida Judicial College in that judge's first year of judicial service following the judge's appointment. Judges and justices will receive credit for attending these programs. Credit for teaching a course for which mandatory judicial education credit is available will be allowed on the basis of 2 1//21/2 hours’ credit for each instructional hour taught, up to a maximum of 5 hours per year.

(3) [No Change]

(c)-(e) [No Change]

FOOTNOTES

1.   We have jurisdiction. See art. V, § 2(a), Fla. Const.; see also Fla. R. Gen. Prac. & Jud. Admin. 2.140(d).

2.   All comments must be filed with the Court on or before February 27, 2024, as well as a separate request for oral argument if the person filing the comment wishes to participate in oral argument, which may be scheduled in this case. If filed by an attorney in good standing with The Florida Bar, the comment must be electronically filed via the Florida Courts E-Filing Portal (Portal). If filed by a nonlawyer or a lawyer not licensed to practice in Florida, the comment may be, but is not required to be, filed via the Portal. Any person unable to submit a comment electronically must mail or hand-deliver the originally signed comment to the Florida Supreme Court, Office of the Clerk, 500 South Duval Street, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1927; no additional copies are required or will be accepted.

PER CURIAM.

MUÑIZ, C.J., and CANADY, COURIEL, GROSSHANS, FRANCIS, and SASSO, JJ., concur. LABARGA, J., dissents with an opinion.