IN RE: AMENDMENTS TO FLORIDA RULE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE 1.570 AND FORM 1.914. (2018)

This matter is before the Court for consideration of proposed amendments to the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure. We have jurisdiction. See art. V, § 2(a), Fla. Const. The Civil Procedure Rules Committee (Committee) has filed an out-of-cycle report proposing amendments to existing rule 1.570 (Enforcement of Final Judgments), the renumbering of existing form 1.914 (Execution), and the adoption of new forms 1.914(b) (Notice to Appear) and 1.914(c) (Affidavit of Claimant in Response to Notice to Appear). See Fla. R. Jud. Admin. 2.140(e). The Committee explains that it has proposed these amendments in response to 2016 statutory amendments.¹

The Committee published its proposals for comment prior to filing them with the Court and received one comment regarding its proposed amendments to rule 1.570. Upon consideration of the comment, the Committee did not alter its proposals. After the Committee's proposals were filed, the Court published them for comment; one comment was filed by Robert T. Koehler, d/b/a Florida Notary Academy, addressing proposed new form 1.914(c) (Affidavit of Claimant in Response to Notice to Appear).

Having considered the Committee's report and the comments filed with the Committee and the Court, we hereby adopt the proposed amendments to the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure and Forms, with a modification. The amendments are discussed below.

Rule 1.570 (Enforcement of Final Judgments) is amended to add subdivision (e), governing proceedings supplementary to execution of an unsatisfied judgment or judgment lien. The Committee proposed adding subdivision (e) with the following language:

(e) Proceedings Supplementary. The holder of an unsatisfied judgment or judgment lien is entitled to conduct proceedings supplementary to execution and related discovery, as provided by chapter 56, Florida Statutes. Notices to Appear and supplemental complaints in proceedings supplementary must be served as provided by law and rules of procedure for service of process.

However, due to our concerns over some of the language employed by the Committee in the proposed rule, and the use of phrases not defined in either the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure generally or specifically in rule 1.570, we modify the proposed new subdivision to read as follows, and adopt it with this modification:

(e) Proceedings Supplementary. Proceedings supplementary to execution and related discovery shall proceed as provided by chapter 56, Florida Statutes. Notices to Appear, as defined by law, and supplemental complaints in proceedings supplementary must be served as provided by the law and rules of procedure for service of process.

We also renumber form 1.914 (Execution) to 1.914(a), and adopt new forms 1.914(b) (Notice to Appear) and 1.914(c) (Affidavit of Claimant in Response to Notice to Appear), as proposed by the Committee. New form 1.914(b) is adopted in response to 2016 amendments to section 56.29(2), Florida Statutes, which require a court in some circumstances to issue a “Notice to Appear” to a judgment debtor, as defined in that section, or third-party holder of the judgment debtor's property. Ch. 2016–33, § 18, at 6–7, Laws of Fla. Additionally, new form 1.914(c) is adopted for use as the affidavit that a claimant of property is required to file with the court in response to a Notice to Appear under section 56.29(2), Florida Statutes (2017).

Accordingly, the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure and Forms are amended as reflected in the appendix to this opinion. New language is indicated by underscoring; deletions are indicated by struck-through type. The amendments shall become effective July 1, 2018, at 12:01 a.m.

It is so ordered.

APPENDIX

FOOTNOTES

1.   See generally ch. 2016–33, Laws of Fla. (amending chapter 56, Florida Statutes).

PER CURIAM.

LABARGA, C.J., and PARIENTE, LEWIS, QUINCE, CANADY, POLSTON, and LAWSON, JJ., concur.