IN RE: AMENDMENTS TO FLORIDA RULE OF JUDICIAL ADMINISTRATION 2.420 (2020)

The Florida Bar's Rules of Judicial Administration Committee (RJA Committee) and Juvenile Court Rules Committee (JCR Committee) have 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). We have jurisdiction ¹ and adopt the proposed amendments with minor modifications discussed herein.² We also amend a Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure form, on our own motion, to conform with a proposed amendment to a Rule of Juvenile Procedure form and the relevant legislation.

BACKGROUND

“In 2004, the Constitution of the State of Florida was amended to include Article X, Section 22, permitting the Legislature to provide for parental notice of termination of a minor's pregnancy.” In re Amends. to Fla. Rules of Juv. Pro. and Fla. Rules of App. Pro.—Judicial Waiver of Parental Notice of Termination of Pregnancy, 907 So. 2d 1161, 1162 (Fla. 2005). In response to that constitutional amendment, the 2005 Florida Legislature passed chapter 2005-52, Laws of Florida, creating section 390.01114, Florida Statutes (2019), the Parental Notice of Abortion Act. In re Amends., 907 So. 2d at 1162. The Parental Notice of Abortion Act requires parental notification before a minor may obtain an abortion but provides that a minor may petition the circuit court to obtain a judicial waiver of the notification requirement. Id. Following the passage of the legislation, this Court adopted the necessary rules and forms applicable to such proceedings. Id.

The Legislature has now passed Florida CS for CS for SB 404, amending section 390.01114(5) to require, in addition to the existing notice requirement, parental consent to the termination of pregnancy procedure performed on a minor. Additionally, as relevant here, Florida CS for CS for SB 406 created section 390.01118(1), Florida Statutes, to make confidential and exempt from the public's right to access under article I, section 24(a) of the Florida Constitution any information held by a circuit or appellate court that could be used to identify a minor who petitions the court for a waiver from the statutory requirement that a parent or legal guardian consent to the termination. The new legislation is effective on July 1, 2020. Fla. SB 404, § 6 (2020); Fla. SB 406, § 3 (2020).

In response to the new legislation, the RJA Committee proposes amending Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.420 (Public Access to and Protection of Judicial Branch Records). The JCR Committee proposes amending Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure 8.805 (Commencement of Proceedings), 8.810 (Petition), 8.815 (Counsel), 8.820 (Hearing), 8.830 (Transcripts), 8.835 (Confidentiality of Records), and 8.987 (Petition for Judicial Waiver of Parental Notification of Termination of Pregnancy), as well as forms 8.988 (Sworn Statement of True Name and Pseudonym), 8.990 (Final Order Granting Petition for Judicial Waiver of Parental Notice of Termination of Pregnancy), 8.991 (Final Order Dismissing Petition for Judicial Waiver of Parental Notice of Termination of Pregnancy), and 8.992 (Minor's Petition to Chief Judge to Require a Hearing on Her Petition for Judicial Waiver of Notice).

The Executive Committee of the Board of Governors of The Florida Bar approved the Committees' proposals by a vote of 10-0-1. The RJA and JCR Committees did not publish the proposals before filing them with the Court. After considering the Committees' proposals and the relevant legislation, we amend the Florida Rules of Judicial Administration and Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure as proposed by the Committees with minor modifications. Additionally, on our own motion, we amend Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure form 9.900(f) (Notice of Appeal of an Order Dismissing a Petition for a Judicial Waiver of Parental Notice of Termination of Pregnancy and Advisory Notice to Minor) to conform with an amendment to Rule of Juvenile Procedure form 8.991 and to the legislative changes to section 390.01114. The more significant amendments are discussed below.

AMENDMENTS

First, we amend Rule of Judicial Administration 2.420(d)(1)(B) (Procedures for Determining Confidentiality of Court Records), which lists the information in court records that the clerk of court must designate and maintain as confidential. See In re Amends. to Fla. Rule of Jud. Admin. 2.420–2017 Fast-Track Report, 233 So. 3d 1022 (Fla. 2018). Rule 2.420(d)(1)(B)(vii) currently lists “[i]nformation that can be used to identify a minor petitioning for a waiver of parental notice when seeking to terminate pregnancy” under section 390.01116 as one of the categories of court records the clerk of court must keep confidential. New section 390.01118(1) provides that “[a]ny information that can be used to identify a minor who is petitioning a circuit court for a judicial waiver” is “[c]onfidential and exempt from [section] 119.07(1) and [section] 24(a), [article] I of the [Florida] Constitution, if held by a circuit court or an appellate court.” Accordingly, we amend rule 2.420(d)(1)(B)(vii) by adding the phrases “or guardian” and “or consent” to reflect the legislative changes.

Additionally, we amend Rules of Juvenile Procedure 8.805 (Commencement of Proceedings), 8.810 (Petition), and 8.820 (Hearing) by adding language regarding consent to the existing language pertaining to notice to encompass the two separate matters for which a pregnant minor may now seek a waiver. We similarly amend the forms to also include language regarding waivers for consent. For example, we amend the title of form 8.987 to read: “Petition for Judicial Waiver of Parental Consent to or Notification of and Consent to Termination of Pregnancy.” Also, in addition to the JCR Committee's proposed changes to form 8.988 (Sworn Statement of True Name and Pseudonym), we further amend paragraph three of the form, which references form 8.987, to reflect the amended title of form 8.987. Additionally, we have revised the JCR Committee's proposed amendments to the title of the petition in form 8.992 to read: “Minor's Petition to Chief Judge to Require a Hearing on Her Petition for Judicial Waiver of Consent or Notice and Consent.” Lastly, due to the renumbering of subdivisions in section 390.01114, we replace statutory references throughout the Rules of Juvenile Procedure with “law.”

Furthermore, we also amend, on our own motion, Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure form 9.900(f) (Notice of Appeal of an Order Dismissing a Petition for a Judicial Waiver of Parental Notice of Termination of Pregnancy and Advisory Notice to Minor). One of the amendments to Florida Rule of Juvenile Procedure form 8.991 amends the title of Rule of Appellate Procedure form 9.900(f), as referenced in form 8.991, to reflect the legislative changes. Thus, to conform with the legislative changes, and for consistency with the amendments to form 8.991, we amend the title of form 9.900(f) to read: “Notice of Appeal of an Order Dismissing a Petition for Judicial Waiver of Parental Consent to or Notice of and Consent to Termination of Pregnancy and Advisory Notice to Minor.” We also similarly amend the case style, the notice section, paragraph one, and paragraph five of form 9.900(f) to include consent.

CONCLUSION

Accordingly, the Florida Rules of Judicial Administration, the Florida Rules of Juvenile Procedure, and the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure 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 take effect immediately upon the release of this opinion. Because the amendments were not published for comment prior to their adoption, interested persons shall have seventy-five days from the date of this opinion in which to file comments with the Court.³

It is so ordered.

APPENDIX

FOOTNOTES

1.   See art. V, § 2(a), Fla. Const.

2.   Minor technical corrections to several of the rule and form amendments proposed by the JCR Committee are not discussed.

3.   All comments must be filed with the Court on or before September 15, 2020, with a certificate of service verifying that a copy has been served on the Committee Chairs, Michael Jeffrey Korn, Chair, Rules of Judicial Administration Committee, Korn & Zehmer, P.A., 501 Riverside Avenue, Suite 903, Jacksonville, Florida 32202-4940, mkorn@kornzehmer.com, Matthew Charles Wilson, Chair, Juvenile Court Rules Committee, Children's Legal Services, 160 West Government Street, Suite 701, Pensacola, Florida 32502-5735, matthew.wilson@myflfamilies.com, and Hon. Stephanie Williams Ray, Chair, Appellate Court Rules Committee, First District Court of Appeal, 2000 Drayton Drive, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0001, rays@1dca.org, and on the Bar Staff Liaisons to the Committees, Krys Godwin, 651 E. Jefferson Street, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-2300, kgodwin@floridabar.org, and Mikalla Andies Davis, 651 E. Jefferson Street, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-2300, mdavis@floridabar.org, 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. The Committee Chairs have until October 6, 2020, to file a response to any comments filed with the Court. 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) in accordance with In re Electronic Filing in the Supreme Court of Florida via the Florida Courts E-Filing Portal, Fla. Admin. Order No. AOSC13-7 (Feb. 18, 2013). 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. Comments filed via the Portal must be submitted in Microsoft Word 97 or higher. See In re Electronic Filing in the Florida Supreme Court, Fla. Admin. Order No. AOSC17-27 (May 9, 2017). 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.

CANADY, C.J., and POLSTON, LABARGA, LAWSON, MUÑIZ, and COURIEL, JJ., concur.