IN RE: AMENDMENTS TO FLORIDA RULE OF JUDICIAL ADMINISTRATION 2.140. (2021)

The Court has for consideration comments filed in this case addressing the amendments to Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.140 (Amending Rules of Court) the Court adopted, on its own motion,¹ to allow The Florida Bar's rules committees to propose and the Court to adopt procedural rule changes in a more efficient, timely manner. See In re Amendments to Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.140, 289 So. 3d 1264 (Fla. 2020). The Court now further amends rule 2.140 as suggested in the comment filed by The Florida Bar's Rules of Judicial Administration (RJA Committee).²

Background

As relevant here, in the February 6, 2020, opinion in this case, the Court amended rule 2.140 to do away with the set schedule for Bar rules committee reports and to allow the committees to file rules proposals with the Court whenever a committee determines rules changes are needed. Id. The amendments became effective June 1, 2020. Id. Because the amendments were not published for comment prior to their adoption, interested persons were given an opportunity to file comments on them with the Court. Id. at 1265. The Court specifically sought comments and any suggested additional amendments to rule 2.140 from the RJA Committee. Id. Two comments were filed supporting the Court's streamlining of the rulemaking process. One of the supportive comments urges further amendments to rule 2.140(a)(2), under which the Clerk of this Court refers rule changes suggested by the public to the appropriate Bar rules committee. The other supportive comment was filed by the RJA Committee and suggests several additional amendments to rule 2.140. The RJA Committee's suggested amendments were unanimously approved by the Executive Committee of the Board of Governors of The Florida Bar (Board).

After considering the comments and suggested rule amendments, the Court declines to further amend subdivision (a)(2) of rule 2.140, but adopts the additional amendments to several subdivisions of the rule suggested by the RJA Committee.

Amendments

First, as suggested by the RJA Committee, we remove the requirement from subdivision (b)(2) of rule 2.140 that a rules committee submit its proposals to the Board before the proposals are ready for the Board's vote under subdivision (b)(3) of the rule. As explained in the RJA Committee's comment, because a rules committee must publish its proposals for comment, under subdivision (b)(2), before finally approving them, the Board or any Board member will have an opportunity to comment on the published proposals. We also adopt the RJA Committee's suggested amendment to subdivision (b)(3), which clarifies that the Board considers and votes on a committee's proposals after the comments are reviewed and before the committee files its report with the Court. According to the RJA Committee's report, these changes will minimize duplication of review by the Board and the confusion that has been caused when a committee's proposals are submitted to the Board for comment only under subdivision (b)(2).

As previously amended, subdivision (b)(7) of rule 2.140 provides January 1 of the year following adoption as a standard effective date for rule changes and recognizes that the Court may make a rule change effective on such other date as may be requested by the committee or set by the Court. As suggested by the RJA Committee, we further amend subdivision (b)(7) to provide July 1 of the year of adoption as an additional standard effective date for rule changes.

Finally, we adopt the various grammatical and technical changes to rule 2.140 suggested by the RJA Committee.

Conclusion

Accordingly, the Florida Rules of Judicial Administration 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 immediately upon the release of this opinion.

It is so ordered.

APPENDIX

FOOTNOTES

1.   See Fla. R. Jud. Admin. 2.140(d).

2.   We have jurisdiction. See art. V, § 2(a), Fla. Const.

PER CURIAM.

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