19 th Judicial Circuit Court Judge Janet Croom Guidelines and Procedures. Circuit Civil Jury Division (Updated: September, 2017)

Transcription

1 19 th Judicial Circuit Court Judge Janet Croom Guidelines and Procedures Circuit Civil Jury Division (Updated: September, 2017) PLEASE REVIEW ALL PROCEDURES PRIOR TO CONTACTING THE JUDGE S OFFICE Page 1 of 13

2 Table of Contents COMMUNICATIONS WITH JUDGE S OFFICE S:... 3 PHONE CALLS:... 3 MAIL SLOT:... 3 REQUIREMENTS FOR COURT REPORTERS:... 3 SETTLEMENT OF CASES:... 3 A. PRETRIAL PROCEDURES... 4 i. HEARING SCHEDULING / HEARING CANCELLATION / APPEARANCE BY TELEPHONE:... 4 ii. UNIFORM MOTION CALENDAR:... 5 iii. SPECIAL SET HEARINGS:... 5 iv. COOPERATION OF COUNSEL AND NOTICES OF HEARING:... 5 v. EMERGENCY HEARINGS:... 6 vi. MOTION TO DISMISS and/or MOTION FOR MORE DEFINITE STATEMENT:... 6 vii. MOTIONS FOR REHEARING, RECONSIDERATION OR NEW TRIAL:... 6 viii. DISCOVERY MOTIONS AND MOTIONS TO COMPEL:... 7 ix. MOTIONS FOR PROTECTIVE ORDERS:... 7 x. LEGAL MEMORANDUMS AND CITATIONS:... 7 xi. ORDERS:... 7 xii. WITHDRAW OR SUBSTITUTION OF COUNSEL:... 8 xiii. CASE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE:... 8 B. JURY TRIALS... 8 i. NOTICE FOR TRIAL, ORDERS SETTING TRIAL AND DOCKETS:... 8 ii. PRE-TRIAL STATEMENT:... 9 iii. TRIAL BRIEFS: iv. VOIR DIRE: v. JURY SELECTION PROCESS: vi. OPENING STATEMENT, CLOSING ARGUMENT, TRIAL EXHIBITS AND DEMONSTRATIVE AID: vii. EXPERTS: viii. USE OF DEPOSITIONS: ix. JURY INSTRUCTIONS: x. OBJECTIONS: Page 2 of 13

3 COMMUNICATIONS WITH JUDGE S OFFICE Please do not ask the Judicial Assistant or other Court personnel to communicate any message to the Judge. This is prohibited ex-parte communication. The Court s staff is not permitted to relay ex-parte information to the Judge. S: We can best respond to all communications to this office via rather than telephone calls. Please send all s to Judge Croom s Judicial Assistant at: SLCJudge4@circuit19.org. s must contain the case name, case number, subject matter and relevant date(s). Please ensure that any and all s are also copied to all opposing counsel and/or pro se parties and indicate same in the body of your e- mail to prevent ex-parte communication to the Court. *It is not necessary to send multiple s regarding the same subject matter. This creates confusion and takes up valuable time. A response to your will be forthcoming at our earliest opportunity. PHONE CALLS: As referenced above, is the most effective method of contact with this office. If you call and receive a voic , please do not leave more than one (1) message for the Judicial Assistants. Please do not leave a voic message and send an . *Please do not call the Judicial Assistant to ask if Orders have been entered, as this information is available online at the Clerk s office website at stlucieclerk.com. MAIL SLOT: Located through the main entrance of the Courthouse at 218 S. 2 nd Street, Fort Pierce, FL 34950, on the 1 st Floor, just past security, at the mailroom. REQUIREMENTS FOR COURT REPORTERS: All evidentiary matters (both trials and hearings) must be recorded by a court reporter. It is the moving party s responsibility to arrange to have a court reporter present. SETTLEMENT OF CASES: If your case settles immediately notify the Court s Judicial Assistant via , transmittal confirmation to all parties, ATTACHING AN ALREADY E-FILED NOTICE OF SETTLEMENT, DISMISSAL DOCUMENTS AND FINAL DISPOSITION FORM. Page 3 of 13

4 A. PRETRIAL PROCEDURES i. HEARING SCHEDULING / HEARING CANCELLATION / APPEARANCE BY TELEPHONE: *All Motions must be e-filed PRIOR to setting a hearing, however, the mere filing of a Motion is insufficient to set a motion for hearing. The motion must be set for hearing to bring the matter to the Court s attention. You are required to provide the Judge s office with the Notice of Hearing and Hearing Packet via . All hearings for 4 hours or less, including Uniform Motion Calendar and Special Set Hearings must be scheduled online by counsel. Please refer to Judge Croom s calendar posted at to confirm and schedule available dates. You must register to obtain your User ID and Password on the site. When registering on the site, please include your address. Parties will be restricted to the time allotted for the hearing. The Court reserves the discretion to reject any scheduling. Attorneys who repeatedly abuse the online scheduling may be denied further privileges of selfscheduling. Any hearings requiring more than 4 hours must be scheduled by contacting Judge Croom s Judicial Assistant via . The shall include a copy of the Motion already e-filed with the Clerk. Cancellation of any hearing must be done 1) through the online Court scheduling calendar, 2) by e-filing a Notice of Cancellation of Hearing in advance of the hearing date and 3) a courtesy copy of your Notice of Cancellation of Hearing to the Judicial Assistants via , once you have e-filed same. Telephone hearings are permitted as long as there is no testimony or evidence to be presented. No Motion or Order is necessary. *All telephone appearances must be made through Courtcall. Courtcall is an independent service provider. By using Courtcall, individuals are knowingly entering into a service agreement and are subject to follow any additional terms and conditions imposed by Courtcall and shall be solely responsible for any costs or other expenses incurred for those services provided. Courtcall charges each participant a fee for each Courtcall appearance. There are no subscription fees. Telephonic appearances must be arranged by contacting Courtcall by telephone at or online at Courtcall will provide participants with a written confirmation of their telephonic appearance and a number to call to make said telephonic appearance. Persons electing to make a telephonic appearance must notify all parties in writing no less than five (5) business days prior to the scheduled hearing date. Page 4 of 13

5 ii. UNIFORM MOTION CALENDAR: Uniform Motion Calendar Hearings are for 5 to 10 minute, non-evidentiary Motions only. Uniform Motion Calendar Hearings must be scheduled online. Please refer to Judge Croom s calendar posted at to confirm and schedule available dates. Uniform Motion Calendar Hearings will normally be held Tuesday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. All Uniform Motion Calendar Hearings must be noticed for 8:30 a.m. Hearings on UMC are limited to ten (10) minutes per case (not per Motion). Additional Motions should not be piggy-backed by cross-notice unless counsel first confirms with opposing parties and the online calendar, that sufficient additional time is available and can be reserved for same. UMC is heard on a first come, first serve basis. After proper notice, failure of any party to appear at the hearing shall not prevent a party from proceeding with the matter when the case is called. If the party noticing the matter for hearing chooses to wait for the absent party, the matter may be passed over until the end of the calendar. If the Judge runs out of time on UMC, any remaining hearings will need to be rescheduled. Contested summary judgment and evidentiary motions will not be heard at UMC. The types of Motions suitable for hearing on the Uniform Motion Calendar include simple motions, such as motions to strike affirmative defenses, amend pleadings, discovery motions, objections to CME, etc. UMC is available to pursue a summary final judgment for liquidated damages, including attorney s fees and costs after a default based upon a proper motion with supporting documentation, unless a party appears to contest it. In that instance, the parties must reset per the on-line calendar for an evidentiary hearing/trial on such matters. iii. SPECIAL SET HEARINGS: For Motion(s) which are not appropriate for UMC Calendar because the Motion(s) require more than the allotted ten (10) minutes for UMC but less than four (4) hours, please refer to the calendar posted at to confirm and schedule available dates. You must register to obtain your User ID and Password on the site. When registering on the site, please include your address. iv. COOPERATION OF COUNSEL AND NOTICES OF HEARING: Hearings must be cleared with opposing counsel and/or pro se parties. Good faith cooperation is expected from counsel, their support staff, and pro se litigants. Should counsel, their staff, or pro se litigants fail to respond within 3 business days, or refuse to cooperate in obtaining or in setting a hearing, the difficulty should be set forth either in the Motion or in the Notice of Hearing. After 3 days, the requesting party may unilaterally set a hearing. Notice of the hearing must be provided at least five (5) working days prior to the hearing. All motions must comply with the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, including, but not limited to, a certification that the movant, in good faith, has conferred or attempted to confer with the person or party failing to make discovery Page 5 of 13

6 in an effort to secure the information without Court action. See, Fla.R.Civ.P., Rule 1.380(a)(2). All Notices of Hearing shall contain a certification signed by the scheduling attorney in substantially the following form: I HEREBY CERTIFY that I have personally contacted opposing counsel in an effort to resolve the issue(s), however, the matter cannot be resolved and a hearing is necessary. Please note that certifications containing language to the effect that an effort will be made to resolve the issue in the future is NOT sufficient. Failure to comply with this requirement may result in cancellation of the hearing by the Court. If it is determined that the certification is not true, other sanctions may be imposed, including a referral to the Florida Bar. v. EMERGENCY HEARINGS: If an emergency situation arises, counsel may request that a hearing be set on short notice. The body of the motion must contain a detailed explanation of the circumstances constituting the emergency as well as the substance of the motion. The motion must be ed to the Court before a hearing will be set. The Court will review the motion and, if it is determined an emergency exists, the Judicial Assistant will contact counsel to set the hearing. In light of the short setting, opposing counsel may attend the hearing via Courtcall telephonic appearance if their schedule will not allow them to appear in person. vi. MOTION TO DISMISS and/or MOTION FOR MORE DEFINITE STATEMENT: All Motions to Dismiss filed pursuant to Fla.R.Civ.Pro., Rule 1.140(b) and Motions for More Definite Statement filed pursuant to Fla.R.Civ.Pro., Rule 1.140(e), will initially be considered without a hearing. Motions to Dismiss must strictly comply with the requirements of the Rule in that the grounds and the applicable substantial matters of law shall be stated specifically and with particularity. Motions for More Definite Statement must strictly comply with the requirements of the Rule in that the motion must point out the defects complained of and the details desired. Any party may furnish to the Court via the Motion, a proposed completed Order, and transmittal confirmation to all counsel of record and pro se parties. The copy shall be accompanied by a proposed completed Order. The Motion will be held for ten (10) days to give the opposing side the opportunity to reply. If it is determined that a hearing is necessary, the movant will be advised to schedule a hearing and file the appropriate notice. If a hearing is not required, an appropriate Order will be entered. No case dispositive ruling will be made without a hearing. vii. MOTIONS FOR REHEARING, RECONSIDERATION OR NEW TRIAL: Upon the filing of such Motion, the moving party shall send a copy to the Court for review via . The copy of the Motion shall be accompanied by a proposed Order and transmittal confirmation to all counsel. The Page 6 of 13

7 moving party will be responsible for providing the Court s Order to all parties without service addresses. If the Court determines that a hearing is necessary, the movant will be given dates and times to coordinate with opposing counsel or pro se litigants, and must file the appropriate notices. viii. DISCOVERY MOTIONS AND MOTIONS TO COMPEL: If a Motion to Compel discovery sets forth a complete failure to respond or object to discovery, the time for complying with the discovery request has lapsed, and there has been no request for an extension of time, an Ex Parte Order may be entered requiring compliance with the original discovery demand within ten (10) days of the signing of the Order. Upon the filing of such Motion, the moving party shall send the Motion, proposed Order and transmittal confirmation to the Court via . The moving parties attorney will be responsible for providing the Court s Order to all parties without service addresses. ix. MOTIONS FOR PROTECTIVE ORDERS: The filing of a Motion for Protective Order, without presenting it to the Court, is insufficient. The Court will make itself available for immediate hearings on such motions where the Motion could not have been filed and heard in the due course of discovery. x. LEGAL MEMORANDUMS AND CITATIONS: This office is paperless, and while not required, any legal memorandums or briefs, along with hard copies of significant cited authorities, should be provided to the Court at least five (5) business days before the hearing. Highlighting pertinent sections and brevity is appreciated. Case law and memorandums provided to the Court during the hearing may not be considered. The Court, on occasion, may rule on Motions without a hearing. Therefore, both counsel filing the Motion and opposing parties are encouraged to timely file written argument with the Court. xi. ORDERS: The moving party must any proposed Order in Word format to Judge Croom s Judicial Assistant. The proposed Order s title must describe the subject and ruling of the Court, i.e. Order Granting Plaintiff s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment on Liability See Fla.R.Civ.P., Rule 1.100(c)(1), and shall contain the name and e- mail service address for all parties. If any party does not have an service address, that parties physical service address shall be contained in the proposed Order. This office issues Orders via e-filing only. It is the responsibility of the moving party to provide Orders to parties without service addresses. Page 7 of 13

8 If counsel is asked to prepare an Order, the Order shall be drafted and circulated within 2 business days of the hearing, and submitted to the Court with transmittal confirmation to all counsel and pro se parties within 7 days of the hearing, advising the Court in writing of any objection to the form of the proposed Order. The Court will not execute proposed Orders, Agreed Orders, or Stipulations without transmittal confirmation to all counsel of record and pro se parties. xii. WITHDRAW OR SUBSTITUTION OF COUNSEL: Compliance with Fla. R. Jud. Admin. Rule is required. Written client consent must be filed, or a hearing must be held after proper notice to the client. xiii. CASE MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE: The Court or any party may schedule a formal Case Management Conference (CMC). Once submitted, the action will be controlled, not only by the Order Setting Trial, but also by the CMC Order. B. JURY TRIALS **Trials will take place in Courtroom 3D, unless otherwise indicated. Counsel and their clients are to be in the Courtroom and ready for trial no later than 9:00 a.m. on the date of trial. i. NOTICE FOR TRIAL, ORDERS SETTING TRIAL AND DOCKETS: Notices for Trial must to be e-filed, and also ed to the Court. It is important to note, simply e-filing a document does not bring it to the Court s attention. PLEASE DO NOT mail a copy of your Notice for Trial with envelopes. The Notice for Trial shall include the name and addresses of counsel for all parties (or pro se parties mailing addresses) for service. This office issues Orders via e-filing only. It is the responsibility of the moving party to provide Orders to parties without service addresses. Pursuant to Fla. R. Civ. P., Rule 1.440, an Order Directing Pre-Trial Procedure and Setting Trial will be issued in every case upon receipt of a Notice for Trial. The fact that a case is still in the discovery stage does not prevent the filing of a Notice for Trial or prevent the Court from setting the case for trial. If a Notice for Trial is filed, and the opposing party believes that the trial date will not allow sufficient time to complete discovery, counsel should immediately file a motion for a status hearing and/or a case management conference and set for hearing. Delays in advising the Court that there is not sufficient time to complete discovery may be considered a waiver of any objection to the setting of a trial date. Page 8 of 13

9 **E-DOCKET PROCEDURE** In a continuing effort to streamline the litigation process, this office has implemented an E-DOCKET component for the Circuit Civil Jury Trial Division. There is no requirement to physically attend Docket Call. Instead, counsel with cases on each month s docket will fill out the attached form and it to SLCJudge4@circuit19.org. Your case will be placed on a Trial Schedule during the week(s) you have selected. Cases will be stacked during your selected week(s) according to the year that the case was filed, with the older cases being placed at the top of that week s trial schedule. Counsel for each case is required to submit the attached form for the trial period during which your case is set. All counsel shall discuss and agree regarding trial dates to be selected and one form is to be submitted for each case. The form shall be signed by all counsel of record for that particular case. If you fail to submit the form as set forth above by the deadline, you will be set on the Trial Schedule at the will of the Court. All forms are to be ed to SLCJudge4@circuit19.org by 5:00 p.m. the day before the posted Docket Call date. A Trial Schedule will be posted on this Court s webpage located online at We will endeavor to have the Trial Schedule posted by noon on the day of the designated Docket Call date. *It will be the responsibility of counsel and pro se litigants to keep track of their position on the trial docket and to monitor whether the cases set ahead of your case are settled or continued. The top 3 (three) cases moving forward as of 5:00 p.m. on the Monday preceding your trial are required to appear the morning of jury trial. Unless the case is settled or continued prior to the date set for jury selection, counsel must appear for jury selection. All other cases are rolled to the next Docket Call and are required to file the E-Docket Call Form for same. *If your case is rolled or continued, existing deadlines stay in place and you will not be issued a new Trial Order. Do not call the Judge s office to determine the status of your case or priority of your case for the trial week. It is unacceptable to announce to the Court that counsel is not ready to proceed to trial because counsel thought another case would proceed instead. If your case is called up for jury selection and you do not appear or are not ready for trial, the case will be dismissed if you represent the plaintiff, or a default entered if you represent the defense. Any motion to continue must comply with Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.460, including requirement of signature by the party requesting continuance. Simply filing a motion to continue will not suffice to continue the case. Your case will not be continued because both parties agree and note same on the E-Docket Call Form. ii. PRE-TRIAL STATEMENT: It is the duty of counsel for the Plaintiff to see that the Joint Pre-Trial Statement is executed by counsel for all parties, and filed with the Clerk no later than E-Docket Call. Counsel for the Plaintiff shall to the Judicial Page 9 of 13

10 Assistant the Joint Pre-Trial Stipulation on the E-Docket Call date. Counsel for all parties are charged with good faith cooperation in this regard. The Pre-Trial Statement must contain the following in separate paragraphs: a. A concise statement describing the facts of the case in an impartial, easily understandable manner. b. A statement of agreements and stipulated facts which require no proof at trial. c. A statement of all issues of law and fact for determination at trial. d. A specification of the damages and/or relief claimed. e. A statement of estimated trial time. f. Any other agreements. g. An identification of unusual issues, either evidentiary or procedural, that are expected to arise during trial. h. A brief statement of the case to be read to the prospective jurors at the beginning of jury selection. i. The number of peremptory challenges for each party. j. A list of the witnesses by name who may be called at trial, with their addresses, and a brief statement outlining the nature of each witness' testimony. Expert witnesses must be designated as such with a brief statement outlining the nature of the expertise and the opinion testimony to be offered. Witnesses not listed may not be called at trial. (See III.) Before and after witnesses are limited to no more than three for each party. Expert witnesses are limited to no more than two in any one expert field. The Court may make such other rulings or limitations on witnesses, including experts, as the nature of the case and justice requires. k. A list of all exhibits (including depositions to be read) which may be introduced at trial, itemized as indicated below. Counsel must note a waiver of objection for those exhibits where appropriate. All exhibits must be marked and filed with the Clerk prior to trial as follows and as set forth in the following Exhibits section: 1. a list of all exhibits to be admitted in evidence by the Plaintiff without objection by the Defendant; 2. a list of all exhibits to be admitted in evidence by the Defendant without objection by the Plaintiff; Page 10 of 13

11 3. a list of all other exhibits of the Plaintiff, that are objected to by the Defendant, noting the specific evidentiary objections and the reasons therefore on the pre-trial statement; 4. a list of all other exhibits of the Defendant, which are objected to by the Plaintiff, noting the specific evidentiary objections and the reasons therefore on the pre-trial statement. 5. Exhibits must be reasonably specific in their description. "All documents produced during discovery" or such similar description is not acceptable. l. A statement of the legal issues involved in the proceedings to be read to the jury. Parties may not "reserve" objections in the Pre-Trial Statement. Each party must prepare in advance of trial and furnish to the courtroom clerk at the time of commencement of trial, a typed list of all exhibits containing a brief description of each. iii. TRIAL BRIEFS: If a trial brief is to be considered it should be submitted to the Judge no later than three (3) business days before the trial is to commence. Hard copies of cases cited in the trial brief with appropriate highlighting of the pertinent sections are appreciated. iv. VOIR DIRE: The Court will conduct a preliminary voir dire of the jury. Counsel are welcome to request that the Court explore certain areas of inquiry that may be important to the trial but sensitive in nature. Counsel are reminded to be considerate of the jurors personal lives during their inquiries as well as the jurors time constraints. While significant latitude in questioning is allowed, repetitive questions will be limited. v. JURY SELECTION PROCESS: After voir dire, the Court will first ask each side for any cause challenges. Upon completion of challenges for cause, the Court will move to pre-emptory challenges. The Court will start with the first juror and move sequentially as they are seated in the venire, alternating between counsel until a panel is chosen. Back striking during jury selection is always permitted. The number of alternates will be determined by the type and length of the trial. Each party will have one additional strike as to each alternate. vi. OPENING STATEMENT, CLOSING ARGUMENT, TRIAL EXHIBITS AND DEMONSTRATIVE AID: All exhibits are to be marked for identification by the Clerk no later than three (3) business days before trial. Exhibits which will be stipulated into evidence may be marked in evidence. Once exhibits are marked, either for identification or in evidence, they become the property of the Clerk of Court and may not be altered or removed from the courtroom without Order of the Court. No exhibits are to be published or exhibited to the jury until Page 11 of 13

12 admitted into evidence and authorized by the Court. *To mark your exhibit for identification, and for any questions regarding Exhibits for Judge Croom s trials contact the Civil Clerk s Office at Only demonstrative aids or exhibits listed on the Pre-Trial Statement, pre-marked by the Clerk three (3) business days before the first day of trial, agreed to by all counsel, or approved by the Court, may be used in either opening statement or closing argument. Failure to disclose a demonstrative aid will result in its exclusion. Failure to raise an objection to a demonstrative aid prior to the day of trial will result in waiver of the objection. The Court will discuss with counsel the time requirement of both opening statement and closing argument and will expect that a reasonable estimate be provided by counsel. vii. EXPERTS: The Court will not accept or qualify a witness as an expert in front of the jury. Challenges to an expert s qualifications will be handled outside the presence of the jury. Any Daubert motion must be raised via motion and set for hearing no less than fifteen (15) days before trial. Failure to raise a Daubert motion timely may result in waiver of such argument. viii. USE OF DEPOSITIONS: If depositions are to be used at trial in any manner (impeachment, as video testimony, etc.), a hard copy must be available for the witness being questioned. Deposition designations must be filed and noticed to opposing party, and must also be listed on the Witness and Exhibit Lists to avoid surprise at trial. ix. JURY INSTRUCTIONS: Plaintiff s counsel shall to the Judicial Assistant Jury Instructions on the E-Docket Call date. Proposed AGREED jury instructions should contain a jury instruction title for each proposed instruction and any citations. Jury instructions should be personalized to use the parties names instead of Plaintiff or Defendant. Counsel must identify all jury instructions to which there is no objection by any party. Jury instructions to which there are objections must also be submitted on the E-Docket Call date, and will be ruled on by the Court during the charge conference. The Court realizes that the final form of the jury instructions and the verdict forms will depend upon the evidence received during the trial and the issues that remain at the conclusion of the presentation of the evidence, however the use of this procedure will reduce the amount of time needed for the charge conference. Following the charge conference, final jury instructions and verdict forms must be submitted to the Court in printed form appropriate for submission to the jury. The Court intends to instruct the jury immediately prior to opening statements. The Court will instruct the jury immediately prior to closing arguments and will provide the jury with a written copy of all final jury instructions at that time. Page 12 of 13

13 x. OBJECTIONS: Speaking objections in front of the jury are not permissible. When counsel rises to object, the legal basis for the objection only should be stated. If elaboration is necessary, the Court will call counsel to the bench for a bench conference out of the presence of the jury. Counsel shall not interrupt opposing counsel or witness s questions or answers with an objection unless the answer or question is patently objectionable. Once the Court has ruled, no further argument shall be permitted. Page 13 of 13