Three key distinctions between Florida and the federal court system which the court aimed to eliminate:įirst, is the differing approach to a summary judgment motion and a motion for directed verdict. In deciding to amend the summary judgment rule, the Florida Supreme Court followed the lead of thirty-eight other states that have aligned with the federal judiciary on the governing standard. This should it make it easier to conclude a case before trial. Not anymore.Įffective May 1, 2021, summary judgment motions filed in Florida state courts will be construed under the federal standard. However, Florida courts have historically applied the rule in a way that makes it more difficult to obtain summary judgment relief than a federal court litigant. 56(a) (requiring summary judgment to be granted if the party requesting it “shows that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.”). This rule tracks almost verbatim the language of its federal counterpart – Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56. In Florida, a party can request summary judgment if “there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Fla. The amendment modifies summary judgment motion practice by adopting a more lenient standard applicable in federal court.Īs background, summary judgment is a procedural weapon a party may deploy in civil litigation to conclude a case, eliminating the expense and risk of a jury trial. But this could actually be a real gamechanger in Florida state court litigation. On December 31, 2020, the Florida Supreme Court amended Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.510 – hardly an earth-shattering headline.
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