RULE 7.090. APPEARANCE; DEFENSIVE PLEADINGS; TRIAL
DATE

(a) Appearance. On the date and time appointed in the
summons/notice to appear, the plaintiff and defendant must
appear personally or by counsel, subject to subdivision (b). Such
appearance may be in person or through the use of communication
technology under Florida Rule of General Practice and Judicial
Administration 2.530.

(b) Summons/Notice to Appear; Pretrial Conference. The
summons/notice to appear shall specify that the initial appearance
shall be for a pretrial conference. The initial pretrial conference
shall be set by the clerk not more than 50 days from the date of the
filing of the action. In the event the summons/notice to appear is
non-served and the return of service is filed 5 days before the
pretrial conference, the pretrial conference shall be canceled by the
court as to any non-served party. The plaintiff may request a new
summons/notice to appear and include a new initial appearance
date for the pretrial conference. The pretrial conference may be
managed by nonjudicial personnel employed by or under contract
with the court. Nonjudicial personnel must be subject to direct
oversight by the court. A judge must be available to hear any
motions or resolve any legal issues. At the pretrial conference, all of
the following matters shall be considered:

(1) The simplification of issues.
(2) The necessity or desirability of amendments to the
pleadings.

(3) The possibility of obtaining admissions of fact and
of documents that avoid unnecessary proof.

(4) The limitations on the number of witnesses.

(5) The possibilities of settlement.

(6) Such other matters as the court in its discretion
deems necessary.

Form 7.322 shall and form 7.323 may be used in conjunction
with this rule.

(c) Defensive Pleadings. Unless required by order of court,
written pretrial motions and defensive pleadings are not necessary.
If filed, copies of such pleadings shall be served on all other parties
to the action at or prior to the pretrial conference or within such
time as the court may designate. The filing of a motion or a
defensive pleading shall not excuse the personal appearance of a
party or attorney on the initial appearance date (pretrial
conference).

(d) Trial Date. The court shall set the case for trial not more
than 60 days from the date of the pretrial conference. Notice of at
least 10 days of the time of trial shall be given. The parties may
stipulate to a shorter or longer time for setting trial with the
approval of the court. This rule does not apply to actions to which
chapter 51, Florida Statutes, applies.

(e) Waiver of Appearance at Pretrial Conference. Where
all parties are represented by an attorney, counsel may agree to
waive personal appearance at the initial pretrial conference, if a
written agreement of waiver signed by all attorneys is presented to
the court prior to or at the pretrial conference. The agreement shall
contain a short statement of the disputed issues of fact and law, the
number of witnesses expected to testify, an estimate of the time
needed to try the case, and any stipulations of fact. The court shall
forthwith set the case for trial within the time prescribed by these
rules.

(f) Appearance at Mediation; Sanctions. In small claims
actions, an attorney may appear on behalf of a party at mediation if
the attorney has full authority to settle without further
consultation. Unless otherwise ordered by the court, a nonlawyer
representative may appear on behalf of a party to a small claims
mediation if the representative has the party’s signed written
authority to appear and has full authority to settle without further
consultation. In either event, the party need not appear. Mediation
may take place at the pretrial conference. Whoever appears for a
party must have full authority to settle. Appearance at the
mediation may be in person or, if authorized by the court or by
written stipulation of the parties, through the use of communication
technology as that term is defined in Florida Rule of General
Practice and Judicial Administration 2.530. Failure to comply with
this subdivision may result in the imposition of costs and attorney
fees incurred by the opposing party.

(g) Agreement. Any agreements reached as a result of small
claims mediation must be written in the form of a stipulation. The
stipulation may be entered as an order of the court. Signatures for
the stipulation may be original, electronic, or facsimile and may be
in counterparts.

Committee Notes

1972 Amendment. Rule 7.120 is incorporated in subdivision
(c). It is slightly expanded to provide for a computation period from
service by mail and to give the parties the right to stipulate to a
shorter time for the trial.

1984 Amendment. This change requires the use of a pretrial
procedure and requires both parties to attend the pretrial
conference which can be used to resolve pretrial motions. The use
of a pretrial previously varied from county to county.

1988 Amendment. (b) 1st sentence — Chair’s clarification.

2nd sentence — Require the clerk to set the initial pretrial
conference within a reasonable time after filing of the action taking
into consideration the fact that the time standards guideline for
small claims cases is 95 days.

3rd sentence — State within the small claims rules what
matters shall be considered at the pretrial conference rather than
by reference to Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.220(a), which has
been amended several times and is generally not applicable to small
claims cases.

4th sentence — Direct that new form 7.322 shall and that new
form 7.323 may be used statewide.

(c) Clarifies that a personal appearance is required at the
pretrial conference when a defense motion is filed.

(e) Adds a provision for waiving counsel’s appearance at the
pretrial conference where all parties are represented by counsel.

Court Commentary

2008 Amendment. The requirement that an attorney
attending mediation on behalf of the client have full authority to
settle should not be equated to a requirement to settle where one or
more parties wants to proceed to trial.