Florida Statute 57.085 | Lawyer Caselaw & Research

The 2024 Florida Statutes

Title VI
CIVIL PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE

Chapter 57
COURT COSTS

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F.S. 57.085

57.085 Deferral of prepayment of court costs and fees for indigent prisoners.—

(1) For the purposes of this section, the term “prisoner” means a person who has been convicted of a crime and is incarcerated for that crime or who is being held in custody pending extradition or sentencing.

(2) When a prisoner who is intervening in or initiating a judicial proceeding seeks to defer the prepayment of court costs and fees because of indigence, the prisoner must file an affidavit of indigence with the appropriate clerk of the court. The affidavit must contain complete information about the prisoner’s identity; the nature and amount of the prisoner’s income; all real property owned by the prisoner; all tangible and intangible property worth more than $100 which is owned by the prisoner; the amount of cash held by the prisoner; the balance of any checking, savings, or money market account held by the prisoner; the prisoner’s dependents, including their names and ages; the prisoner’s debts, including the name of each creditor and the amount owed to each creditor; and the prisoner’s monthly expenses. The prisoner must certify in the affidavit whether the prisoner has been adjudicated indigent under this section, certified indigent under s. 57.081, or authorized to proceed as an indigent under 28 U.S.C. s. 1915 by a federal court. The prisoner must attach to the affidavit a photocopy of the prisoner’s trust account records for the preceding 6 months or for the length of the prisoner’s incarceration, whichever period is shorter. The affidavit must contain the following statements: “I am presently unable to pay court costs and fees. Under penalty of perjury, I swear or affirm that all statements in this affidavit are true and complete.”

(3) Before a prisoner may receive a deferral of prepayment of any court costs and fees for an action brought under this section, the clerk of court must review the affidavit and determine the prisoner to be indigent.

(4) When the clerk has found the prisoner to be indigent but concludes the prisoner is able to pay part of the court costs and fees required by law, the court shall order the prisoner to make, prior to service of process, an initial partial payment of those court costs and fees. The initial partial payment must total at least 20 percent of the average monthly balance of the prisoner’s trust account for the preceding 6 months or for the length of the prisoner’s incarceration, whichever period is shorter.

(5) When the clerk has found the prisoner to be indigent, the court shall order the prisoner to make monthly payments of no less than 20 percent of the balance of the prisoner’s trust account as payment of court costs and fees. When a court orders such payment, the Department of Corrections or the local detention facility shall place a lien on the inmate’s trust account for the full amount of the court costs and fees, and shall withdraw money maintained in that trust account and forward the money, when the balance exceeds $10, to the appropriate clerk of the court until the prisoner’s court costs and fees are paid in full.

(6) Before an indigent prisoner may intervene in or initiate any judicial proceeding, the court must review the prisoner’s claim to determine whether it is legally sufficient to state a cause of action for which the court has jurisdiction and may grant relief. The court shall dismiss all or part of an indigent prisoner’s claim which:

(a) Fails to state a claim for which relief may be granted;

(b) Seeks monetary relief from a defendant who is immune from such relief;

(d) Is frivolous, malicious, or reasonably appears to be intended to harass one or more named defendants.

(7) A prisoner who has twice in the preceding 3 years been adjudicated indigent under this section, certified indigent under s. 57.081, or authorized to proceed as an indigent under 28 U.S.C. s. 1915 by a federal court may not be adjudicated indigent to pursue a new suit, action, claim, proceeding, or appeal without first obtaining leave of court. In a request for leave of court, the prisoner must provide a complete listing of each suit, action, claim, proceeding, or appeal brought by the prisoner or intervened in by the prisoner in any court or other adjudicatory forum in the preceding 5 years. The prisoner must attach to a request for leave of court a copy of each complaint, petition, or other document purporting to commence a lawsuit and a record of disposition of the proceeding.

(8) In any judicial proceeding in which a certificate of indigence has been issued to a prisoner, the court may at any time dismiss the prisoner’s action, in whole or in part, upon a finding that:

(a) The prisoner’s claim of indigence is false or misleading;

(b) The prisoner provided false or misleading information regarding another judicial or administrative proceeding in which the prisoner was a party;

(d) The prisoner’s action or a portion of the action is frivolous or malicious.

(9) In determining whether an action is frivolous or malicious, the court may consider whether:

(a) The prisoner’s claim has no arguable basis in law or fact;

(b) The prisoner’s claim reasonably appears intended solely to harass a party filed against;

(c) The prisoner’s claim is substantially similar to a previous claim in that it involves the same parties or arises from the same operative facts as a previous claim;

(d) The prisoner’s claim has little likelihood of success on its merits; or

(e) The allegations of fact in the prisoner’s claim are fanciful or not credible.

(10) This section does not apply to a criminal proceeding or a collateral criminal proceeding.

History.—s. 2, ch. 96-106; s. 6, ch. 2003-1; s. 72, ch. 2003-402; s. 49, ch. 2004-265.

F.S. 57.085 on Google Scholar

F.S. 57.085 on Casetext

Amendments to 57.085

Arrestable Offenses / Crimes under Fla. Stat. 57.085

Level: Degree
Misdemeanor/Felony: First/Second/Third

Current data shows no reason an arrest or criminal charge should have occurred directly under Florida Statute 57.085.

Annotations, Discussions, Cases:

Cases Citing Statute 57.085

Total Results: 20

ANGEL E. GASTON v. NNN INVESTMENT ADVISORS

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2023-05-03T00:53:00-07:00

Snippet: pursuant to mandatory prescreening under section 57.085(6), Florida Statutes (2022). The circuit court …reasonably intended to harass Defendants under section 57.085(6)(d). Background…sponte prescreen his complaint pursuant to section 57.085(6). Pursuant to this prescreening, the circuit…count was subject to dismissal pursuant to section 57.085(6)(d), as “frivolous, malicious, or reasonably … 3d 1225, 1225 (Fla. 5th DCA 2011). Section 57.085 was enacted to address the prevalence of frivolous

Captain Romine, Sgt. T.J. Lingo, Julie L. Jones, Secretary of The Florida Department of Corrections, and Warden Coker v. Derrick Allen

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2018-12-27T23:53:00-08:00

Snippet: under section 57.085(6)”). As the Third District recognized in Reed, section 57.085 was enacted in…seeks to compel the trial court to apply section 57.085(6), Florida Statutes (2017), to a complaint pending…complaint had not been screened as required by section 57.085(6), Florida Statutes. At a case management conference…second amended complaint in compliance with section 57.085(6), Florida Statutes, which provides as follows… complaint, which “will trigger another section 57.085 review” by the trial court). See also James v.

David Charles Sussman v. Department of Corrections

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2018-10-18T00:53:00-07:00

Snippet: declined to adjudicate him indigent under section 57.085, Florida Statutes, and warned that he had thirty…argues that dismissal was improper because section 57.085, Florida Statutes (2017), does not apply to his…and mixed petitions are not exempt from section 57.085. See Schmidt v. McDonough, 951 So. 2d 797, 802-…program was a mixed petition subject to section 57.085). Appellant’s second argument that the dismissal…dismissal of his civil claims pursuant to section 57.085 violates treaties the United States has entered

Spradley v. Spradley

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2017-03-08T00:00:00-08:00

Citation: 213 So. 3d 1042

Snippet: civil action as legally insufficient under section 57.085(6), Florida Statutes (2015). In his complaint, … for which relief may be granted” under section 57.085(6). 3 *1044 Because whether… review” before dismissing a case under section 57.085. Drayton v. Moore, 807 So.2d 819, 823 (Fla. 2d …applying Florida law). 3 . Section 57.085(6) allows the trial court to *1044

Eric Green v. Calvin Cottrell

Court: Fla. | Date Filed: 2016-11-10T00:00:00-08:00

Citation: 204 So. 3d 22

Snippet: prisoners as that term is defined in section 57.085. See § 57.085(1), Fla. Stat. (defining a prisoner as “…by or on behalf of a prisoner, as defined in s. 57.085, relating to the conditions of the prisoner’s …by or on behalf of a prisoner, as defined in s. 57.085, relating to the conditions of the prisoner…recover damages in tort for money 1. Section 57.085(1), Florida Statutes (2016), defines a prisoner…is a prisoner as that term is defined in section 57.085(1). However, whether the alleged attack at the

Ruggirello v. Jones

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2016-10-26T00:00:00-07:00

Citation: 202 So. 3d 935

Snippet: subject to a hen for costs and fees under section 57.085(5), Florida Statutes. Ruggirello does not challenge… lien on his inmate account pursuant to section 57.085(5). The court denied Ruggi-rello’s motion for rehearing…therefore exempt from the lien provision of section 57.085(5). DOC filed a concession of error, agreeing with…prisoner initiates a judicial proceeding, section 57.085(5), Florida Statutes, requires the court to order… is exempt from the lien requirement of section 57.085(5) only if his petition to compel DOC to make a

Toney v. Courtney

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2016-04-29T00:00:00-07:00

Citation: 191 So. 3d 505

Snippet: court’s dismissal with prejudice under section 57.085(6), Florida Statutes (2014), of his first-amended

Grooms v. Department of Corrections

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2015-11-19T00:00:00-08:00

Citation: 179 So. 3d 480

Snippet: proceeding exempt , from the lien requirement of section 57.085(5), Florida Statutes (2013), because it, was a …ineligible to receive •certain gain-time. See § 57.085(10), Fla. *481Stat. (2013); see also Fla. Admin…was exempt from the lien requirement of section 57.085, Florida Statutes.”). Lien quashed. BENTON and

Green v. Cottrell

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2015-09-03T00:00:00-07:00

Citation: 172 So. 3d 1009

Snippet: by or on behalf of a prisoner, as defined in s. 57.085, relating to the conditions of the prisoner’s confinement…confinement.” § 95.11(5)(g), Fla. Stat. Section 57.085(1), Florida Statutes (2007), defines a “prisoner…the definition of prisoner contained in section 57.085, Florida Statutes, the Fifth District did not rely

Magwood v. Florida Department of Corrections

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2015-07-29T00:00:00-07:00

Citation: 175 So. 3d 311

Snippet: leave to proceed as an indigent pursuant to section 57.085(7), Florida Statutes. The circuit court was within…998 So.2d 668, 670 (Fla. 4th DCA 2009) (“Section 57.085 is intended to discourage frivolous lawsuits by

Dwayne E. Roberts v. State of Florida

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2015-07-07T00:00:00-07:00

Citation: 172 So. 3d 478

Snippet: mandamus proceeding — under the authority of section 57.085(5), Florida Statutes (2013). We conclude the order…collateral criminal proceeding. See § 57.085(10), Fla. Stat. On October 18, 2013, while the …as the imposition of a lien pursuant to section 57.085, Florida Statutes, the Court will treat the appeal

Chartrand v. Parsons

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2015-05-08T00:00:00-07:00

Citation: 164 So. 3d 117

Snippet: reviewed Chartrand’s complaint pursuant to section 57.085(6), Florida Statutes, and entered a final order…they were unlikely to succeed on the merits. See § 57.085(6)(c), (9)(d), Fla. Stat. (2014). We affirm the

Ralph A. Thomas v. Department of Corrections

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2015-03-04T00:00:00-08:00

Citation: 159 So. 3d 291

Snippet: was exempt from the lien requirement of section 57.085, Florida Statutes (2013). However, we find the

Roy S. Whited v. Florida Commission on Offender Review

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2014-12-01T00:00:00-08:00

Citation: 153 So. 3d 324

Snippet: purposes of section 57.085(10). Accordingly, when such an action is brought, section 57.085(10) precludes imposition…, section 57.085, “defer[s]” rather than waives “the prepayment of costs and fees.” § 57.085(2), Fla. …court costs and fees.” § 57.085(4)-(5), Fla. Stat. Except, subsection 57.085(10) states “[t]his section…account for court costs and fees, citing section 57.085(5), Florida Statutes. Whited filed a motion challenging…collateral criminal proceeding, for which subsection 57.085(10) precludes a lien. He relied on Florida

Garrick John v. Michael D. Crews, Secretary, etc.

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2014-10-12T00:00:00-07:00

Citation: 149 So. 3d 149

Snippet: appellant was not indigent pursuant to section 57.085, Florida Statutes, and was required to pay a filing… appellant was not indigent pursuant to section 57.085 and dismissed appellant’s mandamus petition for…should not have been determined pursuant to section 57.085, which does not apply to “collateral criminal proceedings

Michael A Crews, Secretary, etc. v. Samuel Strother

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2014-09-22T00:00:00-07:00

Citation: 209 So. 3d 595

Snippet: petition *596 asserted that section 57.085(5), Florida Statutes, allows DOC to withdraw money…petition, finding that Appellee misread section 57.085(5) and DOC was correct in its interpretation of…appeal, again asserted that DOC violated section 57.085(5) by removing the $10 balance in Appellee’s inmate… .be dismissed as frivolous pursuant to section 57,085(9)(c), (d). The Leon County Circuit Court …agreeing with Appellee’s interpretation of section 57.085(5). DOC filed a motion for rehearing, asserting

Whited v. Florida Commission on Offender Review

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2014-08-22T00:00:00-07:00

Citation: 145 So. 3d 951

Snippet: . Spaziano, 48 So.3d 714, 724 (Fla.2010); and § 57.085(10), Fla. Stat. Thus, we reverse the circuit court

Jonathan Lewis v. Florida Department of Corrections

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2014-08-05T00:00:00-07:00

Citation: 143 So. 3d 1112

Snippet: directed appellant to comply with a portion of section 57.085(7), Florida Statutes (2012), that has been declared…years, and thus directed him pursuant to section 57.085(7) to submit a listing of each suit, action, claim…Court had held the copying requirement in section 57.085(7) to be unconstitutional. Jackson v. Department…a list of his prior actions required by section 57.085(7), minus the copies. Contrary to the arguments…prepayment of court costs and fees under section 57.085. See John v. Department of Corrs.,

Smith v. Rutherford

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2014-03-18T00:00:00-07:00

Citation: 162 So. 3d 14

Snippet: appeal to be frivolous and filed in bad faith. See § 57.085(9), Fla. Stat. In addition, upon Appellant’s response

John v. Department of Corrections

Court: Fla. Dist. Ct. App. | Date Filed: 2013-10-23T00:00:00-07:00

Citation: 124 So. 3d 381

Snippet: apply to prisoners “as defined in s. 57.085,” see section 57.085(1), Florida Statutes, unless the cause…Court for Leon County correctly applied section 57.085, Florida Statutes, and, after reviewing copies …deferment of prepayment of the filing fee under section 57.085, were he found to be indigent. The determination…the clerk under the procedures stated in section 57.085(2) and (3), Florida Statutes. Yet, here, appellant…judicial review of that determination in section 57.085. Consequently, we hold basic principles of due