Florida Statute 90.505 - Full Text and Legal Analysis

The 2025 Florida Statutes

Title VII
EVIDENCE

Chapter 90
EVIDENCE CODE

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F.S. 90.505

90.505 Privilege with respect to communications to clergy.—

(1) For the purposes of this section:

(a) A “member of the clergy” is a priest, rabbi, practitioner of Christian Science, or minister of any religious organization or denomination usually referred to as a church, or an individual reasonably believed so to be by the person consulting him or her.

(b) A communication between a member of the clergy and a person is “confidential” if made privately for the purpose of seeking spiritual counsel and advice from the member of the clergy in the usual course of his or her practice or discipline and not intended for further disclosure except to other persons present in furtherance of the communication.

(2) A person has a privilege to refuse to disclose, and to prevent another from disclosing, a confidential communication by the person to a member of the clergy in his or her capacity as spiritual adviser.

(3) The privilege may be claimed by:

(a) The person.

(b) The guardian or conservator of a person.

(d) The member of the clergy, on behalf of the person. The member of the clergy’s authority to do so is presumed in the absence of evidence to the contrary.

History.—s. 1, ch. 76-237; s. 1, ch. 77-77; s. 1, ch. 77-174; ss. 11, 22, ch. 78-361; ss. 1, 2, ch. 78-379; s. 477, ch. 95-147.

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Amendments to 90.505

Annotations, Discussions, Cases:

Cases Citing Statute 90.505

Total Results: 18

Florida Hosp. Waterman, Inc. v. Buster

984 So. 2d 478, 2008 WL 596700

Supreme Court of Florida | Filed: Mar 6, 2008 | Docket: 1288177

Cited 68 times | Published

(2006) (providing for husband-wife privilege); § 90.505, Fla. Stat. (2006) (providing for privilege with

Fernandez v. State

730 So. 2d 277, 1999 WL 92234

Supreme Court of Florida | Filed: Feb 25, 1999 | Docket: 1647928

Cited 44 times | Published

under the clergy communications privilege, section 90.505, Florida Statutes (1993), because the witnesses

Bottoson v. State

443 So. 2d 962

Supreme Court of Florida | Filed: Dec 15, 1983 | Docket: 2447975

Cited 34 times | Published

were therefore not privileged communications. See § 90.505, Fla. Stat. (1981). As for his second argument

Nussbaumer v. State

882 So. 2d 1067, 2004 WL 1905897

District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Aug 27, 2004 | Docket: 1289609

Cited 20 times | Published

objection of clergy communications privilege, section 90.505, Florida Statutes (2003),[1] in a criminal

State v. Pinder

678 So. 2d 410, 1996 WL 406715

District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Jul 22, 1996 | Docket: 467818

Cited 20 times | Published

contain no exceptions to their application. See § 90.505, Fla. Stat. (1995). As analyzed in Ritchie, neither

Deehl v. Knox

414 So. 2d 1089

District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: May 11, 1982 | Docket: 1358644

Cited 6 times | Published

privilege); § 90.504 (husband-wife privilege); § 90.505 (clergyman-penitent privilege). It is inconceivable

Woodard v. Jupiter Christian School, Inc.

913 So. 2d 1188, 2005 WL 2508733

District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Oct 12, 2005 | Docket: 1698241

Cited 5 times | Published

within the clergyman privilege provided by section 90.505, Florida Statutes (2003) because the school

Elliott v. State

49 So. 3d 795, 2010 Fla. App. LEXIS 16530, 2010 WL 4273186

District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Oct 29, 2010 | Docket: 2397792

Cited 2 times | Published

clergy communications privilege. Pursuant to section 90.505(2), Florida Statutes (2007), "[a] person has

Monroe v. State

14 So. 3d 1205, 2009 Fla. App. LEXIS 8520, 2009 WL 1766594

District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Jun 24, 2009 | Docket: 60241286

Cited 2 times | Published

Parker v. State, 873 So.2d 270, 279 (Fla.2004). Section 90.505(1)(b) explicitly requires that the communication

Fr. Vincenzo Ronchi v. State

248 So. 3d 1265

District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Jun 11, 2018 | Docket: 7284978

Cited 1 times | Published

with Ronchi were no longer privileged under section 90.505. Finally, the State argued that it had a compelling

State v. Avery Topps

142 So. 3d 978, 2014 WL 3730009, 2014 Fla. App. LEXIS 11606

District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Jul 30, 2014 | Docket: 3598

Cited 1 times | Published

advocate-victim (§ 90.5036(l)(d)l„ 2.), clergy (§ 90.505(l)(b)), and accountant-client (§ 90.5055(l)(c)l

Nelson v. Secretary, Florida Dept. of Corrections

610 F. Supp. 2d 1323, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 30480, 2009 WL 811615

District Court, M.D. Florida | Filed: Mar 26, 2009 | Docket: 2336749

Cited 1 times | Published

(Dkt. 24, Ex. 1, Supp. VII at pg. 1014-15). [6] § 90.505, Fla. Stat. states: Privilege with respect to

Fernando Castano v. the State of Florida

District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: May 14, 2025 | Docket: 70260664

Published

certain communications with clergy with privilege. § 90.505, Fla. Stat. (2024). This case concerns the bounds

STATE OF FLORIDA v. JUAN MARTIN GONZALEZ

District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Jan 31, 2024 | Docket: 68208794

Published

the clergy-penitent privilege set forth in section 90.505(2), Florida Statutes (2020), and explained

SCOTT MCDERMOTT vs STATE OF FLORIDA

District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: May 12, 2023 | Docket: 66799567

Published

privilege. Appellant’s argument fails. Section 90.505, Florida Statutes, provides in part:

GUILLERMO CUEVAS v. STATE OF FLORIDA

District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Jan 6, 2021 | Docket: 29084939

Published

State, 730 So. 2d 277, 282 (Fla. 1999). Section 90.505(2), Florida Statutes (2018), provides, “[a]

Woodard v. JUPITER CHRISTIAN SCHOOL

972 So. 2d 170, 32 Fla. L. Weekly Supp. 788, 2007 Fla. LEXIS 2269, 2007 WL 4258366

Supreme Court of Florida | Filed: Dec 6, 2007 | Docket: 1160123

Published

for breach of the clergyman privilege under section 90.505(1)(a), Florida Statutes (2004). I disagree

Cottrill v. State

365 So. 2d 450, 1978 Fla. App. LEXIS 16888

District Court of Appeal of Florida | Filed: Dec 20, 1978 | Docket: 64567685

Published

privilege in reworded form has been retained in Section 90.505 of the new Florida Evidence Code effective