(Courtesy of the Jacksonville Daily Record) – The state Supreme Court distributed the Florida State Courts Annual Report March 18, described by Chief Justice Charles Canady as a reflection on “what we have achieved despite – and in some ways, because of” the challenges presented by the coronavirus pandemic.
“The adversities posed by the pandemic have been great, but Florida’s courts system and its partners continue to meet them in creative ways,” Canady said in the introduction to the report that covers the fiscal year that ended June 30.
In early March 2020, the state judiciary “jumped into action” to respond to the crisis, Canady said.
“In a matter of days and weeks, all around the state, we introduced adaptations that many participants in the justice system thought they would never see in their lifetimes — and these modifications brought about sweeping changes in the way we all do our jobs.”
To transition to videoconferencing, more than 1,700 Zoom licenses were procured for every judge in the state and many court staff.
Between March and December 2020, about 400,000 Zoom hearings and other proceedings were conducted by judges and court personnel, involving more than 2.6 million participants.
Largely through remote proceedings, trial courts are on track to dispose of 2.8 million cases in fiscal year 2020-21.
“Remote technology has fundamentally changed the way courts in Florida administer justice,” Canady said.
The effects of the pandemic on the judicial system are expected to linger for years, according to the report.
Looking ahead, on July 1 an estimated 1 million cases beyond what would otherwise be expected will be pending, the report states.
The additional caseload is attributed to proceedings in existing cases that were suspended to protect public safety; cases for which filing was delayed because of the pandemic but are now anticipated by the courts; and cases related to the public health emergency and declining economic conditions, such as actions likely to be filed when the federal emergency order granting temporary immunity from eviction and foreclosure expires.
Considering the projected volume of delayed filings, the judicial branch is asking the Legislature to appropriate $12.5 million in nonrecurring general revenue for temporary adjudicatory and case support resources for each of the next three years.
“Many challenges await us in the courts. But the same strengths I have seen in our response to the coronavirus outbreak will serve us well as we recover and resume,” Canady said.
In January, www.CourtNewsFlorida.org debuted.
Developed over the past five years by the state Supreme Court, the Florida Office of the State Courts Administrator, and the Florida Court Public Information Officers, the website aggregates court news and information from all levels of the state’s judicial branch and makes it available to the public at a single source.
During the 2019-20 fiscal year, the Florida State Courts website, www.flcourts.org, had its first redesign since 2014.
The report says the new design allows easier access to the most frequently sought content, such as family law forms that allow the public to complete and file many documents.
The new website also offers enhanced search capabilities, including live search using AI technology; a family law forms table structure that makes it easier to search and sort forms by name, number and date updated; and improved mobile device support.
courtroom photo courtesy of McGeorge School of Law