Florida Supreme Court Amends Civil Rule 1.200 to Require Courts to Consider the Parties’ Availability When Resetting a Trial Period

In re Amendments to Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.200 · No. SC2025-1894 (Fla.) · Decided October 15, 2026

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The Florida Supreme Court has amended Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.200(h) to require a court that does not reach a case during its trial period to consider “the availability of the parties,” along with the needs of the case and the resources of the court, in setting a new trial period. The amendment takes effect January 1, 2027.

The Amendment

The Florida Bar’s Civil Procedure Rules Committee proposed amendments to Rule 1.200 (Case Management; Pretrial Procedure). The Committee published them on the Bar’s website, received two comments, and declined to revise its proposal. The Court republished the proposal and received one comment, from attorney Dan Cytryn, to which the Committee responded. The Court declined to amend rule 1.200(h) as the Committee proposed and instead amended it to require courts to consider the availability of the parties.

As amended, rule 1.200(h)(1) provides that if a trial is not reached during the trial period set by court order, “the court must enter an order setting a new trial period that is as soon as practicable, given the needs of the case, the resources of the court, and the availability of the parties.” The amendment becomes effective January 1, 2027, at 12:01 a.m., and a motion for rehearing does not alter the effective date. All seven justices concurred.