Fl. Prob. R. 5.010
These rules govern the procedure in all probate and guardianship proceedings and shall be known as the Florida Probate Rules and may be cited as Fla. Prob. R. Part I applies to all proceedings. Part II applies to probate alone, Part III applies to guardianship alone, and Part IV applies to expedited judicial intervention concerning medical treatment procedures. The Florida Rules of Civil Procedure apply only as provided herein.
Fl. Prob. R. 5.010
Committee Notes
Rule History
1975 Revision: These rules shall govern the procedures to be followed in all matters pending on or commenced after January 1, 1976, including procedures for the enforcement of substantive rights that have vested before that date. See section 731.011, Florida Statutes.
1977 Revision: The changes in these rules shall take effect on July 1, 1977.
1988 Revision: In the opinion reported at 460 So. 2d 906, the Florida Supreme Court directed the Probate and Guardianship Rules Committee to study the statutes and attempt to identify those portions of the Florida Probate Code, the Florida Guardianship Law, and other statutes that contained procedural provisions. When those procedural provisions were identified, the committee was charged to promulgate rules incorporating those procedures.
The committee has reviewed the statutes and has found a substantial measure of procedure that was contained only in the statutes for which there were no corresponding rules. The committee also determined that much of the procedure in the statutes already had a rule counterpart.
New rules added, or prior rules amended, in 1988 to add procedural matters previously found only in the statutes are rules 5.050, 5.122, 5.171, 5.180, 5.201, 5.235, 5.270, 5.275, 5.355, 5.360, 5.385, 5.386, 5.400, 5.440, 5.475, 5.490, and 5.510. With only one exception (see rule 5.050), the only portion of the statutes that has been reviewed in detail, and for which rules have been created, is the Florida Probate Code. Other portions of the statutes mentioned in the opinion cited above remain for the next cycle of this committee to review.
As the committee wrote rules to transfer the statutory procedure into these rules, an attempt was made to write the rule without changing the meaning of the statute. It was not possible or advisable to use the exact wording of the statute in some instances, and in those instances the committee rewrote the statutory language in the format used in the rules generally. Even under those circumstances, the committee attempted to transfer the entire procedural portion of the statute without changing its meaning. Where it was specifically intended in a few instances to add to existing statutory procedure, that fact is noted in the relevant committee note. The committee felt strongly that it would be detrimental to the orderly process of estate probate and related procedures if a rule specified a different procedure than was specified in the related statute, even though the statute must, under the Florida Constitution, yield to the rule when there is a conflict.
The committee, through the proper channels in The Florida Bar (initially, the Probate Law Committee of the Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section), intends to ask the legislature to repeal those portions of the statutes that are procedural when there are similar rules already in place, or when similar new rules are added by this opinion. It is the opinion of the committee that continuing to maintain procedure in the statutes when there is a rule specifying that procedure is detrimental to the orderly process of the court and the public that it serves, especially when, over time, the statute and the rule may diverge.
Although the supreme court has adopted these recommended rules, it has not specifically determined that all of the provisions of the statutes that were procedural have now been adopted as a rule. This is a continuing project for the committee and although these new rules and changes represent a substantial transition of procedure into the rules, the committee does not suggest that the transition is complete. The court is not precluded from examining any particular statute or rule in the context of a particular actual dispute.
1991 Revision: Rule revised to reflect addition of new Part IV dealing with expedited judicial intervention concerning medical treatment procedures.
1992 Revision: In 1989, the Florida Legislature enacted a comprehensive revision to Florida's guardianship law. In response, the Florida Supreme Court appointed an ad hoc committee to recommend temporary rules of procedure for the new law. In an opinion at 551 So. 2d 452 (Fla. 1989), the court adopted the temporary rules recommended by the ad hoc committee, to replace Part III of the then-existing Florida Probate Rules, effective October 1, 1989. In its opinion, the court also directed the Florida Probate Rules Committee to review the new laws and, on a priority basis, to recommend permanent rules of procedure.
The committee reviewed the Florida Guardianship Law enacted in 1989, as well as revisions to the law enacted in 1990, and presented its rule recommendations to the court in 1991. The court, in an opinion at 584 So. 2d 964, adopted the recommendations with minor exceptions, to be effective October 1, 1991.
In 1990, the court also rendered its opinion in In re Guardianship of Browning, 568 So. 2d 4 (Fla. 1990), regarding a person's right to refuse life-prolonging medical procedures. In that decision, the court directed the committee to recommend a rule to provide for expedited judicial intervention. In response, the committee created a new Part IV of these rules and recommended rule 5.900, which was adopted by the court, with minor changes, in its opinion at 584 So. 2d 964, effective October 1, 1991.
The committee continued its efforts to review the Florida Probate Code and to promulgate or amend rules regarding any procedural portions of those statutes. As a result of those efforts, as well as the efforts described above, the committee recommended amendments to rules 5.010, 5.025, 5.040, 5.050, 5.200, 5.240, 5.310, 5.346, 5.400, 5.470, 5.550, 5.560, 5.590, 5.600, 5.610, 5.620, 5.630, 5.640, 5.650, 5.660, 5.670, 5.680, 5.695, 5.700, 5.710, and 5.800; creation of new rules 5.496, 5.540, 5.541, 5.555, 5.635, 5.636, 5.690, 5.696, 5.697, 5.705, and 5.900; and deletion of rule 5.495. In addition, the committee recommended editorial changes in virtually all the rules so that they would conform stylistically to one another and to all other rules promulgated by the supreme court.
2003 Revision: The committee has promulgated numerous changes in the rules and in the committee notes to many of the rules, in response to legislative amendments that deleted procedural aspects of a number of statutes in the Florida Probate Code, including deletion and re-titling of some statutes. See Ch. 2001-226, Laws of Fla.
Rule References
Fla. Prob. R. 5.025 Adversary proceedings.
Fla. Prob. R. 5.040(a)(3)(B) Notice.
Fla. Prob. R. 5.050 Transfer of proceedings.
Fla. Prob. R. 5.080 Discovery and subpoena.
Fla. Prob. R. 5.230(e) Commission to prove will.
Fla. R. App. P. 9.800 Uniform citation system.