FS, RH NC/H Divisional Instructions

Judge Debra Moses Stephens

Please read all divisional instructions before calling my Judicial Assistant.

All hearings are set by calling the judicial assistant. This division provides hearings within 30 days. If you wish to go beyond 30 days it will be at your request.

*Important*

Neither the Judge nor the Judicial Assistant can give you legal advice on how you should proceed on your case. For Assistance, you should contact the Self-Help Center at 561 355-7048, or ask the Clerk where the Self-Help Center is located. The Palm Beach County Bar Association maintains a lawyer referral/information service. You can reach them at 561 687-3266.

Divisional Instructions for:

Zoom

Zoom information for Division RH:

Civil Division RH / Case Management Hearings:

Zoom information for Division FS, RBCDC, and H:

Criminal Divisions

Division H, DUSNB (CAD-DivisionRH@pbcgov.org)

If you are the Defendant, you may not call this office at any time. All communication between this office and any Defendant must be in writing, and a copy must be sent to the Assistant State Attorney Pamela Ann Ford 561-624-6632 (pford@sa15.org).

If you have an Assistant Public Defender their phone number and email address are, (561/624-6560 and JCWalsh@pd15.org.

All orders submitted to this office must be uploaded to the Judge's Queue for that division.

All motions and their orders must be uploaded to the queue four days before the hearing on the case. This allows the clerk to process your order. Please remember the Clerk gets 72 hours to file your orders. This does not include Emergency Motions.

All Criminal cases are in person. Appearances by Zoom require your attorney to file a motion 4 business days before the hearing, (This does not include the weekends.). You may not appear by Zoom unless you have:

1. Conferred with the Assistant State Attorney, Pam Ford: (561/624-6632) (pford@sa15.org), and
2. Confirmed the length of time for the hearing, and
3. You have received an order from this Court.

The Court will not grant a hearing by calling the Judicial Assistant and attempting ex parte communication with the judge.

COVERAGE COUNSEL – You are expected to comply with the Florida Rules of General Practice and Judicial Administration 2.505(e)(6) and (g) by filing a notice of Stand-In Counsel or otherwise having their appearance reflected on a record maintained by the Clerk of Court.

County Civil and Small Claims

Division RH (CAD-DivisionRH@pbcgov.org)

All Records Custodians can appear by Zoom, but they cannot testify to substantive matters. They may identify the paperwork they have prepared. All other parties, witnesses, and attorneys must appear in person for trial. This should not preclude you from filing motions in unique circumstances.

Please see the Court's Standing Order on Motion Practice and Discovery practice.

Motions are considered ABANDONED when they have been filed for 5 days but have not been set for a hearing. These motions may be DENIED.

THIS COURT SETS ALL MOTION HEARINGS WITHIN 30 DAYS.. However, you may request a date outside of that time frame.

Please call my Judicial Assistant to schedule all hearings in this division. There is no online scheduling in this division because we have limited time in each week to hear these cases. Therefore the court arranges the hearing time and a prompt cancellation with the Court's permission is required if the case has resolved.

NOTICES OF CANCELLATION will only be accepted if the issue has been resolved or the case has been closed. This should be indicated in the Notice of Cancellation.

Please do not file NOTICES OF UNAVAILABILITY. If you need a continuance, please file a Motion for Continuance with the court and schedule a hearing.

If you require a Case Management Conference please call the Judicial Assistant and schedule it. Time is set aside each week for these conferences. Please be prepared to accept these dates by contacting the opposing party to be sure they are available.

COVERAGE COUNSEL – You are expected to comply with the Florida Rules of General Practice and Judicial Administration 2.505(e)(6) and (g) by filing a notice of Stand-In Counsel or otherwise having their appearance reflected on a record maintained by the Clerk of Court.

PRETRIAL CONFERENCES AND MEDIATION: These are held in person. If the attorney wishes to have their client appear by Zoom then they must set up the Zoom and have available a computer, tablet or phone for their appearance.

PRETRIALS – All pretrials are heard every other Tuesday starting at 8:45 a.m. If your case has not been resolved then the Court will set your trial on that day. Please review the Florida Small Claims Rules and the Florida Evidence Code completely if you are going to trial. Please read your trial order all the way through.

Non-service – If your case was not served please appear at pretrial. You will have to get a new summons from the Clerk for a new court date, this should be completed as soon as you are able to avoid having your case dismissed for failing to serve the Defendant.

WAIVER OF APPEARANCE AT PRETRIAL - Yes, you can waive your appearance at pretrial if you follow Small Claims Rule 7.090(e), but you cannot waive your appearance at mediation. Please see Small Claims Rule 7.090(f).

ORDERS AFTER A HEARING – These should be uploaded to the court within 48 hours of the hearing, though the divisional queue.

FORMATTING YOUR PROPOSED ORDER – Please preview your order to be certain it is formatted correctly. Using Macros, columns, or paragraph tabs is not compatible with the OLS system. Orders with excessive formatting issues must be returned to you for corrections. This delays your case. Strict Compliance with the Rules of Judicial Administration 2.520 (d) is required.

Please use 1-inch margins and 12 point font on all your Orders.

Please do not upload a proposed order unless:

1. It is agreed. (Order should be titled : Order on Agreed Motion to …), or
2. The hearing has already occurred, or
3. It is proper to be considered ex parte

Proposed orders not in compliance will not be considered.

SETTLEMENTS – If your case has settled, the Plaintiff should file a Voluntary Dismissal or an Order on the Stipulation for Settlement requesting the Court's approval of the Stipulation and closing the case. You are then required to cancel the upcoming hearing. The cancellation cannot take place unless the order has been uploaded and can be seen in the queue.

SUBMITTING DOCUMENTS AND MATERIALS TO THE COURT - The Court reviews all motions and supporting material prior to the hearing. You may not send this material by email. You can mail or hand deliver a printed copy of your material and relevant case law to the Court and simultaneously send it to the opposing party. Do not wait until the last minute to send your paperwork.

Calendar Call Case Management is held by ZOOM. (See the link above.)

This table list the trial period, but every case gets a specific date for the start of their trial.

My Judicial Assistant, the Clerk, and the Court Deputies cannot answer your legal questions. They are not a source of reliable information in the legal field. They cannot tell you how to handle your case or what you should do next. Please understand their limitations in this area.