Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.200

Case Management (2025 amendments)

sha256 658a71acba575eb86fda203c34e50925… · retrieved 7/11/2026, 11:08:22 AM · The Florida Bar consolidated ed. eff. 04-01-2026 · verified 7/11/2026 by founder-directive-2026-07-11

RULE 1.200. 	CASE MANAGEMENT; PRETRIAL PROCEDURE
(a) 	Applicability; Exemptions. The requirements of this
rule apply to all civil actions except:
(1) 	actions required to proceed under section 51.011,
Florida Statutes;

(2) 	actions proceeding under section 45.075, Florida
Statutes;
(3) 	actions subject to the Florida Small Claims Rules,
unless the court, under rule 7.020(c), has ordered the action to
proceed under one or more of the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure
and the deadline for the trial date specified in rule 7.090(d) no
longer applies;
(4) 	an action or proceeding initiated under chapters
731–736, 738, and 744, Florida Statutes;
(5) 	an action for review of an administrative proceeding;
(6) 	eminent domain actions under article X, section 6 of
the Florida Constitution or chapters 73 and 74, Florida Statutes;
(7) 	a forfeiture action in rem arising from a state
statute;
(8) 	a petition for habeas corpus or any other proceeding
to challenge a criminal conviction or sentence;
(9) 	an action brought without an attorney by a person
in the custody of the United States, a state, or a state subdivision;
(10) 	an action to enforce or quash an administrative
summons or subpoena;
(11) 	a proceeding ancillary to a proceeding in another
court;
(12) 	an action to enforce an arbitration award;
(13) 	an action involving an extraordinary writ or remedy
under rule 1.630;
(14) 	actions to confirm or enforce foreign judgments;
(15) 	all proceedings under chapter 56, Florida Statutes;

(16) 	a civil action pending in a special division of the
court established by administrative order issued by the chief judge
of the circuit or local rule (e.g., a complex business division or a
complex civil division) that enters case management orders;
(17) 	all proceedings under chapter 415, Florida Statutes,
and sections 393.12 and 825.1035, Florida Statutes; and
(18) 	a claim requiring expedited or priority resolution
under an applicable statute or rule.
(b) 	Case Track Assignment. Not later than 120 days after
an action commences as provided in rule 1.050, the court must
assign each civil case to 1 of 3 case management tracks either by
an initial case management order or an administrative order on
case management issued by the chief judge of the circuit:
streamlined, general, or complex. Assignment is not based on the
financial value of the case but rather the amount of judicial
attention required for resolution.
(1) 	“Complex” cases are actions designated by court
order as complex under rule 1.201. Complex cases must proceed as
provided in rule 1.201.
(2) 	“Streamlined” cases are actions that reflect some
mutual knowledge about the underlying facts, have limited needs
for discovery, well-established legal issues related to liability and
damages, few anticipated dispositive pretrial motions, minimal
documentary evidence, and an anticipated trial length of no more
than 3 days. Uncontested cases should generally be presumed to be
streamlined cases.
(3) 	“General” cases are all other actions that do not
meet the criteria for streamlined or complex.
(c) 	Changes in Track Assignment.
(1) 	Change Requested by a Party. Any motion to change
the track to which a case is assigned must be filed promptly after
the appearance of good cause to support the motion.

(2) 	Change Directed by the Court. A track assignment
may be changed by the court on its own motion.
(d) 	Case Management Order.
(1) 	Complex Cases. Case management orders in
complex cases must issue as provided in rule 1.201.
(2) 	Streamlined and General Cases. In streamlined and
general cases, the court must issue a case management order that
specifies the projected or actual trial period based on the case track
assignment, consistent with administrative orders entered by the
chief judge of the circuit. The order must also set deadlines that are
differentiated based on whether the case is streamlined or general
and must be consistent with the time standards specified in Florida
Rule of General Practice and Judicial Administration 2.250(a)(1)(B)
for the completion of civil cases. The order must specify no less
than the following deadlines:
(A) 	service of complaints;
(B) 	service under extensions;
(C) 	adding new parties;
(D) 	completion of fact discovery;
(E) 	completion of expert discovery;
(F) 	filing and service of motion for summary
judgment;
(G) 	filing and resolution of all objections to
pleadings;
(H) 	filing and resolution of all pretrial motions;
and
(I) 	completion of alternative dispute resolution.

(3) 	Strict Enforcement of Deadlines. The case
management order must indicate that the deadlines established in
the order will be strictly enforced unless changed by court order.
(4) 	Timing of Issuance. The court must issue the case
management order no later than 120 days after commencement of
the action as provided in rule 1.050. No case management
conference is required to be set by the court before issuance.
(e) 	Extensions of Time; Modification of Deadlines.
(1) 	Deadlines are Strictly Enforced. Deadlines in a case
management order must be strictly enforced unless changed by
court order. Parties may submit an agreed order to extend a
deadline if the extension does not affect the ability to comply with
the remaining dates in the case management order. If extending an
individual case management deadline may affect a subsequent
deadline in the case management order, parties must seek an
amendment of the case management order, rather than submitting
a motion for extension of an individual deadline.
(2) 	Modification of Actual Trial Period. Once an actual
trial period is set, the parties must satisfy the requirements of rule
1.460 to change that period. During the time a trial period is still a
projection, the parties may seek to change the projected trial period
through the process in subdivision (e)(3).
(3) 	Modifications of Deadlines or Projected Trial Period.
Any motion to extend a deadline, amend a case management order,
or alter a projected trial period must specify:
(A) 	the basis of the need for the extension,
including when the basis became known to the movant;
(B) 	whether the motion is opposed;
(C) 	the specific date to which the movant is
requesting the deadline or projected trial period be extended, and
whether that date is agreed by all parties; and

(D) 	the action and specific dates for the action that
will enable the movant to meet the proposed new deadline or
projected trial period, including, but not limited to, confirming the
specific date any required participants such as third-party
witnesses or experts are available.
(f) 	Notices of Unavailability. Notices of unavailability have
no effect on the deadlines set by the case management order. If a
party is unable to comply with a deadline in a case management
order, the party must take action consistent with subdivision (e)(1).
(g) 	Inability to Meet Case Management Deadlines. If any
party is unable to meet the deadlines set forth in the case
management order for any reason, including due to the
unavailability of hearing time, the affected party may promptly set a
case management conference and alert the court. The notice of case
management conference must identify the issues to be addressed in
the case management conference.
(h) 	If Trial Is Not Reached During Trial Period. 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 and resources of the court.
The order resetting the trial period must reflect what further activity
will or will not be permitted.
(i) 	Forms. Except for case management orders issued in
cases governed by rule 1.201, the forms for case management
orders will be set by the chief judge of the circuit. The form orders
must comply with the requirements of this rule.
(j) 	Case Management Conferences.
(1) 	Scheduling. The court may set case management
conferences at any time on its own notice or on proper notice by a
party. Whether set by the court or a party, the amount of notice
must be reasonable. If noticed by a party, the notice itself must
identify the specific issues to be addressed during the case
management conference and must also provide a list of all pending
motions. The court may set, or the parties may request, case

management conferences on an as-needed basis or an ongoing,
periodic basis.
(2) 	Issues That May Be Addressed. During a case
management conference, the court may address all scheduling
issues, including requests to amend the case management order,
and other issues that may impact trial of the case. In addition, on
reasonable notice to the parties and adequate time available during
the conference, the court may elect to hear a pending motion, other
than motions for summary judgment and motions requiring
evidentiary hearings, even if the parties have not identified the
motion as an issue to be resolved. Motions for summary judgment
and motions requiring evidentiary hearings may not be heard as
part of a case management conference, unless agreed to by the
parties.
(3) 	Preparation Required. Attorneys and self-
represented litigants who appear at a case management conference
must be prepared on the pending matters in the case, be prepared
to make decisions about future progress and conduct of the case,
and have authority to make representations to the court and enter
into binding agreements concerning motions, issues, and
scheduling. If a party is represented by more than 1 attorney, the
attorney(s) present at a case management conference must be
prepared with all attorneys’ availability for future events.
(4) 	Other Hearings Convertible. Any scheduled hearing
may be converted to a sua sponte case management conference by
agreement of the parties at the time of the hearing.
(5) 	Proposed Orders. At the conclusion of the case
management conference, unless the court is drafting its own order,
the court must set a deadline for submitting proposed orders
arising out of the case management conference. A proposed order
must be submitted by that deadline unless an extension is
requested. If the parties do not agree to the contents of a proposed
order, competing proposed orders must be submitted to the court.
The parties must notify the court of the basis of any objections at
the time the competing orders are submitted.

(6) 	Failure to Appear. On failure of a party to attend a
case management conference, the court may dismiss the action,
strike the pleadings, limit proof or witnesses, or take any other
appropriate action against a party failing to attend.
(k) 	Pretrial Conference. After the action has been set for an
actual trial period, the court itself may, or must on the timely
motion of any party, require the parties to appear for a pretrial
conference to consider and determine:
(1) 	a statement of the issues to be tried;
(2) 	the possibility of obtaining evidentiary and other
stipulations that will avoid unnecessary proof;
(3) 	the witnesses who are expected to testify, evidence
expected to be proffered, and any associated logistical or scheduling
issues;
(4) 	the use of technology and other means to facilitate
the presentation of evidence and demonstrative aids at trial;
(5) 	the order of proof at trial, time to complete the trial,
and reasonable time estimates for voir dire, opening statements,
closing arguments, and any other part of the trial;
(6) 	the numbers of prospective jurors required for a
venire, alternate jurors, and peremptory challenges for each party;
(7) 	finalize jury instructions and verdict forms; and
(8) 	any other matters the court considers appropriate.
Committee Notes
1971 Amendment. The 3 paragraphs of the rule are lettered
and given subtitles. The present last paragraph is placed second as
subdivision (b) because the proceeding required under it is taken
before that in the present second paragraph. The time for
implementation is changed from settling the issues because the
language is erroneous, the purpose of the conference being to settle

some and prepare for the trial of other issues. The last 2 sentences
of subdivision (b) are added to require uniformity by all judges of
the court and to require specification of the documentary
requirements for the conference. The last sentence of subdivision (c)
is deleted since it is covered by the local rule provisions of rule
1.020(d). The reference to the parties in substitution for attorneys
and counsel is one of style because the rules generally impose
obligations on the parties except when the attorneys are specifically
intended. It should be understood that those parties represented by
attorneys will have the attorneys perform for them in the usual
manner.
1972 Amendment. Subdivision (a) is amended to require the
motion for a pretrial by a party to be timely. This is done to avoid
motions for pretrial conferences made a short time before trial and
requests for a continuance of the trial as a result of the pretrial
conference order. The subdivision is also amended to require the
clerk to send to the judge a copy of the motion by a party for the
pretrial conference.
1988 Amendment. The purpose of adding subdivision (a)(5) is
to spell out clearly for the bench and bar that case management
conferences may be used for scheduling the disclosure of expert
witnesses and the discovery of the opinion and factual information
held by those experts. Subdivision (5) is not intended to expand
discovery.
1992 Amendment. Subdivision (a) is amended to allow a
party to set a case management conference in the same manner as
a party may set a hearing on a motion. Subdivision (c) is amended
to remove the mandatory language and make the notice
requirement for a case management conference the same as that for
a hearing on a motion; i.e., reasonable notice.
2012 Amendment. Subdivisions (a)(5) to (a)(7) are added to
address issues involving electronically stored information.
Court Commentary

1984 Amendment. This is a substantial rewording of rule
1.200. Subdivision (a) is added to authorize case management
conferences in an effort to give the court more control over the
progress of the action. All of the matters that the court can do
under the case management conference can be done at the present
time under other rules or because of the court’s authority
otherwise. The new subdivision merely emphasizes the court’s
authority and arranges an orderly method for the exercise of that
authority. Subdivisions (a), (b), and (c) of the existing rule are
relettered accordingly. Subdivision (a) of the existing rule is also
amended to delete the reference to requiring the attorneys to appear
at a pretrial conference by referring to the parties for that purpose.
This is consistent with the language used throughout the rules and
does not contemplate a change in present procedure. Subdivisions
(a)(5) and (a)(6) of the existing rule are deleted since they are now
covered adequately under the new subdivision (a). Subdivisions (b)
and (c) of the existing rule are amended to accommodate the 2 types
of conferences that are now authorized by the rules.
2024 Amendment. Rule 1.200 as amended is intended to
supersede any case management rules issued by circuit courts and
administrative orders on case management to the extent of
contradiction. The rule is not intended to preclude the possibility of
administrative orders issued by circuit chief judges and local rules
under Florida Rule of General Practice and Judicial Administration
2.215 that refine and supplement the procedures delineated in the
rule, including rollover practices for situations where a trial is not
reached during the scheduled trial period.

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