Fla. R. Gen. Prac. & Jud. Admin. 2.520

DOCUMENTS

sha256 cb3cdba49e52a33870aa2ebd61270be5… · retrieved 8/16/2026, 9:15:37 PM · The Florida Bar consolidated ed. eff. 07-01-2026 (pinned Gen-Prac-Jud-Admin-Rules-07-01-26.pdf; the compilation's own ledger runs through SC2025-0725, eff. 7-1-26) · verified 8/16/2026 by gl3-furniture-identical-reload

RULE 2.520. 	DOCUMENTS
(a) 	Documents Created for Filing. Documents that are
created for filing under rule 2.525 or service under rule 2.516 must
comply with the formatting requirements of this subdivision.
Documents must be prepared as follows:
(1) 	page size must be 8 1/2 by 11 inches (letter size);
(2) 	pages must be consecutively numbered;
(3) 	pages must have at least a 1-inch margin on all
sides;
(4) 	for documents that will be recorded in the official
records, pages must also have a 3-inch by 3-inch blank space at
the top right hand corner on the first page;
(5) 	font size must be no less than 12-point.

 

 
(b) 	Electronic Documents. Electronic documents must
comply with the Florida Courts Technology Standards.
(c) 	Paper Documents. Paper documents must be legibly
typewritten or printed on only one side on opaque, white, unglossed
paper. Documents consisting of multiple pages should be held
together by removable paper clips and must not be stapled or
bound.
(d) 	Exhibits. Documents that are not created by an attorney
or unrepresented party for filing or service must be appended as
exhibits to a document prepared under subdivision (a), unless
another rule of court permits the document to be filed without a
notice of filing, and are not subject to the requirements of
subdivision (a). 	Instead, the following requirements apply:
(1) 	Exhibits to Electronic Document. Exhibits that are
attached to an electronic document must comply with the Florida
Courts Technology Standards.
(2) 	Exhibits Submitted for Filing with a Paper Document.
Any exhibit or attachment to any paper document may be attached
in its original size.
(e) 	Verification Not Required. Unless otherwise specially
provided by a court, order, rule, or statute, documents need not be
sworn, notarized, or verified.
Court Commentary
1989 Adoption. Rule 2.055 [renumbered as 2.520 in 2006] is
new. This rule aligns Florida’s court system with the federal court
system and the court systems of the majority of our sister states by
requiring in subdivision (a) that all pleadings, motions, petitions,
briefs, notices, orders, judgments, decrees, opinions, or other
papers filed with any Florida court be submitted on paper
measuring 8 1/2 by 11 inches. Subdivision (e) provides a 1-year
transition period from the effective date of January 1, 1990, to
January 1, 1991, during which time filings that traditionally have
been accepted on legal-size paper will be accepted on either legal- or

 

 
letter-size paper. The 1-year transition period was provided to allow
for the depletion of inventories of legal-size paper and forms. The 1-
year transition period was not intended to affect compliance with
Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.210(a)(1), which requires that
typewritten appellate briefs be filed on paper measuring 8 1/2 by 11
inches. Nor was it intended that the requirement of Florida Rule of
Appellate Procedure 9.210(a)(1) that printed briefs measure 6 by 9
inches be affected by the requirements of subdivision (a).
Subdivision (b), which recognizes an exception for exhibits or
attachments, is intended to apply to documents such as wills and
traffic citations which traditionally have not been generated on
letter-size paper.
Subdivision (c) was adopted to ensure that a 1 1/2 inch
square at the top right-hand corner of all filings is reserved for use
by the clerk of court. Subdivision (d) was adopted to ensure that all
papers and documents submitted for filing will be considered filed
on the date of submission regardless of paper size. Subdivision (d)
also ensures that after the 1-year transition period of subdivision
(e), filings that are not in compliance with the rule are resubmitted
on paper measuring 8 1/2 by 11 inches.
This rule is not intended to apply to those instruments and
documents presented to the clerk of the circuit court for recording
in the Official Records under section 28.222, Florida Statutes
(1987). It is also not intended to apply to matters submitted to the
clerk of the circuit court in the capacity as ex officio clerk of the
board of county commissioners pursuant to article VIII, section
(1)(d), Florida Constitution.
1996 Amendment. Subdivision (c) was amended to make the
blank space requirements for use by the clerk of the court
consistent with section 695.26, Florida Statutes (1995). Subdivision
(e) was eliminated because the transition period for letter-size and
recycled paper was no longer necessary.

Verbatim from the official publication; the only normalization is removal of the publisher's page headers. Verify against the official source for filing-critical use — court publications change without notice.