Posted by Nydia Streets of Streets Law in Florida Family Law Procedure

How much notice must be given to a defaulted party for a final hearing in a Florida family law case? The rules of procedure give specific guidance on this, and this was an issue in the case Korman v. Shapiro, 3D21-2182 (Fla. 3d DCA April 10, 2024).

A default was entered against the mother in this post-judgment child custody matter. The mother did not have a lawyer and she argued she did not have proper notice of the motion for default because it was e-mailed to her even though she did not designate an e-mail address for service. She also argued that the entry of the final judgment was improper because the trial was noticed less than 10 days prior to the trial date.

The appellate court disagreed with the mother that she did not have proper notice. The court held “‘[L]ack of strict compliance with the service requirements set forth in rule 2.516 does not render a judgment void, particularly when a party receives notice of the proceedings.’ Henderson-Bullard v. Lockard, 204 So. 3d 568, 570 (Fla. 5th DCA 2016). {The mother] was served, by email, with all the relevant pleadings and orders in this case at the email that was on the face of both counsels’ motions to withdraw and the respective orders granting the same.” The court also noted that the mother’s motion for rehearing contained verification that she emailed the motion to the opposing party using her email address at which she received notice of the default.

The appellate court agreed with the mother, however, on the issue of sufficient notice for trial. The court cited Fla. Fam. L. R. P. 12.440(c) which states “If the court finds the action ready to be set for trial, it shall enter an order setting the action for trial, fixing a date for trial, and setting a pretrial conference, if necessary. In the event a default has been entered, reasonable notice of not less than 10 days shall be given unless otherwise required by law.” Noting that the rule requires the court, and not the parties, to notice a case for trial, the appellate court held that the father’s act of noticing his petition for a case management conference for final hearing 8 days prior to the hearing did not comport with the rules of procedure. The matter was therefore reversed and remanded to the trial court.

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