The Florida Rules of Judicial Procedure, promulgated by the Supreme Court of Florida, include a rule on the conduct of attorneys before the Florida courts generally (Rule 2.205) and for the special admission of an active member in good standing of another state bar. This Rule 2.510 includes a form of motion to be completed and submitted by the out of state attorney, and requires a $250.00 fee to be paid to the Florida Bar. The Clerk of Court for Palm Beach County, as with clerks of other circuits, charges an additional $100.00 filing fee for pro hac vice motions.

    Rule 2.510(a) states:

(A) Upon filing a verified motion with the court, an attorney who is an active member in good standing of the bar of another state and currently eligible to practice law in a state other than Florida may be permitted to appear in particular cases in a Florida court upon such conditions as the court may deem appropriate, provided that a member of The Florida Bar in good standing is associated as an attorney of record. In determining whether to permit a foreign attorney to appear pursuant to this rule, the court may consider, among other things, information provided under subdivision (b)(3) concerning discipline in other jurisdictions. No attorney is authorized to appear pursuant to this rule if the attorney (1) is a Florida resident, unless the attorney has an application pending for admission to The Florida Bar and has not previously been denied admission to The Florida Bar; (2) is a member of The Florida Bar but is ineligible to practice law; (3) has previously been disciplined or held in contempt by reason of misconduct committed while engaged in representation permitted pursuant to this rule provided, however, the contempt is final and has not been reversed or abated; (4) has failed to provide notice to The Florida Bar or pay the filing fee as required in subdivision (b)(7); or (5) is engaged in a .general practice. before Florida courts. For purposes of this rule, more than 3 appearances within a 365-day period in separate representations shall be presumed to be a .general practice. In cases involving indigent clients, the court may waive the filing fee for good cause shown.

    Rule 2.510(b) lists the required contents to the motion to appear pro hac vice, and requires that the certificate of service include service of the motion on The Florida Bar together with a $250.00 non-refundable fee or notice of waiver of the fee. This subsection also sets forth the "fill in the blanks" form of the motion.

    An out of state attorney who is considering appearing in a civil matter in a Florida court as counsel of record can review the Rules of Judicial Administration as well as other rules of procedure promulgated by the supreme court at www.flabar.org - link under "Professional Practice" then under "Rules of Procedure" with each set of rules listed on that page.

    For local rules in each judicial circuit in Florida, refer to the website for that circuit. For Palm Beach County, Florida, the administrative orders and local rules adopted by the Chief Judge of the circuit are available at http://15thcircuit.co.palm-beach.fl.us.

The foregoing discussion is in summary form, and does not, and is not intended to, discuss all of the statutes, regulations and court opinions which affect matters included in the article. It is not intended as legal advice.