Confidential Information: Know Before You File
Important changes to processing of confidential information filed in Civil and Small Claims cases
Effective July 1, 2021, the Florida Supreme Court amended Florida Rule of General Practice and Judicial Administration 2.420 to prevent clerks of court from automatically redacting confidential information found within Circuit Civil, County Civil, or Small Claims cases. The only exceptions to the amendment are cases of Involuntary Civil Commitment of Sexually Violent Predators (Jimmy Ryce Act), civil cases dealing with sexual assault, and medical malpractice cases.
To conform to the Court’s order, all Circuit Civil, County Civil, and Small Claims documents, (with the exceptions noted above) will be available to the public immediately upon docketing unless the filer:
- Files a notice of confidential information, as stated in Rule 2.420(d)(2),
- Files a motion to determine confidentiality, as stated in Rule 2.420(d)(3), or
- Files in a case that has been determined by the court to be confidential.
In many instances, the rule makes entire documents confidential, but in most cases, confidential information is in the form of individual pieces found within a document. Please note that any notice of confidential information must state:
- The information or document to be kept confidential,
- The applicable paragraph from the Rule which makes the information or document confidential, and
- The precise location(s) by document, page, and line.
I regret that my office can no longer proactively safeguard confidential information in most civil cases, even if no notice of confidential information is filed, but to do so would be contrary to the Court’s Order.
Gary J. Cooney
Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller