Court Filings

The Fifth District Court of Appeal granted Michael Anthony Foster, Jr.'s petition for a belated appeal. The court directed that this opinion be filed with the trial court and treated as the notice of appeal from the February 28, 2025 order that denied the defendant's motion for postconviction relief in Duval County Circuit Court case number 2023-CF-003421-A. The court acted under its original jurisdiction to permit Foster to proceed with an appeal despite the missed appellate deadline, citing the Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure that governs belated appeals.

The Fifth District granted Joseph Edward Jordan’s petition for certiorari, concluding the trial court wrongly allowed the State to conduct a mental-health examination for a Hurst resentencing despite the State’s failure to give written notice within 45 days of arraignment. The court held that Florida statute §782.04(1)(b) and rule 3.181 require notice within 45 days of arraignment, and that the phrase “timely written notice” in rule 3.202 must be read to mean the statutorily mandated 45-day deadline. Because the trial court’s order conflicted with the statute and rule and would cause irreparable harm, the petition was granted.

The Third District Court of Appeal granted a writ of certiorari and quashed the trial court’s February 6 and February 19, 2026 discovery orders that compelled the petitioner to appear for an in-person deposition in Miami-Dade County after a final default judgment had been entered. The appellate court concluded that once a final judgment is entered, the trial court lacks authority to order depositions in the case in chief and may only permit post-judgment discovery limited to execution or certain narrow exceptions not present here. Because the discovery orders sought materials and testimony that should have been obtained before judgment, they were improper and subject to certiorari relief.

The Fifth District Court of Appeal granted Leon N. Wiley, Jr.'s pro se petition for a belated appeal. The court treated its opinion as the notice of appeal from the February 27, 2024 order denying Wiley's motions for postconviction relief in Flagler County Circuit Court Case No. 2019-CF-000303, and directed that a copy be filed with the trial court. The petition was granted under the Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure governing belated appeals, allowing Wiley to pursue appellate review despite missing the original appeal deadline.

The Fifth District Court of Appeal granted Jose Manuel Troche's petition for a belated appeal. The court directed that this opinion be filed with the trial court and treated as the notice of appeal from the December 15, 2025 order that denied Troche's postconviction motion in Hernando County Circuit Court case 2022-CF-000614-A. The grant restores Troche's right to pursue appellate review of the denial of postconviction relief under Florida appellate procedure.

The Florida Fifth District Court of Appeal granted Charles Jeffrey McPherson's petition for a belated appeal. The court ordered that this opinion be filed with the trial court and treated as the notice of appeal from the February 17, 2026 judgment and sentence in Clay County Circuit Court case number 10-2025-CF-874-A, under Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 9.141(c)(6)(D). The court issued its disposition without the State appearing and noted that the decision is not final until any timely authorized post-opinion motions are resolved.

The Florida Supreme Court adopted several amendments to the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure proposed by The Florida Bar’s Appellate Court Rules Committee. The amendments update cross-references and wording, remove outdated references to the prior e-filing system, align paper filing and service requirements with recent changes to the Rules of General Practice and Judicial Administration, and revise certificate-of-service forms. The Court explained each change, incorporated consistency edits (for example replacing “pro se” with “unrepresented”), and set the effective date as July 1, 2026. No comments were received on the proposal.