Requirements & Information
Standards of Professionalism
Judge Legler expects all attorneys who appear to know and adhere to the Twelfth Judicial Circuit’s Standards of Professionalism, also available on the websites of the Manatee County Bar Association and the Sarasota County Bar Association.
A. Remote Appearance
Procedures
Judge Legler's Zoom Credentials
- Launch Zoom
- Click “Join A Meeting”
- Meeting ID: 974 0163 8429
- Password: 161068
Judge Legler will host the Zoom meetings. Please visit the Public Court Hearings page for Zoom log-on credentials and procedures, including requirements for noticing a Zoom hearing, Zoom etiquette, etc. The procedure for a Zoom witness appearance is found on the Technology Services page.
The Remote Courtroom is still a public courtroom. Unless you are unable, the Court expects that you attend the remote hearing and conduct yourself professionally and abide by the following rules:
- All participants must have their audio and video working and know how to mute/unmute and turn their camera on and off before their hearing begins.
- All participants shall use their true first and last name to identify themselves.
- All participants shall turn on their video when speaking or testifying to the Court
- All participants shall remain muted unless and until their case is called.
- All participants shall have their video turned off until their case is called.
- Appearing remotely on zoom carries with it the same requirements for professionalism, decorum, and civility to all participants and the court as if physically present.
- All participants shall be wearing appropriate court attire.
- As in any courtroom, there is to be no eating, drinking, gum chewing, smoking, or engaging in any activity other than participation in the court appearance.
- Attorney’s must wear the same attire they would wear if appearing live in court.
Individuals appearing in person will be heard first to those appearing by Zoom.
Submission of Evidence at Zoom Hearings
Please remember that the Court cannot electronically file your exhibits, and they must be either filed in the Court file or you must send a hard copy in advance of the hearing or trial. When in doubt, please contact the judicial Assistant before an evidentiary hearing to make sure that your evidence will be properly submitted before the Court.
Any witness testifying at an evidentiary hearing or non-jury trial by Zoom must appear on camera and must present a valid form of identification if requested.
Criminal Zoom Hearings
Certain hearings will have the option of being heard via Zoom however, the Court reserves the right to require the parties to appear in person for any scheduled or future hearing by providing reasonable notice to the parties. The following are Criminal Hearings with the ability to be heard via Zoom:
- Plea in Absentia Hearings: All original paperwork must be provided to the Court 24 hours prior to the hearing. Download checklist
- Non-Evidentiary Hearings (15-minutes or less): Ex: Motion to Withdraw, Early Termination of Probation.
- Pre-Trial Conferences:
- Pre-trial Conferences can be continued two (2) times without the need for the Defense Attorney to appear provided that the Defense Attorney has filed with the Clerk the Pretrial Conference Request at least 24 hours prior to the scheduled PTC, or handed the form to the Clerk at the scheduled PTC.
Do not email the PTC Form to the Court’s JA and if done, the PTC will not be continued, and the parties must appear.
Civil Zoom Hearings
Certain hearings will have the option of being heard via Zoom. However, the Court reserves the right to require the parties to appear in person for any schedules or future hearing by providing reasonable notice to the parties. The following are Civil Hearings have the ability to be heard via Zoom:
- Civil Traffic Infraction Hearings (non-final hearings)
- Civil Animal Pre-Trial Conferences
- Case Management/Status Hearings
- Evidentiary Hearings (expeted to last less than 30-minutes)
- Non-Evidentiary Hearings (expected to last less than 30-minutes)
Requests to appear by Zoom for civil hearings aside from those listed above may be granted in advance of the scheduled hearing by filing a Motion and proposed Order with notice to opposing counsel 24 hours before the scheduled hearing outlining the “good cause” for the request to appear remotely.
B. Hearing Procedures
Scheduling Civil Hearings
All civil hearings shall be scheduled through the JACS. However, any hearings that require more than thirty (30) minutes shall be scheduled through the Judicial Assistant at (941) 861‐7959, or via email at SZielinski@jud12.flcourts.org. Hearings are limited to the time reserved, and the Court reserves the right to end the meeting at the allotted time and reschedule if the parties go over. All motions shall be filed prior to reserving hearing time.
Scheduling Criminal Hearings
Criminal hearings are scheduled through the Judicial Assistant at (941) 861‐7959, via email at SZielinski@jud12.flcourts.org or by using JACS. Hearings are limited to the time reserved, and the Court reserves the right to end the meeting at the allotted time and reschedule if the parties go over. All motions shall be filed prior to reserving hearing time.
In-Person Hearings
The following hearings will be conducted in person and the appearance of the Defendant and Attorneys are mandatory unless where noted.
Arraignments: Will be conducted in person and Defendants are required to appear in Court at their issued court date (summons or Notice to Appear).
VOP Hearings: Will be conducted in person and all parties must appear in person at the scheduled time.
Pro Se Criminal Pre-Trial Conferences: Will be conducted in person and all parties must appear in person at the scheduled time.
Public Defender Pre-Trial Conferences: Will be conducted in person and all parties must appear in person at the scheduled time unless there is a Waiver of the Defendant’s Appearance or a Request to Continue the PTC has been submitted as stated above.
Docket Sounding: Will be conducted in person and all parties must appear in person at the scheduled time unless there is a Motion filed and signed by all parties (including the Defendant) at least 48 hours in advance, with a courtesy copy sent through the e-portal to the Court and an Order filed granting the request upon a showing of “good cause.”
Trial Status: Will be conducted in person and all parties must appear in person at the scheduled time.
Evidentiary Hearings: Will be conducted in person and all parties must appear in person at the scheduled time.
Small Claims Pretrial Conferences: Will be conducted in person and all parties must appear in person at the scheduled time.
Requests to continue the PTC must be in writing and filed with the Clerk, with a copy to the Judicial Assistant and all parties. Parties may also file a Stipulation for Small Claims Mediation form found on the website no less than two (2) days prior to the PTC. Attendance at mediation is mandatory before a trial date may be set.
Landlord/Tenant Final Hearings: Will be conducted in person and all parties must appear in person at the scheduled time.
Civil Animal Final Hearings: Will be conducted in person and all parties must appear in person at the scheduled time.
Civil Traffic Final Hearings: Will be conducted in person and all parties must appear in person at the scheduled time.
Specific Civil Hearings
- Summary Judgment Motions: Administrative Order 2021-19.1 contains specific requirements that must be included for both the moving and nonmoving parties. Compliance with this Administrative Order is required.
- Reconsideration, Rehearing, and Motion for New Trial Motions: Please do not set these motions for hearing. Please send a copy of these filed motions to Judge Legler’s Judicial Assistant with a cover letter. Judge Legler will determine whether to grant a hearing.
- Motions for Attorney Fees and Costs: Judge Legler allows a Motion for Attorney’s Fees and Costs to proceed on the issue of entitlement only. If entitlement is found, Judge Legler may require mediation as to the issue of amount. If mediation is unsuccessful and counsel are unable to stipulate and submit an agreed Order to the Court, the Movant may proceed to schedule an evidentiary hearing as to amount of fees/costs to be awarded. Please refer to the guidelines for conducting an evidentiary hearing.
- Evictions: Once the Clerk has entered the Default, the Final Judgment of Possession must be submitted through the ePortal. Once signed, the Judicial Assistant will scan and email them back and if a response is filed, the Court will review the response and determine whether a hearing is warranted. If a hearing is required, the Judicial Assistant will schedule the hearing and notify all parties.
Specific Criminal Hearings
Credit Time Served (CTS) Plea Hearings: For any Credit Time Served (CTS) plea that will result in a Defendant being released from custody completely, the Court will make every effort to hear such a plea within 24 hours-48 hours of the date of the request by the attorney who sends an email to the JA with the following information:
- Client's Name
- Clerk Case Number(s)
- A statement that says: “This plea will result in the client being released from custody.”
The jail must be notified of the plea by 3 pm the day before the plea is to occur otherwise, the jail will not accommodate the plea and Victims must be given at least 24 hours’ notice if they wish to be present and heard.
Motion for Rehearing: Do not set Motions for Rehearing for a hearing; these motions shall be submitted directly to the judge along with a cover letter. The judge will first review the motion to determine whether or not a hearing is necessary. If necessary, the Court will reach out to the parties to schedule the hearing.
Motions/Order for Release of Uncharged Defendants: Defense shall forward to Judge’s chambers and the appropriate Assistant State Attorney (ASA), a copy of his or her Motion. If the ASA notifies the Judge and Defense that he/she has no objections to the Defendant’s immediate release, the Judicial Assistant will contact the Defense attorney to pick up an Order. If the ASA does not respond by 5 pm on the date the Defense motion is filed, the motion shall be placed for hearing at the very next available hearing date or within 72 hours. The Defense attorney shall prepare the Notice of Hearing.
Discharge on Speedy Trial and Notice of Expiration of Speedy Trial: When filing Motion for Discharge for Speedy Trial or Notice of Expiration of Speedy Trial with the Clerk, Defense must forward courtesy copies to Judges Chambers via email or fax and to the appropriate ASA by the end of that same workday.
Criminal Plea in Absentia: All completed plea in absentia (PIA) paperwork must be submitted to Chambers in hard copy form at least 24 hours prior to scheduled PIA date (Court requires the original documents.) The Defense attorney can schedule pleas in absentia via zoom however, Clients will be ordered to report to probation in person (if local) within an allotted time or check in by phone if not local. Defense attorneys are required to let probation know and provide probation intake form to probation department immediately after plea.
Cancellations
JACS should be used to cancel hearings when possible. However, JACS will not authorize a cancellation when it results in short notice to the parties. When JACS does not permit a cancellation, the moving party may cancel the hearing only by emailing a copy of the e-filed Notice of Cancellation to the judicial assistant. Include all parties in that email. The judicial assistant will acknowledge receipt of the notice, cancel the hearing, and inform all parties the hearing has been cancelled.
If a Motion or Notice of Hearing is not filed in the Court file, the hearing may be cancelled.
C. Communications with the Court
Email: SZielinski@jud12.flcourts.org or CoDivisionB@jud12.flcourts.org
Phone: 941‐861‐7959
Self-Represented Litigants (pro se): Judge Legler must apply the same rules to all parties, regardless of whether you have an attorney. Your opportunity to speak with Judge Legler about your case is when you are in the courtroom as well as in written motions and responses. The Judge may not talk to you about your case outside of the courtroom, so please do not call to speak with the Judge. Judge Legler’s Judicial Assistant can help you schedule a hearing. The Judicial Assistant may not help you with your case or send information to the other party or attorney for you. Please do not ask the Judicial Assistant for the outcome of a hearing or verify that an order has been signed; you may review the Sarasota County Clerk’s website for details about your case. Please remember that whenever you file something with the Clerk or provide the Judge a copy, you must send a copy to all the attorneys or parties at the same time.
Mandatory Use of Portal: The Florida Courts E-Filing Authority maintains a single, statewide access point to file court documents known as the E-Filing Portal. Most self-represented litigants (pro se litigants) as well as attorneys must register with the Portal to send and receive court documents as required by Florida Rule of General Practice and Judicial Administration 2.516. The Portal maintains many “how-to” videos.
D. Submission of Orders
Effective immediately, all proposed orders submitted by attorneys to Judge Legler must be submitted in compliance with Administrative Order 22-1.2, through the ePortal directly to Judge Legler, and not filed on the Progress Docket or submitted via email.
All proposed orders, cover letters and attachments to Orders must be submitted as:
- Proposed orders: Word format only
- Cover letters: PDF/A format only
- Attachments to orders: PDF/A format only
Proposed/Agreed or Stipulated Orders: All agreed/stipulated proposed orders must clearly state “Agreed/Stipulated” in the heading and must indicate the basis of the stipulation/agreement. This can be done by attaching a signed stipulation or copy of an email indicating the agreement or filing same. An agreement to a proposed order does not guarantee Court approval. Please do not contact the Judicial Assistant to inquire the status of a proposed order unless it has been more than 10 days from submitting and the matter is urgent.
Downloadable Proposed Orders: The Court utilizes several standard orders, which are available for your use and download. Please check this site often as the Court from time to time adds new or modifies existing proposed orders. See sample standard Orders.
Orders Under Advisement: Judge Legler attempts to rule from the bench where appropriate. If Judge Legler takes a matter under advisement, he will try to rule as quickly as possible but please do not call to ask about the status of the order. If four weeks have elapsed without a ruling, the movant may call the Judicial Assistant to advise that the matter has been under advisement for four weeks starting on the day of the hearing.
E. Courtesy Copies
Attorneys must submit courtesy copies of the Notice of Hearing, the filed motion and all other relevant documents to include case law to the Court at least two (2) days prior to the scheduled hearing and in hard copy form if the total pages are over 25 pages in length.
If the total pages are under 25 pages in length, attorneys may email copies of the relevant documents to CoDivisionB@jud12.flcourts.org with the case title and case number in the subject line.
F. Emergency & Other Urgent Matters
All motions requesting emergency hearing time must be either (1) delivered directly to Judge Legler’s office marked as “urgent” (2) submitted via email to SZielinski@jud12.flcourts.org again noting the matter is “urgent” with copies sent to the opposing party via the same delivery method. The motion should detail the circumstances of the emergency. The Court will review the motion and determine whether an expedited hearing is warranted.
G. Exhibits for Evidentiary Proceedings
Exhibits for evidentiary hearings and trials, as well as indexes/exhibit lists, must be delivered to the Court at least two days prior to the hearing date in a three (3) ring binder with an index listing the exhibits, documents or other evidence to be used at trial and labeling the evidence as follows:
- Plaintiff – Each exhibit or piece of evidence shall be identified by a number (1‐10)
- Defendant – Each exhibit or piece of evidence shall be identified by a letter (A‐Z)
There should be another hard copy set brought to Court on the date of the hearing for the Clerk to submit into evidence.
H. Pretrial Procedures & Conferences
Case Management: Twelfth Judicial Circuit Administrative Order 2022-07.1 outlines case management requirements in most county civil actions. You are required to review and comply with the requirements set forth in that order.
Compelling Discovery: The Circuit’s Standards of Professionalism discuss motions to compel discovery. The Court draws particular attention to Administrative Order 2010-22.2 § E(1)(d), which provides: “Motions to compel discovery shall quote in full each interrogatory, question on deposition, request for admission, or request for production to which the motion is addressed and the objection and grounds given by the opposing parties.”
Pretrial Conference (Civil Cases): The Court will set a Pretrial Conference date for jury trials. The parties must complete a proposed Pretrial Conference Checklist and submit to Judge Legler via the Portal at least three (3) business days prior to the Pretrial Conference. The parties must attend the Pretrial Conference unless excused by the Court. The Court typically does not conduct Pretrial Conferences in less than one day nonjury cases.
I. Setting Case for Trial
Case Management (Civil Cases): The Court follows the differentiated case management protocol as set forth in Administrative Order 2021-14.1. Judge Legler follows this protocol. Within 30 days of the last Defendant being served with process, the parties are directed to meet-and-confer and complete the appropriate Case Management Report. The parties must file the Case Management Report within 5 days of the parties’ initial meet-and-confer. The parties in that Case Management Report can agree to waive the “at issue” rule and have the Court enter a trial order setting a trial period at that time. If the parties do not waive the “at issue” rule, the Court will enter an order setting a proposed trial period as well as setting a separate Case Management Conference to set the trial period. Once a trial period is set, all requests for a trial continuance or changes to the trial period must be set for hearing. You cannot simply file a new Case Management Report.
J. Preferred Division Forms
K. Other Division Procedures
Continuances: All continuance motions must be in writing and signed by the client/party. Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.460; Fla. R. Gen. Prac. & Jud. Admin. 2.525(e). You must set all motions for trial continuance for hearing.
Technology Services: All technology service requests must be made prior to trial. If presentation equipment or assistance is needed, please review the Technology Services page for more information. It is the attorney/party’s responsibility to obtain all requests or equipment needed for trial.
Reserving an Interpreter: The responsibility for scheduling an interpreter rests solely with the person in need of interpreting services. The Court does not automatically schedule interpreters. Interpretation services can be requested by telephone, email, or submission of the online request form. Each court event must be scheduled separately with the interpreter’s office. Requests for court interpreters should be made at least five (5) business days in advance of the scheduled court event. Requests made with less than five (5) business days’ notice may not be accommodated. In cases where interpreting services are required for languages other than Spanish, additional time may be necessary to arrange for a qualified interpreter or a telephonic interpreting service may be used.
If you are a person with a disability who needs any accommodation in order to participate in this proceeding, you are entitled, at no cost to you, to the provision of certain assistance. Please contact the Sarasota County Jury Office, P.O. Box 3079, Sarasota, Florida 34230-3079,
(941) 861‐8000, at least seven (7) days before your scheduled court appearance, or immediately upon receiving this notification if the time before the scheduled appearance is less than seven days. If you are hearing or voice impaired, call 711.