Requirements & Information

Contact Information

Judicial Assistant

Kaitlyn

Email

SRQJUV@jud12.flcourts.org

Do not call the office without first reading the requirements. The answers to most questions are in the requirements.

Phone

(941) 861‐7898

Physical Address

2002 Ringling Blvd., Sarasota, FL 34237

Mailing Address

P.O. Box 48927, Sarasota, FL 34230

Office Hours

7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.; closed for lunch Noon-1 p.m.

Courtroom

Proceedings are held in Courtroom 6B

Quick Links

•  Calendars
•  Division Documents & Preferred Forms
•  Judicial Requirements
•  Zoom Requirements

Division Assignment(s)

• Circuit Juvenile - Sarasota County
• Circuit Dependency - Sarasota County
• Early Childhood Court - Sarasota County

Requirements & Information

Standards of Professionalism

Judge Ruhl 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.

Trauma-informed Courtroom

The Dependency and Delinquency courtrooms serve a population of individuals that have likely experienced trauma. The court expects professionals to use trauma-informed language and tone in order to avoid causing further trauma or triggering the individual being addressed.

Frequently Asked Questions

Judge Ruhl conducts both in-person and remote hearings from a hybrid courtroom. The Zoom platform is used to conduct remote hearings. All parties, attorneys and participants need permission to appear by Zoom for hearings that are noticed for in-person hearings. For exceptions, see “paragraph number four.”

1. Use of camera on Zoom. If you are authorized to appear by Zoom, you must appear with a working camera. You may not appear by telephone. This includes Court Reporters.
2. Motion or Objection to Appear Remotely: If requesting a hearing be converted to Zoom, a motion showing good cause must be filed. A copy of the motion along with the Notice of Hearing as well as the original motion scheduled to be heard must be served on all who are entitled notice of the proceeding, including the court. A party may file an objection in writing to the use of Zoom within 10 days after service of the motion or within such other period as may be directed by the court.
   • For the court to provide ample notice to the parties and court staff, all motions and objections should be concluded no less than 3 business days prior to the hearing.
   • A party waives objections by failing to timely object to the motion unless, before the date of the proceeding, the party establishes good cause for failure to timely object. It is in the Court’s discretion to authorize a Remote hearing over objection.
3. Remote Testimony: The Court may allow testimony to be provided remotely if all parties consent and approved by the Court. A stipulation between the attorneys and/or pro se litigants does not automatically grant the relief requested. If approved, the court will enter an order.
4. Exceptions
   • Volunteers: Guardian ad Litem volunteers may always appear on Zoom without permission or notice to the court.
   • Dependency Hearings: Unless specifically instructed, the court will continue to hold the following dependency hearings remotely: Judicial Reviews, Dependency Docket Sounding and non-evidentiary hearings scheduled for less than 30 minutes.
5. Please review the Zoom rules below before attending a Zoom hearing.

Intructions for Zoom

1. Download the free Zoom app on your smartphone or computer prior to your hearing date. Make sure you download the app before your hearing! Also, make sure to enter your name as opposed to your phone number or a nickname on your profile. Failure to do so may result in you being unable to obtain entry in the hearing.
2. On the date and time of your hearing, select “Join a Meeting” and then enter the Meeting ID and Password to get into the hearing
3. Once you connect, please wait to be checked in. You may be placed in a “waiting room” and on mute or silent until your hearing begins. There may be multiple hearings so you may be waiting a significant amount of time for your hearing to be called. Be patient, the Court will get to your case.

Zoom Rules

1. Although the hearing is being conducted virtually, it is still a court proceeding subject to ordinary rules of decorum. This means you should be attentive and behave as you would if the hearing were being held in person. Be in a quiet, lighted environment. Eliminate distractions like barking dogs and other ambient noise. If not being used for the hearing, turn cell phones off. Do not answer or access phones during the proceeding. No driving, eating, chewing or off-line communication with other persons, and do not walk around.
2. Important The penalties of perjury or contempt are still applicable. You must turn on your video to offer sworn testimony.
3. If the Rule of Sequestration is invoked, the witness will either be asked to login to zoom when it’s their turn, or to sit in a zoom “waiting room” while the hearing is proceeding. This rule prohibits witnesses from listening to someone else’s testimony and also prohibits a witness from discussing their testimony, or that of another witness, with anyone except for authorized communication with an attorney. Anyone who violates this rule will be subject to contempt sanctions, which may include incarceration or fines, or both.
4. No Recording Recording a court proceeding, except by a certified court reporter or the 12th Circuit Digital Recording System, is strictly prohibited and will result in contempt sanctions. Confirm the proceeding is not being recorded and that at all times during the hearing you are not in communication with any third person. Receiving electronic or other communications from others is prohibited unless authorized by the judge and may result in contempt sanctions. Posting court proceedings on social media or allowing others to do so is strictly prohibited. Offenders and facilitators will be subject to serious judicial sanctions.
5. All persons appearing before the court, even if appearing by Zoom, must dress in an appropriate manner. Shorts, hats, flip-flops, jeans, sneakers, T-shirts, and tank tops are not suitable for the courtroom.
6. Please ensure you are attending this hearing in a distraction free environment. Turn off ringers and alerts that make noise. Make sure zoom displays your first and last name and either the case you are appearing for or, if multiple cases, your title, (i.e.- Mike Smith, attorney, John Jones, DJJ). You should not be attending a hearing while driving.
7. Let the attorney or judge finish speaking before answering questions. When an objection is made, stop talking and let the judge rule on the objection. Mute your microphone when not being addressed.
8. There are icons on the zoom screen that allow a person to raise their hand or ask for a break.
9. Procedure for disconnection: If disconnected, attempt to re-enter the meeting. If you are unable to rejoin, contact your attorney by phone or email, or contact the judicial assistant.
10. If the judge asks you to identify yourself and you do not “unmute” to do so, you may be removed from the hearing.

Hearing time may be scheduled in open court by agreement of the parties and the court. All hearings, that are not scheduled in court by the clerk, must be scheduled on the Judicial Automated Calendaring System (“JACS”).

1. File Motions: All motions must be filed with the Clerk prior to reserving hearing time.
2. Notice of Hearing: A Notice of Hearing must be filed immediately after reserving hearing time and must conform to the Twelfth Judicial Circuit’s Standards of Professionalism. Hearings are not permitted to be set unilaterally. You are responsible to ensure the notice of hearing contains the appropriate ADA notice and the appropriate DIN for each motion to be heard. When drafting a Notice of Hearing for a remote hearing, you must include Judge Ruhl’s Zoom credentials. Judge Ruhl will host all Zoom events.
3. Hearings 30 Minutes or Less: All hearings 30 minutes in length or less must be scheduled using the Court’s JACS. Do not schedule back-to-back slots to obtain more hearing time (i.e., two back-to-back 15-minute slots to obtain 30 minutes of hearing time). This includes motions made by both parties. One case number should not take up more than one hearing slot in a standard business day. Back-to-back hearings will be canceled by the Court.
   • JACS: Please utilize account named “Juvenile Division (Judge Maria Ruhl)” for all for in-person and remote hearings. If time is not reflected, please submit a hearing request to the judicial assistant (see Paragraph B, Number 5: “Requests for Hearing Time” for more information).
   • Delinquency Motions: Heard on Tuesdays and Thursdays
   • Dependency Motions: Heard on Wednesdays and Thursdays
   • Trials: Conducted Fridays and Mondays
4. Hearings Longer than 30 Minutes: Please contact the Court’s Judicial Assistant via email at SRQJUV@jud12.flcourts.org to schedule hearings requiring more than one hour. See “Requests for Hearing Time” for additional information.
5. If time slots do not appear on the JACS drop down menu for hearings 30 minutes or less in length, please email the request for hearing time in writing with all sides copied. If all parties are not copied, the request will not be reviewed.
6. Request for Hearing Time: To request hearing time from the Court, the following information must be included in the email (phone calls not accepted):
   • list of motions and DIN (motions must be attached to email)
   • agreed total length of time needed by attorneys and/or pro se litigants
   • requesting appearance (either in-person or remote) – requesting party will be notified if a further motion will be required
   • general time frame requesting the hearing to be held (5 days, 30 days, etc.)
   • if you are on a trial docket
   • other scheduled hearings for the same case or related cases that impact the request
7. The court always has alternative, unconventional hearing time options. See section “Requests for Hearing Time” for more information and include that you are interested in the alternative, unconventional hearing time options.
8. Cross-Notice, “Piggybacks,” or Substitutions: Once a motion has been set for hearing, additional motions may not be “cross-noticed,” “piggybacked,” or substituted during the time reserved for the original motion without the express consent of opposing counsel and the court. The scheduling party should be contacted for consent before seeking the court’s approval to add additional motions.
9. Ruling Without a Hearing: Nothing precludes the parties from stipulating those matters be determined based solely on written submissions (written motions, written responses with legal analysis and proposed orders). Any such stipulation must be signed by all parties, filed with the clerk, and copies of all paperwork to be submitted to our office for review.
10. Canceling Hearings: Please email the judicial assistant to cancel a hearing. Please indicate “Notice of Cancelation,” case number and case style in the subject line of the email (attach document). You also must immediately send notice of cancelation to opposing counsel or party, including the court.
    1. Last-minute Cancelations: If a cancelation is necessary within 24-hours of the scheduled hearing, call and email the judicial assistant immediately. You will be asked to provide a copy of the Notice of Cancelation and identify the reason(s) for the cancelation (i.e. scheduling conflict or resolved outstanding issues). Please be prepared to submit a stipulation and/or order where necessary. The deadline for these documents would be the time of the original scheduled hearing.

Important All written communication with the judicial assistant, including, but not limited to, email communication, must be copied to all parties in the “cc” line, each and every time. This includes, but is not limited to, scheduling, hearing materials and the submission of proposed orders for signature (even if all parties have agreed to the order).

The court does not allow litigation by letter or email. If the parties cannot agree on an issue, the appropriate motion should be filed and set for hearing.

1. ePortal: Effectively immediately, proposed orders/judgments are required to be submitted through the ePortal. See Administrative Order 22-1.2. All proposed orders must be in Word format only and must be accompanied by a cover letter that is also submitted though the ePortal. The cover letter must be in PDF/A format. The submitting party must ensure all parties/attorneys receive a courtesy copy of both the proposed order (Word format) and cover letter (PDF/A) prior to submission. The court generally uses 12-point Times New Roman font with one-inch margins when drafting proposed orders.
   • If an order is submitted electronically, the judicial assistant will serve the Order on the parties via email. The certificate of service must be complete and include the email addresses for all recipients. If additional U.S. mail copies need to be served, please modify the certificate of service accordingly for the movant to complete such actions.
   • By agreement. Any party submitting an order for signature must have previously provided a copy to all parties. If the agreement is not contained in the proposed order, it must be indicated in the cover letter that all parties previously agreed to the form and content of the order. The cover letter must accompany the proposed order that is filed through ePortal. The court will not sign proposed orders/judgments without clear evidence of agreement or consent by all parties or counsel’s affirmation that opposing counsel has approved the form and content of the order/judgment.
   • Not agreed to. When submitting a proposed order which has not been previously agreed to, the cover letter must indicate that the parties were provided five (5) business days to make an objection and failed to do so. Do not submit the proposed order until the five (5) business days have lapsed. If any party submitting an order which has not been previously agreed to by all parties, receives an “out of office” or “vacation response” from any other party, it is the submitting party’s obligation to include this information in the cover letter. Any order submitted for consideration which does not include the information above will not be considered until all parties are notified.
2. Downloadable Forms: The court utilizes a number of standard orders, which are available for your use and download from the Court Forms page. Check this page often as the court adds new or modifies existing proposed orders from time to time.
3. Exceptions:
   • Pre-Release Notifications – Juvenile Probation Officer (“JPO”) shall send to the division email account, copying State Attorney’s Office.
4. ePortal Tips
   • Do not file your proposed Order with the Clerk of Court
   • Include a detailed service list in the proposed order. Service list must have more than names, include the method of service (complete email or mailing address)
   • Do not submit two (2) orders for the same case at the same time in the ePortal. This will cause an error and one or both orders may be erased.
   • Do not submit one proposed order for two (2) case numbers. Each case number must have its own document.
   • Do not include any unnecessary marks on documents, including headers or footers (e.g., firm names, internal coding, watermarks, etc.) within the proposed Order.
   • Do not submit consolidated forms. All Stipulations must be a standalone document and filed prior to submitting an order to the Court. Motions and Stipulations not e-filed will not be considered.
   • Do not include a directive such as “hold this proposed order for x days for an objection to be lodged”. If the paperwork has not been reviewed by all parties, it should not be sent to the Court.
   • Do not email your proposed order to the Court.
5. Under Advisement: The court attempts to rule from the bench when appropriate. If the court takes a matter under advisement, the court tries to rule as quickly as possible under the then current circumstances. Do not call to ask about the status of the order. If four (4) weeks have elapsed without a ruling, the movant may email the judicial assistant to advise the matter has been under advisement for four (4) weeks. The four (4) weeks begins upon the court’s receipt of the last post-hearing submission (e.g., transcripts, supplemental briefs, legal authority, proposed orders).
6. After Hearing: Following a hearing, the court may ask the prevailing party to submit a proposed order. Do not submit a proposed order until all parties have reviewed and approved the proposed order. In some cases, the court will ask each party to submit a proposed order. Make sure to abide by any deadlines that the court gives, and all parties are copied. The court does not allow the hearing/motion to be reargued through email. If there are still outstanding issues, the court will give instruction on how to proceed and possibly set an additional hearing.

1. Electronic Copies: Electronic copies of hearing materials should be sent to Family Division 2 (email address to be updated). The Court will accept these documents in electronic format only if provided as a single PDF file. The Court’s preference is that it be: text searchable; paginated with page numbers exactly matching the index pagination; bookmarked consistent with the index.
   • If size limitations prevent the emailing of the PDF file as a single file, multiple files may be provided or submit to the Court via a USB flash drive. If unable to send in PDF format, the Court would appreciate a paper copy of the motion, the directly relevant evidence (if applicable), only directly relevant case law and any responses filed by opposing parties.
   • Important The Court will not open links of any kind. All submissions shall be in a format acceptable to the Court.
2. Paper Copies: Paper copies may be utilized only if the submitting party is unable to provide electronic copies.
3. Submission Deadlines: The Court must receive all materials no later than three business days prior to the hearing. For larger hearings, the judicial assistant will provide a deadline at the time of setting. Please give opposing counsel — and the Court — the opportunity to be prepared to address your motion.

Emergency, Expedited Request and Hardship Motions: If a party believes there is a factual basis for setting an emergency or hardship hearing, a detailed, sworn and verified motion setting forth the following should be filed:

• that the movant first conferred with or made a good faith effort to contact opposing party to resolve the matter without Court intervention (efforts to be delineated in the motion re: contact and resolution);
• the issue(s) that need to be resolved on an expedited basis and why they require an expedited hearing;
• the basis for the waiver of any required mediation;
• the amount of time needed, taking into account each party’s presentation.

Emergency or expedited hearings may occur during alternative, unconventional work hours at the court’s discretion.

The original motion shall be filed with the clerk, and a copy hand-delivered or emailed to the court and a phone call placed to the judicial assistant advising of the motion. The judge will determine whether the issues qualify as an “emergency” under the prevailing case law or whether a hardship exists thus justifying the waiver of mediation or the setting of an expedited hearing. The court will prepare an order advising the parties how to proceed. The court may issue an order requesting the non-moving party to file a written response. Failure to follow the steps as outlined in this section will constitute a basis for denial of the motion.

The verification must be in the following form:

Courtesy copies of any evidentiary exhibits (all agreed and not agreed) shall be provided to all parties, and to the court at least three (3) days prior to the date of the hearing.

In Dependency cases set for trial, the court will enter a pre-trial order with discovery and conference deadlines. The Delinquency cases will follow the rules of juvenile procedure.

For dependency cases, trials are set at arraignment pursuant to the requirements of Fla. Stat. 39. For delinquency cases, trials are set pursuant to the rules of juvenile procedure.

For access to preferred forms, please visit Judge Ruhl’s section of the 12th Circuit’s divisions page or the Court Forms page.

Dependency Dockets

Wednesday dependency dockets are extremely crowded both in the morning and in the afternoon. As such, no “add on” cases are permitted on Wednesdays and no evidentiary hearings will be conducted on Wednesdays. If any party believes a particularly complex dependency case will require an extraordinary amount of the court’s time, the party will coordinate alternate hearing time, rather than utilize a Wednesday Dependency docket, to ensure adequate time can be dedicated to the complex nature of any given case.

Delinquency

Order to Show Cause & Violations of Probation

In order to allow adequate advanced notice to all parties, the cut-off time to receive requests to issue Order(s) to Show Cause and/or Violations of Probation (“VOP’) is 12 p.m. on Thursday immediately prior to the Tuesday delinquency docket requested. All requests received after 12 pm on the cut-off day will be carried over to the following Tuesday’s docket.

Other Requests

All requests for juvenile release from commitment programs, requests to terminate supervision and/or jurisdiction, and requests related to a youth’s home pass status must be provided to the State Attorney’s Office first. The requesting party shall file all documentation with the clerk, then submit a proposed order through the ePortal.