Hearing Prep Mode
Walk in organized. Walk out with a plan.
Hearing preparation is organization, not argument coaching: know the procedure, bring the proof, respect the format. Pick your county to pull its actual hearing procedures from BenchPath.
The universal prep list
01
Confirm the hearing
Date, time, length, judge/magistrate, and whether it's Zoom or in person. The notice of hearing controls.
02
Know what the hearing decides
A motion calendar hearing is short and narrow; a special set or evidentiary hearing takes testimony. Prepare for the one you actually have.
03
Organize exhibits
Number them, bring the required copies, and know your county's submission procedure — many divisions require pre-submission for Zoom hearings.
04
Line up witnesses
Who, why, and whether they need subpoenas. Confirm remote-appearance rules if any witness is remote.
05
Draft the timeline
One page: the key dates and facts you need the judge to absorb quickly.
06
Check the proposed-order procedure
Some divisions want proposed orders before the hearing, in editable format, through a specific channel.
07
Plan court day
Parking, security lines, childcare (children generally should not come), documents in a binder, phone silenced.
08
Plan the after
Who prepares the order, when it's due, and what you must start doing the moment it's signed.
indian-river hearing & division procedures
Emergency Motions
Domestic Violence Injunctions: Ex Parte Temporary Relief and Prompt Final Hearing — Fla. Fam. L. R. P. 12.610
A DV injunction petition is reviewed promptly; the court may issue a temporary injunction ex parte, and when it does, a full evidentiary hearing is generally set within 15 days. There is no filing fee.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Administrative OrdersNineteenth Judicial Circuit
Nineteenth Circuit — AO 2025-06 (as amended) governs magistrate and hearing-officer referrals, superseding AO 2022-03
Administrative Order 2025-06 (In re: Magistrates and Hearing Officers, superseding AO 2022-03), with its Amended appendix (Rev. 5/28/26), is the framework for references to general magistrates and child-support hearing officers: what may be referred, consent and objection mechanics, and the officer roster. The appendix revision published May 28, 2026 is the current officer list.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Proposed OrdersAdrienne Fleming · St. Lucie
Nineteenth Cir. — Judge Adrienne Fleming: Proposed orders
73 verbatim courtroom requirements published by Judge Adrienne Fleming.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Proposed OrdersEdmond W. Alonzo · St. Lucie
Nineteenth Cir. — Judge Edmond W. Alonzo: Proposed orders
9 verbatim courtroom requirements published by Judge Edmond W. Alonzo.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Proposed OrdersJulie Oldehoff · Martin
Nineteenth Cir. — Judge Julie Oldehoff: Proposed orders
5 verbatim courtroom requirements published by Judge Julie Oldehoff.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Special Set HearingsKathryn Hill · Indian River
Nineteenth Cir. — Judge Kathryn Hill: Hearing & argument time
38 verbatim courtroom requirements published by Judge Kathryn Hill.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Special Set HearingsSteven J. Levin · St. Lucie
Nineteenth Cir. — Judge Steven J. Levin: Hearing & argument time
64 verbatim courtroom requirements published by Judge Steven J. Levin.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Special Set HearingsSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — 2024 CIVIL TRIAL PERIODS
1 verbatim requirement extracted from media-3113__2024-CIVIL-TRIAL-PERIODS.pdf, across 1 topic.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Special Set HearingsSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — 2026 DR Judicial Practices And Procedures
74 verbatim requirements extracted from media-19131__2026-DR-Judicial-Practices-and-Procedures-1.pdf, across 5 topics.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Special Set HearingsSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — Administrative Asst I 12
2 verbatim requirements extracted from media-6104__Administrative-Asst-I-12-2024.pdf, across 1 topic.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Proposed OrdersSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — AOSC26
3 verbatim requirements extracted from AOSC26-12.pdf, across 1 topic.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Special Set HearingsSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — Court Program Specialist II Family 008883-6
1 verbatim requirement extracted from media-19322__Court-Program-Specialist-II-Family-008883-6-2026.pdf, across 1 topic.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Special Set HearingsSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — Court Program Specialist II Family 011780-4 21
1 verbatim requirement extracted from media-17764__Court-Program-Specialist-II-Family-011780-4-21-26.pdf, across 1 topic.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Special Set HearingsSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — Courtroom Guidelines And Procedures Civil Jury Updated 03.24.2026
25 verbatim requirements extracted from media-16719__Courtroom-Guidelines-and-Procedures-Civil-Jury-updated-03.24.2026.pdf, across 4 topics.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Special Set HearingsSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — General Motion Family
1 verbatim requirement extracted from media-17422__General-Motion-Family.pdf, across 1 topic.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Special Set HearingsSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — July 2018 Florida Rules Of Juvenile Procedure
282 verbatim requirements extracted from media-8621__July-2018-Florida-Rules-of-Juvenile-Procedure.pdf, across 6 topics.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Special Set HearingsSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — Magistrate 011105-3 30
1 verbatim requirement extracted from media-16982__Magistrate-011105-3-30-2026.pdf, across 1 topic.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Special Set HearingsSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — Magistrate 011105-3 30 2026-1
1 verbatim requirement extracted from media-17087__Magistrate-011105-3-30-2026-1.pdf, across 1 topic.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Special Set HearingsSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — Magistrate 011108-5
1 verbatim requirement extracted from media-19302__Magistrate-011108-5-2026.pdf, across 1 topic.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Special Set HearingsSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — Magistrate Hill Exhibit Policy Updated 5 19
12 verbatim requirements extracted from media-19046__Magistrate-Hill_Exhibit-Policy_updated-5-19-26.pdf, across 2 topics.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Special Set HearingsSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — Metzger Standard Template For Judicial Practices And Procedures Accessible
32 verbatim requirements extracted from media-17916__Metzger-Standard-Template-for-Judicial-Practices-and-Procedures-Accessible-1.pdf, across 5 topics.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Special Set HearingsSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — NEW Process Server Certification Procedure
1 verbatim requirement extracted from media-4395__NEW-Process-Server-Certification-Procedure.pdf, across 1 topic.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Proposed OrdersSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — Opinion SC2026-0673
4 verbatim requirements extracted from Opinion_SC2026-0673.pdf, across 2 topics.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.
Proposed OrdersSt. Lucie
19th Cir. — Probate Memo
7 verbatim requirements extracted from media-19379__Probate-Memo-1.pdf, across 3 topics.
Court procedures change without notice. Verify urgent deadlines or unusual requirements with the court, the clerk, or a Florida attorney. If a specific order in your case says otherwise, that order controls over any county, division, or judge default shown here.