IN THE SUPREME COURT OF FLORIDA

Transcription

1 IN THE SUPREME COURT OF FLORIDA IN RE: PETITION FOR APPROVAL OF REVISIONS TO SIMPLIFIED Case No. 92,023 FORMS PURSUANT TO RULE (a) OF THE RULES REGULATING THE FLORIDA BAR / NOTICE OF FILING OF PROPOSED SIMPLIFIED FORM FOR RESIDENTIAL LEASE - SINGLE FAMILY HOME AND DUPLEX THE FLORIDA BAR, files this Notice of Filing of Proposed Simplified Form for Residential Lease - Single Family Home and Duplex and states as follows: This case was initially before the Court for approval of revisions to certain simplified legal forms for use by nonlawyers pursuant to Rule (a) of the Rules Regulating the Florida Bar. The forms before the Court were the Residential Eviction Summons, Final Judgment -- Damages and the Residential Lease -- Single Family Home and Duplex (hereinafter Residential Lease Form.) In this Court's order of September 10, 1998, the Court approved the revised Residential Eviction Summons, Final Judgment -- Damages with certain modifications but deleted the Residential Lease Form in its entirety from the simplified forms. The Florida Bar and the Florida Association of Realtors filed Motions for 1

2 Rehearing with regard to the deletion of the Residential Lease Form. On December 23, 1998, this Court granted the Motions for Rehearing and directed the Bar to submit to the Court a proposed simplified form for Residential Lease - Single Family Home and Duplex that comports with current law. The Court also directed that the proposed lease form be published in the Florida Bar News and comments solicited. As directed by the Court, The Florida Bar hereby files a proposed Residential Lease Form for consideration. The proposed Residential Lease Form is a result of the efforts of the Standing Committee on Simplified Forms (hereinafter Committee). The Committee worked with representatives from the Housing Workgroup of Florida Legal Services, Inc. and the Florida Association of Realtors on the revisions to the form and received substantial input from each group. Their joint efforts resulted in a substantial rewrite of the lease form. Because of the many revisions to the form and in order to avoid confusion, the Bar is proposing that the existing Residential Lease Form be stricken in its entirety and that the proposed Residential Lease Form be considered as a new form. The existing Residential Lease Form (stricken in its entirety) is attached hereto as Exhibit "A." The proposed Residential Lease For Single Family Home and Duplex is attached hereto as Exhibits "B" and "C." As the Committee is requesting that the proposed Residential Lease Form be considered as a new form, Exhibit "B" 2

3 shows that lease underlined in its entirety. Exhibit "C" is the proposed Residential Lease For Single Family Home and Duplex without underlining and is being included for ease of reading. It is the belief of the Committee that the proposed Residential Lease Form comports with current law. One of the steps taken by the Committee to ensure compliance with existing law was to delete all verbatim recitations of the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act in the proposed lease form. The Committee determined that the verbatim recitations of the Act caused the existing lease form to become noncompliant with current law whenever the statute was amended. Additionally, the Committee questioned the value of reiterating the statute in a "simplified form." Instead, the Committee has included a provision in the proposed Residential Lease Form that, upon request, the landlord shall provide a copy of the Residential Landlord and Tenant Act to the tenants. As directed by this Court in its December 23, 1998 order, the proposed Residential Lease For Single Family Home and Duplex will be published in the Florida Bar News in the April 15, 1999 edition. (See Notice at Exhibit D) Interested parties will be given until May 15, 1999 to file comments with the Court. The filing of the proposed Residential Lease Form will also be noticed on The Florida Bar's website at The proposed form will be available on that site. It is important to remember that the approval of the proposed 3

4 Residential Lease Form is being requested so that a simplified form is available for individuals who wish to assist another in the completion of a lease form pursuant to Rule (a) of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar. Rule (a) allows nonlawyers to assist in the completion of legal forms approved by this Court. Specifically, the rule allows nonlawyers to engage in limited oral communications to assist a person in the completion of blanks on a Supreme Court Approved Simplified Form. This rule creates an exception to the unlicensed practice of law and allows a nonlawyer to engage in activity that would otherwise be prohibited. The proposed Residential Lease Form is not meant to address all situations that may occur between a landlord and a tenant. It is not meant to be a "mandatory" lease form. Parties to the lease are always free to prepare their own lease to suit their specific circumstances or to use a form other than the Supreme Court Approved form. Only when a nonlawyer assists another in the completion of a lease form is the Supreme Court Approved Residential Lease Form required. As set forth in The Florida Bar's initial petition in this matter, the Bar requests that the proposed Residential Lease Form be approved for use under Rule (a) of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar. 4

5 Respectfully submitted, John F. Harkness, Jr. Executive Director The Florida Bar 650 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida (850) Fla. Bar No Certificate Of Service I HEREBY CERTIFY that a true and correct copy of the foregoing Notice of Filing of Proposed Simplified Form For Residential Lease- Single Family Home and Duplex has been furnished by U.S. Mail to Rafael Centurion, Chair, Standing Committee on Simplified Forms, Dept. of Highway Safety, 2515 W. Flagler Street, Miami, Florida ; Henry P. Trawick, Jr., Attorney at Law, 2033 Wood Street, Suite 218, Sarasota, Florida 34237; T. Rankin Terry, Jr., Attorney at Law, 2121 McGregor Boulevard, Ft. Myers, Florida ; Randy Schwartz, Vice President, Law & Policy and Marcia C. Tabak, Deputy Legal Counsel, Florida Association of Realtors, P. O. Box , Orlando, Florida ; Alice Vickers, Housing Workgroup of Florida Legal Services, Inc., 2121 Delta Boulevard, Tallahassee, Florida ; Michael H. Krul, Esq., Ruden, McClosky, Smith, Schuster & Russell, P.A., P.O. Box 1900, Fort Lauderdale, Florida this 1st day of April, Mary Ellen Bateman UPL Counsel 5