PBCBA BAR BULLETINS 0817 PB Bar Bully Sept PRINT - Page 7

Local Rule 4 Has Lawyers Talking
By Judge Peter Blanc, Amy Borman,
Greg Coleman & Adam Rabin*
Local Rule 4, which has been in
place for over 25 years, was originally
established to both encourage and require
lawyers to make a good faith effort
to resolve or narrow the issues raised
in motions before the motions were
scheduled for uniform motion calendar
hearings. The Rule was amended for the
first time in 2015 to require attorneys
(1) to make a good faith effort to speak
to each other by telephone or in person,
before noticing a hearing for uniform
motion calendar, where an exchange
of emails between attorneys did not
successfully resolve the motion, and
(2) to require attorneys to certify in an
unmodifiable form of certification the
attorney’s good faith effort to confer with
opposing counsel. The Rule, however, has
now been amended again in 2017 to clarify
and expand on certain issues.
The new amendment to the Rule
emphasizes the requirement that attorneys
make a good faith effort to speak to
each other by telephone or in person
by including language in the form of
certification that now requires the attorney
to acknowledge that he or she has made
such an effort. The new amendment
requires not only the scheduling attorney
to operate in good faith in an effort to
speak to opposing counsel, but also the
non-scheduling attorney has that same
obligation, which would most commonly
be met by timely returning a phone call
when the non-scheduling attorney is
unavailable to speak to the scheduling
attorney on his/her first effort to do so.
The new amendment further requires an
attorney who is covering the hearing for
another attorney to be familiar with the
details of an unsuccessful effort to speak
with each other so that the Court can
determine that both parties have acted in
good faith.
Importantly, with the Rule’s
expansion, it now extends beyond uniform
motion calendar to specially set hearings
in the Circuit Court. In addition, the Rule
now applies to all hearings in the County
Court. That means for those divisions
that allow online scheduling of specially
set hearings, the online order setting the
hearing cannot be completed and issued
until the scheduling attorney checks a
box on the screen confirming specific
compliance with the Rule. For those
hearings scheduled via a notice of hearing,
it will be the obligation of the scheduling
attorney to include the appropriate
unmodifiable certification language
required by the Rule within the notice,
directly above the attorney signature block.
Finally, the new amendment clarifies
that compliance with the Rule is not
required when an attorney is dealing with
a pro se party. The form of certification,
likewise, has been modified to allow an
attorney to check a box that indicates non-
compliance on this basis.
By adopting the new amendment
to the Rule, the Court does not intend
to discourage attorneys’ use of e-mail
as a frequent and efficient form
of communication, including the
circumstances that may result in the
resolution of a pending motion without a
further conferral. However, all attorneys
should be in the habit of talking to each
other about pending motions that are not
otherwise resolved before they are set for
hearing. If nothing else, each side will
have a better understanding of the basis
for disagreement which should make the
arguments to the Court more concise and
more effective.
In sum, you should get in the habit
of talking to opposing counsel. It will
save you time, save your clients money,
eliminate unnecessary hearings, reduce
the wait time for those hearings that
cannot otherwise be resolved, make you
look like a problem solver, and improve
your advocacy before the Court, all
while demonstrating professionalism and
civility. Moreover, you will help play your
part in continuing to make Palm Beach
County the best place in the State of
Florida in which to practice law.
*Judge Peter Blanc is a current
Circuit Court Judge and former Chief
Judge of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit.
Amy Borman is the current General
Counsel for the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit.
Greg Coleman is a partner with
Critton Luttier & Coleman, LLP and a
former President of The Florida Bar.
Adam Rabin is a partner with
McCabe Rabin, P.A. and a current
member of The Florida Bar Board of
Governors.
Get Your Foursome Now!
Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County’s
17th Annual
Cup of Justice Golf Classic
Monday, October 9, 2017 | 1:00pm Shotgun Start
 Columbus Day 
Bear Lakes Country Club - Lakes Course
For More Information
Call Harreen @ 561.822.9763
September 2017
Benefiting
Children’s Advocacy
Golfers enjoy lunch, golf, dinner,
goody bags, raffles, contests, trophies,
prizes and much more!!!
Page 7