The Continuing Story of Certiorari

The word certiorari may be hard to pronounce, but it’s an important part of Florida’s legal system. It’s a way for higher courts to review the decisions of lower courts. In the past, the Florida Supreme Court had the power to review cases using certiorari, but that changed in 1980. Now, it’s mainly used in the circuit and district courts. Florida law on certiorari is still changing and evolving. In Florida, parties can appeal court decisions as a matter of right after a trial. They can also ask for a review of certain nonfinal orders through a process called certiorari. Certiorari is used as a safety net for cases that might not fit into the regular appeals process. To get a certiorari, the person asking for it has to show that the decision they’re challenging causes serious harm and goes against the law in a significant way. The court doesn’t have to give out a certiorari, even if all the requirements are met. The way certiorari petitions are handled by the courts is always changing. The law on whether certiorari can be used to challenge orders requiring the disclosure of irrelevant financial information is evolving. In the case of Martin-Johnson v. Savage, the Florida Supreme Court ruled that the disclosure of nonprivileged financial information does not necessarily constitute irreparable harm. However, other cases have shown that there may be situations where the disclosure of irrelevant financial information could be considered irreparable harm. Overall, the law on this issue is still developing. The Fourth District in Florida originally had a strict view on using the legal remedy of certiorari to address financial disclosures in divorce cases. However, they later changed their stance and recognized that disclosing irrelevant financial information can cause irreparable harm, especially if it’s intended to be shared with the public. The Fifth District also agrees that financial information is private unless there is a good reason to disclose it. However, the courts are less settled on overbroad and burdensome discovery orders; some require the party to show that the burdens are extraordinary, while others require a showing of irreparable harm. There is still some disagreement among the districts on this issue, and it may need to be resolved by the Supreme Court. In some cases, courts have allowed appeals to review orders that deny a request for evidence in a lawsuit. This is rare, because usually these orders can be fixed in a regular appeal. Sometimes, courts will allow an appeal if the order denying the evidence would hurt the case so much that it couldn’t be fixed later on. The courts also look at whether the order causes harm that can’t be fixed later before deciding if they will review it. In simple terms, certiorari opinions are released by district courts to address errors in court orders, even if they don’t grant relief. This helps parties and the trial court as the case continues. Certiorari review exists to correct mistakes made by trial courts. The law on certiorari in Florida changes as the judiciary’s views on legal interests change. This is a list of court cases in Florida. The cases involve different legal issues and were heard by different district courts of appeal. The cases cover a range of topics, from disputes between individuals to business matters. The courts made various rulings, and some judges had different opinions about the cases. These are references to court cases in Florida. They have different names and numbers, but they all involve legal disputes. Some of the cases have to do with businesses, while others involve individuals. The judges in these cases have made different decisions, and some of them have disagreed with each other. The cases also mention things like discovery and class certification.

Source: https://www.floridabar.org/the-florida-bar-journal/the-continuing-story-of-certiorari/