The Ins and Outs of Pass-through Jurisdiction

This part of the constitution allows the Supreme Court to quickly review a trial court’s decision when a case is certified by the district court of appeal. This means that the case “passes through” the district court without a decision and goes directly to the Supreme Court for review. Rule 9.125 of the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure explains how a case can be sent from a district court to the Supreme Court for immediate review. A party can suggest certification, but the Supreme Court doesn’t have to accept it. If it does, the district court sends the case records to the Supreme Court. The process is fairly simple, but it’s hard to know which cases should be sent for immediate review. The Supreme Court has told lower courts not to use a certain rule to avoid difficult cases, but they haven’t given clear guidelines on what types of cases they will hear. One district court of appeal decides which cases they will send to the Supreme Court for review. They consider whether the order or judgment is appealable, if the issues are of great public importance, and if circumstances require the Supreme Court to resolve the issues immediately. The Supreme Court has the discretion to decline to review a case, especially if it is still being actively litigated in the trial court. In one case, the Supreme Court declined to review a temporary injunction because the underlying litigation had been ongoing for years and could be handled by the district court of appeal. Justice Pariente explained that it would be unwise for the Supreme Court to review non-final orders in cases that are still being actively litigated, and that all issues should be finally litigated in the trial court before being reviewed by the appellate court. Justice Pariente believed that the lower court was in just as good a position as the Supreme Court to handle certain legal orders and emergencies. She thought that the Supreme Court would make a better decision after the lower court had reviewed the case. However, the Supreme Court later decided to review a temporary order from the lower court. This order dealt with whether the Department of State could include a statement about the financial impact of a proposed amendment to the Florida Constitution on the ballot. The lower court had said that this requirement was unconstitutional. The First District court decided that the injunction in the Harris case was important enough to be reviewed by the Supreme Court right away. They felt that the issues raised were very important to the public and needed to be resolved quickly because of upcoming elections. They also pointed out that the trial court had finished its work on the case and there probably wouldn’t be more litigation, unlike in a previous case called Haire. In some situations, the Supreme Court of Florida may take on a case for immediate review if it involves important legal issues and there’s not much time to resolve them before an election. Cases involving the death penalty or other serious issues are also likely to be accepted. However, it’s hard to predict which other cases the Supreme Court might take on. Using this special review process should be rare, because it bypasses the usual way that cases are reviewed. Before using this process, the party involved should think carefully about whether the case is really important enough to affect justice statewide. Fla. R. App. P. 9.125 is a rule that deals with how the Florida Supreme Court can review trial court orders or judgments that need immediate resolution. It sets out the process for the district court to certify cases for review and the procedures for the Supreme Court to consider them. It also includes examples of cases where this process has been used. Tracy S. Carlin is a lawyer who specializes in handling appeals. She is recognized by The Florida Bar for her expertise in appellate practice. This column is written on behalf of the Appellate Practice Section, which is led by Susan W. Fox, and edited by Tracy R. Gunn, Kristen A. Norse, and Heather M. Lammers. The column is about upholding principles of duty and service to the public, improving the justice system, and advancing the study of law.

Source: https://www.floridabar.org/the-florida-bar-journal/the-ins-and-outs-of-pass-through-jurisdiction/