Background
Florida historically divided responsibility for its family-law forms. The Family Law Rules Committee maintained certain forms through the formal rulemaking process, while the Florida Supreme Court internally reviewed and maintained other “Supreme Court Approved Forms” with assistance from an advisory workgroup.
The Court concluded that this divided system had become less than ideal and that a unified, more flexible process would be more effective. Acting on its own motion, it amended the Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure and Rule Regulating the Florida Bar 10-2.2.
The Court’s Holding
The Court amended Rule 12.015 to incorporate and redesignate all Florida family-law forms as “Florida Supreme Court Approved Family Law Forms.” It authorized itself to create, amend, or abrogate those forms by order or opinion, with or without notice and outside the rulemaking process prescribed by Florida Rule of General Practice and Judicial Administration 2.140. The forms will be published and maintained on the Family Courts webpage of the Florida Courts website, and the designated advisory workgroup will provide recommendations concerning their creation, amendment, or abrogation.
The Court also revised references throughout the family-law rules to reflect the unified designation, updated provisions concerning the advisory workgroup’s justice liaison, and amended Bar Rule 10-2.2 to remove the obsolete reference to forms contained in the Florida Family Law Rules of Procedure. The amendments take effect October 1, 2026, at 12:01 a.m. Existing family-law forms remain valid regardless of their current titles, and references to former rules forms are to be construed as references to the corresponding Florida Supreme Court Approved Family Law Forms.
Key Takeaways
- All Florida family-law forms now share the designation “Florida Supreme Court Approved Family Law Forms.”
- The Florida Supreme Court may create, revise, or eliminate those forms by order or opinion outside the ordinary rulemaking process.
- The amendments become effective October 1, 2026, and interested persons may file comments through November 24, 2026.
Why It Matters
The amendments replace a divided forms-management system with a single designation and centralized process. That change should make it easier for attorneys, self-represented litigants, and court personnel to identify current official family-law forms and understand how they are maintained.
The Court also preserved continuity during the transition: forms remain usable despite outdated titles, and existing rule and form cross-references must be read as pointing to the corresponding newly designated forms. The directive concerns redesignation only and does not alter any separate determination about a particular form’s validity or use.