RULE 2.516. SERVICE OF PLEADINGS AND DOCUMENTS

(a) Service; When Required. Unless the court otherwise
orders, or a statute or supreme court administrative order specifies
a different means of service, every pleading subsequent to the initial
pleading and every other document filed in any court proceeding,
except applications for witness subpoenas and documents served
by formal notice or required to be served in the manner provided for
service of formal notice, must be served in accordance with this rule
on each party. No service need be made on parties against whom a
default has been entered, except that pleadings asserting new or
additional claims against them must be served in the manner
provided for service of summons.

(b) Service; How Made. When service is required or
permitted to be made upon a party represented by an attorney,
service must be made upon the attorney unless service upon the
party is ordered by the court.
(1) Service by Electronic Mail (“e-mail”). All documents
required or permitted to be served on another party must be served
by e-mail, unless the parties otherwise stipulate or this rule
otherwise provides. A filer of an electronic document has complied
with this subdivision if the Florida Courts e-filing Portal (“Portal”) or
other authorized electronic filing system with a supreme court
approved electronic service system (“e-Service system”) served the
document by e-mail or provided a link by e-mail to the document on
a website maintained by a clerk (“e-Service”). The filer of an
electronic document must verify that the Portal or other e-Service
system uses the names and e-mail addresses provided by the
parties pursuant to subdivision (b)(1)(A).

(A) Service on Attorneys. Unless excused pursuant
to subdivision (b)(1)(B), upon appearing in a proceeding, an attorney
must designate a primary e-mail address and may designate no
more than two secondary e-mail addresses and is responsible for
the accuracy of and changes to that attorney’s own e-mail
addresses maintained by the Portal or other e-Service system.
Thereafter, service must be directed to all designated e-mail
addresses in that proceeding. Every document filed or served by an
attorney thereafter must include the primary e-mail address of that
attorney and any secondary e-mail addresses. If an attorney does
not designate any e-mail address for service, documents may be
served on that attorney at the e-mail address on record with The
Florida Bar.

(B) Exception to E-mail Service on Attorneys.
Upon motion by an attorney demonstrating that the attorney has no
e-mail account and lacks access to the Internet at the attorney’s
office, the court may excuse the attorney from the requirements of
e-mail service. Service on and by an attorney excused by the court
from e-mail service must be by the means provided in subdivision
(b)(2).

(C) Service on and by Parties Not Represented by
an Attorney. Unless excused pursuant to subdivision (b)(1)(D), any
party not represented by an attorney must serve a designation of a
primary e-mail address and also may designate no more than two
secondary e-mail addresses to which service must be directed in
that proceeding by the means provided in subdivision (b)(1) of this
rule.

(D) Exceptions to E-mail Service on and by Parties
Not Represented by an Attorney.

(i) A party who is in custody and who is not
represented by an attorney is excused from the requirements of e-
mail service.

(ii) The clerk of court must excuse a party who
is not represented by an attorney from the requirements of e-mail
service if the party declares on Florida Rule of General Practice and
Judicial Administration Form 2.601, under penalties of perjury,
that the party does not have an e-mail account or does not have
regular access to the Internet. The clerks of court shall make this
form available to the public at their offices and on their websites.

If a party not represented by an attorney is excused from e-mail
service, service on and by that party must be by the means
provided in subdivision (b)(2).

(E) Time of Service. Service by e-mail is complete
on the date it is sent.

(i) If, however, the e-mail is sent by the
Portal or other e-Service system, service is complete on the date the
served document is electronically filed.

(ii) If the person required to serve a
document learns that the e-mail was not received by an intended
recipient, the person must immediately resend the document to
that intended recipient by e-mail, or by a means authorized by
subdivision (b)(2) of this rule.

(F) Format of E-mail for Service. Service of a
document by e-mail is made by an e-mail sent to all addresses
designated by the attorney or party not represented by an attorney
with either (a) a copy of the document in PDF format attached or (b)
a link to the document on a website maintained by a clerk.

(i) All documents served by e-mail must be
sent by an e-mail message containing a subject line beginning with
the words “SERVICE OF COURT DOCUMENT” in all capital letters,
followed by the case number and case style of the proceeding in
which the documents are being served.

(ii) The body of the e-mail must identify the
court in which the proceeding is pending, the case number, the
name of the initial party on each side, the title of each document
served with that e-mail, and the name and telephone number of the
person required to serve the document.

(iii) Any document served by e-mail may be
signed by any of the “/s/,” “/s,” or “s/” formats.

(iv) Any e-mail which, together with its
attached documents, exceeds the appropriate size limitations
specified in the Florida Supreme Court Standards for Electronic
Access to the Court, must be divided and sent as separate e-mails,
no one of which may exceed the appropriate size limitations
specified in the Florida Supreme Court Standards for Electronic
Access to the Court and each of which must be sequentially
numbered in the subject line.

(2) Service by Other Means. In addition to, and not in
lieu of, service by e-mail, service may also be made upon attorneys
and parties not represented by an attorney by any of the means
specified in this subdivision. If a document is served by more than
one method of service, the computation of time for any response to
the served document must be based on the method of service that
provides the shortest response time. Service on and by all parties
who are not represented by an attorney and who are excused from
e-mail service, and on and by all attorneys excused from e-mail
service, must be made by delivering a copy of the document or by
mailing it to the party or attorney at their last known address or, if
no address is known, by noting the non-service in the certificate of
service, and stating in the certificate of service that a copy of the
served document may be obtained, on request, from the clerk of the
court or from the party serving the document. Service by mail is
complete upon mailing. Delivery of a copy within this rule is
complete upon:

(A) handing it to the attorney or to the party,

(B) leaving it at the attorney’s or party’s office with
a clerk or other person in charge thereof,

(C) if there is no one in charge, leaving it in a
conspicuous place therein,

(D) if the office is closed or the person to be served
has no office, leaving it at the person’s usual place of abode with
some person of his or her family above 15 years of age and
informing such person of the contents, or

(E) transmitting it by facsimile to the attorney’s or
party’s office with a cover sheet containing the sender’s name, firm,
address, telephone number, and facsimile number, and the number
of pages transmitted. When service is made by facsimile, a copy
must also be served by any other method permitted by this rule.
Facsimile service occurs when transmission is complete.

(F) Service by delivery is deemed complete on the
date of delivery.

(c) Service; Numerous Defendants. In actions when the
parties are unusually numerous, the court may regulate the service
contemplated by these rules on motion or on its own initiative in
such manner as may be found to be just and reasonable.

(d) Filing. All documents must be filed with the court either
before service or immediately thereafter, unless otherwise provided
for by general law or other rules. If the original of any bond or other
document required to be an original is not placed in the court file or
deposited with the clerk, a certified copy must be so placed by the
clerk.

(e) Filing Defined. The filing of documents with the court as
required by these rules must be made by filing them with the clerk
in accordance with rule 2.525, except that the judge may permit
documents to be filed with the judge, in which event the judge must
note the filing date before him or her on the documents and
transmit them to the clerk. The date of filing is that shown on the
face of the document by the judge’s notation or the clerk’s time
stamp, whichever is earlier.

(f) Certificate of Service. When any attorney certifies in
substance:

“I certify that the foregoing document has been furnished to
(here insert name or names, addresses used for service, and mailing
addresses) by (e-mail) (delivery) (mail) (fax) on ..... (date) …..



Attorney”

the certificate is taken as prima facie proof of such service in
compliance with this rule.

(g) Service by Clerk. When the clerk is required to serve
notices and other documents, the clerk may do so by e-mail as
provided in subdivision (b)(1) or by any other method permitted
under subdivision (b)(2). Service by a clerk is not required to be by
e-mail.

(h) Service of Orders.

(1) A copy of all orders or judgments must be
transmitted by the court or under its direction to all parties at the
time of entry of the order or judgment. No service need be made on
parties against whom a default has been entered except orders
setting an action for trial and final judgments that must be
prepared and served as provided in subdivision (h)(2). The court
may require that orders or judgments be prepared by a party, may
require the party to furnish the court with stamped, addressed
envelopes for service of the order or judgment, and may require that
proposed orders and judgments be furnished to all parties before
entry by the court of the order or judgment. The court may serve
any order or judgment by e-mail to all attorneys and parties not
represented by an attorney who have not been excused from e-mail
service.

(2) When a final judgment is entered against a party in
default, the court must mail a conformed copy of it to the party. The
party in whose favor the judgment is entered must furnish the court
with a copy of the judgment, unless it is prepared by the court, with
the address of the party to be served. If the address is unknown,
the copy need not be furnished.

(3) This subdivision is directory and a failure to comply
with it does not affect the order or judgment, its finality, or any
proceedings arising in the action.