Supreme Court of Florida

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No. SC18-18

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IN RE: AMENDMENTS TO THE FLORIDA RULES OF TRAFFIC 

COURT. 

December 13, 2018

PER CURIAM.

On rehearing granted,

1 the Court amends Florida Rule of Traffic Court 6.455

(Amendments) to read as it did prior to the August 30, 2018, amendments to the 

rule in this case.

In In re Amendments to the Florida Rules of Traffic Court, 252 So. 3d 704 

(Fla. 2018), the Court adopted a number of regular-cycle rule amendments 

proposed by The Florida Bar’s Traffic Court Rules Committee (Rules Committee). 

Among the amendments, which become effective January 1, 2019, were the 

amendments to rule 6.455 at issue here. Id. at 711.

 

1. See In re Amends. to Fla. Rules of Traffic Court, No. SC18-18 (Fla. order

filed Dec. 13, 2018).
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On November 19, 2018, the Rules Committee filed an untimely motion for 

rehearing asking the Court to withdraw the amendments to rule 6.455 before their 

effective date. Because of the stated concerns that “allowing the amendments to 

take effect may create statewide havoc,”2 the Court accepted the motion for 

rehearing as timely filed.3

 

According to the motion for rehearing, based on discussions with judges and 

practitioners after the amendments to rule 6.455 were adopted, the Rules 

Committee determined that the rule amendments, along with the 2018 committee 

note to the rule, “improperly remove discretion from the judge/hearing officer and 

fail to use proper standards.”4

 The Rules Committee states that it cannot address 

the various concerns about the rule amendments and committee note before their

January 1, 2019, effective date.

After considering the serious concerns raised in the motion for rehearing, the 

Court amends rule 6.455 to read as it did prior to the August 30, 2018, 

amendments to the rule and deletes the 2018 committee note. The amendments are

set forth in the appendix to this opinion. New language is indicated by 

underscoring; deletions are indicated by struck-through type. The amendments 

 

2. See id. (motion filed Nov. 19, 2018).

3. See id. (order filed Nov. 20, 2018).

4. See id. (motion filed Nov. 19, 2018). 
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shall become effective on January 1, 2019, at 12:02 a.m. Because the amendments 

were not published for comment prior to their adoption, interested persons shall 

have seventy-five days from the date of this opinion in which to file comments 

with the Court.5

It is so ordered.

CANADY, C.J., and PARIENTE, LEWIS, QUINCE, POLSTON, LABARGA, 

and LAWSON, JJ., concur.

ANY MOTION FOR REHEARING OR CLARIFICATION MUST BE FILED 

WITHIN SEVEN DAYS. A RESPONSE TO THE MOTION FOR 

REHEARING/CLARIFICATION MAY BE FILED WITHIN FIVE DAYS 

AFTER THE FILING OF THE MOTION FOR REHEARING/CLARIFICATION. 

 

5. All comments must be filed with the Court on or before February 26, 

2019, with a certificate of service verifying that a copy has been served on the 

Committee Chair, Ms. Anne Marie Gennusa, 309 Kingsley Lake Dr., Suite 903, 

Saint Augustine, Florida 32092-3048, office@gennusalaw.com, and on the Bar 

Staff Liaison to the Committee, Ms. Heather Telfer, 651 E. Jefferson Street, 

Tallahassee, Florida 32399-2300, HTelfer@floridabar.org, as well as a separate 

request for oral argument if the person filing the comment wishes to participate in 

oral argument, which may be scheduled in this case. The Committee Chair has 

until March 19, 2019, to file a response to any comments filed with the Court. If 

filed by an attorney in good standing with The Florida Bar, the comment must be 

electronically filed via the Florida Courts E-Filing Portal (Portal) in accordance 

with In re Electronic Filing in the Supreme Court of Florida via the Florida 

Courts E-Filing Portal, Fla. Admin. Order No. AOSC13-7 (Feb. 18, 2013). If 

filed by a nonlawyer or a lawyer not licensed to practice in Florida, the comment 

may be, but is not required to be, filed via the Portal. Comments filed via the 

Portal must be submitted in Microsoft Word 97 or higher. See In re Electronic 

Filing in the Florida Supreme Court, Fla. Admin. Order No. AOSC17-27 (May 9, 

2017). Any person unable to submit a comment electronically must mail or handdeliver the originally signed comment to the Florida Supreme Court, Office of the 

Clerk, 500 South Duval Street, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1927; no additional 

copies are required or will be accepted.
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THE FILING OF A MOTION FOR REHEARING SHALL NOT ALTER THE 

EFFECTIVE DATE OF THESE AMENDMENTS.

Original Proceeding – Florida Rules of Traffic Court

Anne Marie Gennusa, Chair, St. Augustine, Florida, Sergio Cruz, Past Chair,

Traffic Court Rules Committee, Orlando, Florida; and Joshua E. Doyle, Executive 

Director, and Heather Savage Telfer, Staff Liaison, The Florida Bar, Tallahassee, 

Florida,

for Petitioner

Carlos J. Martinez, Public Defender, and John Eddy Morrison, Assistant Public 

Defender, Eleventh Judicial Circuit, Miami, Florida; and Steven D. Rubin, Boca 

Raton, Florida, and Sara Blumberg, Delray Beach, Florida,

Responding with Comments
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APPENDIX

RULE 6.455. AMENDMENTS

(a) Non-Substantive Amendments. The charging document may be 

amended at any time by the issuing officer in open court at the time of a scheduled 

hearing before it commences, subject to the approval of the official. The official 

shall grant a continuance if the amendment requires one in the interests of

justice.prior to the commencement of the hearing to correct informalities or 

irregularities. Such amendment will be permitted after commencement of the 

hearing only with approval of the official. No case shallwill be dismissed by reason 

of any informality or irregularity in the charging instrumentdocument.

(b) Substantive Amendments. Absent good cause shown, an amendment 

that may result in an increased statutory penalty may be made only by serving 

notice of the amendment on the defendant in conformity with the requirements of 

Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.516 and by filing a certification of 

service at least 5 days prior to a scheduled hearing. 

(c) Continuances. The official must grant a hearing continuance when 

the charging document is amended and the interests of justice so require.

Committee Notes

1988 Amendment. [No change]

2018 Amendment. Examples of “informalities or irregularities” include, but 

are not limited to, statutory reference errors; illegibility of the charging document; 

or other scrivener or inadvertent errors contained within the charging document.