2023 Florida Statutes › Title X - Public Officers, Employees, and Records › Chapter 119 - Public Records › 119.0714 - Court Files; Court Records; Official Records.

119.0714 Court files; court records; official records.—
(1) COURT FILES.—Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to exempt from s. 119.07(1) a public record that was made a part of a court file and that is not specifically closed by order of court, except:
(a) A public record that was prepared by an agency attorney or prepared at the attorney’s express direction as provided in s. 119.071(1)(d).
(b) Data processing software as provided in s. 119.071(1)(f).
(c) Any information revealing surveillance techniques or procedures or personnel as provided in s. 119.071(2)(d).
(d) Any comprehensive inventory of state and local law enforcement resources, and any comprehensive policies or plans compiled by a criminal justice agency, as provided in s. 119.071(2)(d).
(e) Any information revealing the substance of a confession of a person arrested as provided in s. 119.071(2)(e).
(f) Any information revealing the identity of a confidential informant or confidential source as provided in s. 119.071(2)(f).
(g) Any information revealing undercover personnel of any criminal justice agency as provided in s. 119.071(4)(c).
(h) Criminal intelligence information or criminal investigative information that is confidential and exempt as provided in s. 119.071(2)(h) or (m).
(i) Social security numbers as provided in s. 119.071(5)(a).
(j) Bank account numbers and debit, charge, and credit card numbers as provided in s. 119.071(5)(b).
(k)1. A petition, and the contents thereof, for an injunction for protection against domestic violence, repeat violence, dating violence, sexual violence, stalking, or cyberstalking that is dismissed without a hearing, dismissed at an ex parte hearing due to failure to state a claim or lack of jurisdiction, or dismissed for any reason having to do with the sufficiency of the petition itself without an injunction being issued on or after July 1, 2017, is exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution.
2. A petition, and the contents thereof, for an injunction for protection against domestic violence, repeat violence, dating violence, sexual violence, stalking, or cyberstalking that is dismissed without a hearing, dismissed at an ex parte hearing due to failure to state a claim or lack of jurisdiction, or dismissed for any reason having to do with the sufficiency of the petition itself without an injunction being issued before July 1, 2017, is exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution only upon request by an individual named in the petition as a respondent. The request must be in the form of a signed, legibly written request specifying the case name, case number, document heading, and page number. The request must be delivered by mail, facsimile, or electronic transmission or in person to the clerk of the court. A fee may not be charged for such request.
3. Any information that can be used to identify a petitioner or respondent in a petition for an injunction against domestic violence, repeat violence, dating violence, sexual violence, stalking, or cyberstalking, and any affidavits, notice of hearing, and temporary injunction, is confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution until the respondent has been personally served with a copy of the petition for injunction, affidavits, notice of hearing, and temporary injunction.
(l) Personal identifying information and annuity contract numbers of a payee of a structured settlement as defined in s. 626.99296(2) and the names of family members, dependents, and beneficiaries of such payee contained within a court file relating to a proceeding for the approval of the transfer of structured settlement payment rights under s. 626.99296. Such information shall remain exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution during the pendency of the transfer proceeding and for 6 months after the final court order approving, or not approving, the transferee’s application. This paragraph is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2027, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by the Legislature.
(2) COURT RECORDS.—
(a) Until January 1, 2012, if a social security number or a bank account, debit, charge, or credit card number is included in a court file, such number may be included as part of the court record available for public inspection and copying unless redaction is requested by the holder of such number or by the holder’s attorney or legal guardian.
(b) A request for redaction must be a signed, legibly written request specifying the case name, case number, document heading, and page number. The request must be delivered by mail, facsimile, electronic transmission, or in person to the clerk of the court. The clerk of the court does not have a duty to inquire beyond the written request to verify the identity of a person requesting redaction.
(c) A fee may not be charged for the redaction of a social security number or a bank account, debit, charge, or credit card number pursuant to such request.
(d) The clerk of the court has no liability for the inadvertent release of social security numbers, or bank account, debit, charge, or credit card numbers, unknown to the clerk of the court in court records filed on or before January 1, 2012.
(e)1. The clerk of the court must keep social security numbers confidential and exempt as provided for in s. 119.071(5)(a), and bank account, debit, charge, and credit card numbers exempt as provided for in s. 119.071(5)(b), without any person having to request redaction.
2. Section 119.071(5)(a)7. and 8. does not apply to the clerks of the court with respect to court records.
(f) A request for maintenance of a public records exemption in s. 119.071(4)(d)2. made pursuant to s. 119.071(4)(d)3. must specify the document type, name, identification number, and page number of the court record that contains the exempt information.
(g) The clerk of the court is not liable for the release of information that is required by the Florida Rules of Judicial Administration to be identified by the filer as confidential if the filer fails to make the required identification of the confidential information to the clerk of the court.
(3) OFFICIAL RECORDS.—A person who prepares or files a record for recording in the official records as provided in chapter 28 may not include in that record a social security number or a bank account, debit, charge, or credit card number unless otherwise expressly required by law.
(a) If a social security number or a bank account, debit, charge, or credit card number is included in an official record, such number may be made available as part of the official records available for public inspection and copying unless redaction is requested by the holder of such number or by the holder’s attorney or legal guardian.
1. If such record is in electronic format, on January 1, 2011, and thereafter, the county recorder must use his or her best effort, as provided in paragraph (d), to keep social security numbers confidential and exempt as provided for in s. 119.071(5)(a), and to keep complete bank account, debit, charge, and credit card numbers exempt as provided for in s. 119.071(5)(b), without any person having to request redaction.
2. Section 119.071(5)(a)7. and 8. does not apply to the county recorder with respect to official records.
(b) The holder of a social security number or a bank account, debit, charge, or credit card number, or the holder’s attorney or legal guardian, may request that a county recorder redact from an image or copy of an official record placed on a county recorder’s publicly available Internet website or on a publicly available Internet website used by a county recorder to display public records, or otherwise made electronically available to the public, his or her social security number or bank account, debit, charge, or credit card number contained in that official record.
1. A request for redaction must be a signed, legibly written request and must be delivered by mail, facsimile, electronic transmission, or in person to the county recorder. The request must specify the identification page number of the record that contains the number to be redacted.
2. The county recorder does not have a duty to inquire beyond the written request to verify the identity of a person requesting redaction.
3. A fee may not be charged for redacting a social security number or a bank account, debit, charge, or credit card number.
(c) A county recorder shall immediately and conspicuously post signs throughout his or her offices for public viewing, and shall immediately and conspicuously post on any Internet website or remote electronic site made available by the county recorder and used for the ordering or display of official records or images or copies of official records, a notice stating, in substantially similar form, the following:
1. On or after October 1, 2002, any person preparing or filing a record for recordation in the official records may not include a social security number or a bank account, debit, charge, or credit card number in such document unless required by law.
2. Any person has a right to request a county recorder to remove from an image or copy of an official record placed on a county recorder’s publicly available Internet website or on a publicly available Internet website used by a county recorder to display public records, or otherwise made electronically available to the general public, any social security number contained in an official record. Such request must be made in writing and delivered by mail, facsimile, or electronic transmission, or delivered in person, to the county recorder. The request must specify the identification page number that contains the social security number to be redacted. A fee may not be charged for the redaction of a social security number pursuant to such a request.
(d) If the county recorder accepts or stores official records in an electronic format, the county recorder must use his or her best efforts to redact all social security numbers and bank account, debit, charge, or credit card numbers from electronic copies of the official record. The use of an automated program for redaction is deemed to be the best effort in performing the redaction and is deemed in compliance with the requirements of this subsection.
(e) The county recorder is not liable for the inadvertent release of social security numbers, or bank account, debit, charge, or credit card numbers, filed with the county recorder.
(f) A request for maintenance of a public records exemption in s. 119.071(4)(d)2. made pursuant to s. 119.071(4)(d)3. must specify the document type, name, identification number, and page number of the official record that contains the exempt information.
History.—s. 2, ch. 79-187; s. 1, ch. 83-286; s. 5, ch. 84-298; s. 1, ch. 85-86; s. 1, ch. 86-109; s. 2, ch. 88-188; s. 26, ch. 90-344; s. 36, ch. 95-398; s. 7, ch. 2004-335; s. 2, ch. 2005-251; s. 2, ch. 2007-251; s. 5, ch. 2008-234; s. 2, ch. 2009-237; s. 23, ch. 2010-162; s. 4, ch. 2011-83; s. 7, ch. 2013-109; s. 3, ch. 2017-11; s. 1, ch. 2017-14; s. 1, ch. 2017-133; s. 1, ch. 2019-39; s. 1, ch. 2022-125.
Note.—Subsection (1) former s. 119.07(6).