Opinion ID: 1704799
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: adherence to strickland

Text: Just as the United States Supreme Court continues to apply the traditional Strickland analysis to claims of actual ineffective assistance of counsel, we, too, use Strickland as the standard for evaluating such claims. See Cottle v. State, 733 So.2d 963, 965 (Fla.1999) (describing Strickland as the primary guide for ineffective assistance claims). As we recently explained in Carratelli v. State, 961 So.2d 312 (Fla. 2007), A defendant's claim that his counsel offered ineffective assistance at trial, for whatever reason, must be analyzed under the standard the Supreme Court enunciated in Strickland.  Carratelli, 961 So.2d at 320. In that case, we addressed the standard that courts should apply in deciding whether counsel's failure to preserve a challenge to a potential juror constitutes ineffective assistance of counsel. Id. at 315. We examined and compared the standards for demonstrating reversible error on appeal and demonstrating prejudice in the postconviction context. Id. at 317-20. We noted that while the standard for obtaining a reversal upon the erroneous denial of a cause challenge was relatively lenient (a defendant need only show that an objectionable juror sat on the jury), the standard for prejudice in postconviction claims was more restrictive. Id. at 320. We found that applying the standard used on direct appeal in the postconviction context disregarded the fundamental differences between review on appeal and review on postconviction. See id. at 324. Hence, we concluded that a postconviction claim must be evaluated under the more rigorous standard of Strickland. See Carratelli, 961 So.2d at 324. Similarly, we reject Thompson's claim that a defendant is automatically entitled to postconviction relief simply by demonstrating that the denial of a motion for disqualification, if one had been properly filed by counsel, would have been reversed on appeal. Under Florida law, the legal sufficiency of a motion to disqualify depends on whether the facts alleged would place a reasonably prudent person in fear of not receiving a fair and impartial trial. Livingston v. State, 441 So.2d 1083, 1087 (Fla.1983). The legal sufficiency of a motion is purely a question of law. MacKenzie v. Super Kids Bargain Store, Inc., 565 So.2d 1332, 1335 (Fla. 1990). When a trial court fails to act in accord with the law governing motions to disqualify, an appellate court will vacate a trial court judgment that flows from the error. See Fuster-Escalona v. Wisotsky, 781 So.2d 1063, 1065 (Fla.2000). In contrast to this relatively low threshold for obtaining relief on appeal, a defendant claiming ineffective assistance of trial counsel in postconviction proceedings may only obtain relief by showing that counsel's deficient performance actually prejudiced the defense. See Strickland, 466 U.S. at 687, 104 S.Ct. 2052. Thus, an error that may justify reversal on direct appeal will not necessarily support a collateral attack on a final judgment. Witt v. State, 387 So.2d 922, 925 (Fla.1980) (quoting United States v. Addonizio, 442 U.S. 178, 184 & n. 11, 99 S.Ct. 2235, 60 L.Ed.2d 805 (1979)). As in Carratelli, we hold that the Strickland standards for deficiency and prejudice apply to a postconviction claim predicated upon defense counsel's failure to file a timely motion to disqualify a trial judge.