The Florida Senate

655.89  Legal holidays; business days; business and transactions.--

(1)  In this section, the term:

(a)  "Business day" means that part of any day on which an institution is open to the public for carrying on substantially all its banking functions, trust functions, or transactions. A financial institution is deemed to be "closed" on any day, or any part of a day, when it is not open to the public for carrying on substantially all its banking functions, trust functions, and transactions.

(b)  "Legal holiday" means a statutory holiday or a permissive holiday. A "statutory holiday" is any day which, by the laws of this state or the United States, is designated or recognized as a legal or public holiday. A "permissive holiday" is any one day, other than a statutory holiday, in each week on which an institution is customarily closed.

(c)  "Transaction" means any one or more of the functions and elements of the business of an institution and includes, but is not limited to, the receipt or giving of any notice; the receipt or acceptance of deposits; the transmission, acceptance, payment, dishonor, and giving notice of dishonor of items; and its obligations and duties with respect to all thereof; and the word "transact" means to take action or nonaction the result of which is a transaction.

(2)  Any institution may, but unless otherwise required by law is not required to, be closed or be open only for limited transactions and functions or purposes on any legal holiday. When an institution is closed as provided or permitted by law, it is not under any obligation or duty to conduct any of its business or effectuate any transaction. An institution is open only for limited transactions and functions or purposes when one or more, but fewer than all, of its branches, separate or other offices, departments, sections, or other functional elements of its business, which customarily are open to the public for carrying on the banking or trust business and transactions, are not open to the public for such purposes. When, as provided or permitted by law, an institution is open only for limited transactions and functions or purposes, it is not under any obligation or duty to conduct or transact, at or from such of its branches, separate or other offices, departments, sections, or other functional elements of its business which are not open to the public for such purposes, any of the business or transactions customarily conducted or transacted therefrom or thereat.

(3)  When any statutory holiday occurs on a Sunday or on a day when an institution customarily is closed, such institution may, but unless otherwise required by law is not required to, elect to be closed or to be open only for limited transactions and functions or purposes on the next preceding or the next following day which, except for the provisions of this section, would not be a legal holiday, and such day so elected is, with respect to such institution, a legal holiday as to all transactions and for all purposes and laws.

(4)  Any legal holiday on which an institution is closed or is open only for limited transactions and functions or purposes may, if the institution elects, be deemed and treated with respect to all transactions and for all purposes and laws, including, but not limited to, the Uniform Commercial Code, as not a business day; and any notice, item, or deposit of money received on any such day may be treated as being received at the opening of the next business day, and any transaction or other business which would or should have occurred or been transacted on any such legal holiday may be treated as postponed by law to the next business day.

(5)  An institution may establish the regular and customary hours of each day during which each of its branches, separate or other offices, departments, sections, or functional elements of its business will be operated for the transaction of the business customarily conducted or transacted at or from each such branch, office, department, section, or functional element of business, and the regular and customary hours during which each thereof will be open to the public for the conduct of such business and transactions, and it is not necessary that the same hours be established for all thereof or that the hours so established for any thereof be the same on every day.

(6)  With prior written approval of the department, an institution may designate another day or other days on which the institution may be closed and which day or days will not be considered business days.

(7)  An institution may, but unless otherwise required by law is not under or subject to any obligation or duty to, effectuate any transaction or transact any business on any legal holiday; at any time before the beginning, or after the close, of its business day; or outside the regular and customary hours established as provided in subsection (5) or subsection (6) of any separate or other office or branch or any department, section, or functional element of business. If the institution elects to do so, it has all the rights provided by law with respect to such transaction or business, and, at its election, any such transactions or business shall be treated as having occurred or as having been transacted on that day or on its next following business day, except that any transaction or business occurring before the beginning of its regular business day shall be treated as occurring at the beginning of that business day.

(8)  No liability or loss of rights of any kind on the part of any institution accrues or results by reason of any institution being closed or open only for limited functions or purposes, or by reason of any branch, separate or other office, department, section, or functional element of business being operated or open for the transaction of business only during the regular and customary hours established by the institution, as provided in this section.

History.--s. 55, ch. 92-303.