| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to judicial opinions; providing a short |
| 3 | title; creating s. 25.079, F.S.; providing legislative |
| 4 | intent; requiring that an opinion of the Supreme Court or |
| 5 | a district court of appeal that has any of certain |
| 6 | specified holdings be provided to specified offices in the |
| 7 | other branches of government; requiring offices receiving |
| 8 | such an opinion to acknowledge receipt within a specified |
| 9 | period; allowing the acknowledgment to include a statement |
| 10 | of any action to be taken in response; providing an |
| 11 | effective date. |
| 12 |
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| 13 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 14 |
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| 15 | Section 1. This act may be cited as the "Judicial Opinion |
| 16 | Communications Act." |
| 17 | Section 2. Section 25.079, Florida Statutes, is created to |
| 18 | read: |
| 19 | 25.079 Opinions with certain holdings; communication to |
| 20 | other branches.- |
| 21 | (1) This section is specifically intended to create a |
| 22 | communication process between the three branches of government |
| 23 | with regard to judicial opinions and may not be construed to |
| 24 | provide the legislative or executive branches with any powers |
| 25 | regarding the Supreme Court or appellate courts that are not |
| 26 | granted under the State Constitution. |
| 27 | (2) A court opinion rendered by the Florida Supreme Court |
| 28 | or any of the district courts of appeal which: |
| 29 | (a) Declares a Florida statute, regulation, or government |
| 30 | practice unconstitutional; |
| 31 | (b) Recommends any statutory or regulatory changes to the |
| 32 | current law; or |
| 33 | (c) Identifies drafting issues |
| 34 |
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| 35 | shall be submitted by the court rendering the opinion to the |
| 36 | Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the |
| 37 | House of Representatives within 30 days after being published by |
| 38 | the court. |
| 39 | (3) The Office of the Governor, the Office of the |
| 40 | President of the Senate, and the Office of the Speaker of the |
| 41 | House of Representatives shall serve an acknowledgment of |
| 42 | receipt upon the chief judge or chief justice of the court |
| 43 | rendering an opinion submitted to that office under subsection |
| 44 | (2) within 30 days after the receipt of the opinion and may |
| 45 | state in the acknowledgment any and all action to be taken in |
| 46 | response to the opinion. |
| 47 | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2011. |