The Southern District of Florida local rules supplement the Federal Rules of Civil and Criminal Procedure with district-specific requirements that govern how you format a filing, submit it through CM/ECF, brief a motion, take discovery, move for summary judgment, mediate, and get admitted to appear. They apply to all civil and criminal proceedings in the district, and small procedural missteps routinely result in rejected filings, denied motions, or sanctions.1United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Local Rules United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida – Section: Rule 5.1 Filing and Copies What follows is what a practitioner needs to get right the first time.
Getting a Filing Past the Clerk
Local Rule 5.1(a) sets strict formatting standards. Every paper must be on 8½-by-11-inch white paper with margins of at least one inch on all sides. Pages must be numbered. Text must be double-spaced, though headers, footnotes, and quoted material may be single-spaced, and the font may be no smaller than 12-point Times New Roman.1United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Local Rules United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida – Section: Rule 5.1 Filing and Copies
Every filing needs a formal caption on the first page listing the court, the parties, the case number, and the initials of the assigned district judge and any magistrate judge. The signature block at the end must include the attorney’s or pro se party’s name, address, telephone number, and email address. The court publishes template forms.2United States District Court Southern District of Florida. Local Rules Forms A document missing any required element can be rejected by the clerk before a judge sees it.
Electronic Filing Through CM/ECF
Local Rule 5.1(b) requires all documents to be filed through the Case Management/Electronic Case Files system, with only narrow exceptions listed in the CM/ECF Administrative Procedures.3United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Local Rules United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida – Section: Rule 5.1(b) Files must be text-searchable PDFs. Direct conversion from a word processor handles this automatically; anything scanned needs OCR applied. The system rejects individual files over 50 megabytes, so oversized documents must be split.4United States District Court Southern District of Florida. CM/ECF Administrative Procedures – Section: 3G Filing Information
When you upload a filing, the system generates a Notice of Electronic Filing (NEF) to all registered participants. The NEF is the official method of service, so no paper copies need to be mailed. A filing is timely if CM/ECF records its receipt by 11:59:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the due date, unless the court orders otherwise.5United States District Court Southern District of Florida. CM/ECF Administrative Procedures – Section: 3H Court CM/ECF System Hours Registering as a CM/ECF user also constitutes consent to receive electronic service and waives any right to service by other means.6United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Local Rules United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida – Section: Rule 5.1(e)
Only attorneys admitted to the Southern District’s bar who have completed the required CM/ECF training may use the system.7Southern District of Florida | United States District Court. All FAQs – Section: CM/ECF Pro se parties are exempt from the electronic filing requirement and file conventionally on paper. For a pro se filer, the date the clerk’s office dockets the submission is treated as the date of service, regardless of what a certificate of service says.3United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Local Rules United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida – Section: Rule 5.1(b)
Motions Under Local Rule 7.1
Every motion must incorporate a memorandum of law citing supporting authorities. Limited exceptions apply to routine procedural motions such as requests for extensions of time, applications for default, and motions to withdraw or substitute counsel.8United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Local Rules United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida – Section: Rule 7.1(a)(1)
The Duty to Confer
Before filing most civil motions, the moving party’s counsel must confer with all parties or non-parties who may be affected by the relief sought and make a good-faith effort to resolve the dispute. Above the signature block, counsel must certify either that they conferred and could not resolve the issue, or that they made reasonable efforts to confer (specifying the date, time, and method of each attempt) but were unable to do so.9United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Local Rules United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida – Section: Rule 7.1(a)(3)
The rule carves out several categories where the confer requirement does not apply: motions for injunctive relief, summary judgment motions, motions to dismiss for failure to state a claim, class action motions, and pro hac vice applications, among others. If a certification is required and missing, the court can deny the motion without reaching the substance.
Page Limits
A motion (with its incorporated memorandum) and any opposition memorandum cannot exceed 20 pages. Reply memoranda are capped at 10 pages and must be limited to rebutting matters raised in the opposition, not rearguing the initial motion. Title pages, tables of contents, tables of citations, signature pages, certificates of good faith conference, and certificates of service do not count against the limit, provided no substantive text appears on those pages.10United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Local Rules United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida – Section: Rule 7.1(c)(2)
Proposed Orders
Certain motions must be accompanied by a proposed order, including the routine procedural motions exempted from the memorandum requirement, and any motion seeking emergency or ex parte relief or a temporary restraining order. Under the 2025 amendments effective December 1, 2025, proposed orders are submitted to the court by email as prescribed by the CM/ECF Administrative Procedures rather than filed on the docket.11United States District Court Southern District of Florida. Administrative Order 2025-88 – Amendments to the Local Rules – Section: Rule 7.1(a)(2)
Emergency Versus Expedited Motions
Rule 7.1(d) draws a hard line between the two, and misclassification can draw sanctions. An emergency motion must include the words “Emergency Motion” in the title, explain the nature of the emergency, state the date a ruling is needed, and explain why. It also requires a sworn certification before the signature block confirming that the matter is a true emergency because the court could not provide meaningful relief after seven days.12United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Local Rules United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida – Section: Rule 7.1(d)(1)
The court will not treat a matter as an emergency when the urgency stems from the attorney’s or party’s own delay. If the motion will not become moot within seven days, it generally should not be filed as an emergency. Time-sensitive matters that fall short may instead be filed as an “Expedited Motion,” which must state the date a ruling is needed and why. Falsely designating a motion as an emergency invites sanctions.
Case Management Tracks
Local Rule 16.1 uses a differentiated case management system that sorts civil cases into three tracks based on complexity:
- Expedited: straightforward cases expected to take one to three days at trial; discovery must be completed within 90 to 179 days from the scheduling order.
- Standard: cases expected to take three to ten days at trial; discovery runs 180 to 269 days. Most civil cases sit here.
- Complex: unusually complex cases needing more than ten trial days; discovery extends 270 to 365 days.
The court weighs the number of parties, the volume of evidence, the number of expert witnesses, and estimated trial length when assigning a track.13United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Local Rules United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida – Section: Rule 16.1(a) The parties recommend a track in their proposed scheduling order.
Counsel for all parties (and any pro se party) must meet at least 21 days before the scheduling conference to address the issues required by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(f). Within 14 days of that meeting, they file a joint written report covering the likelihood of settlement, proposed limits on discovery and motion practice, and the recommended track.14United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Local Rules United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida – Section: Rule 16.1(b)
Discovery
Local Rule 26.1 keeps most discovery materials off the docket. Deposition transcripts, interrogatories, document requests, requests for admission, deposition notices, and privilege logs are not filed when served; they stay out of the record until they are actually used in a proceeding or the court orders otherwise.15United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Local Rules United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida – Section: Rule 26.1(b) When discovery materials are needed for trial or for a pre-trial or post-trial motion, the relevant portions must be filed and served at the outset of trial or with the motion.
The discovery cutoff also works differently than many practitioners expect. All depositions must be scheduled, and all written discovery requests and document subpoenas must be served, in time for the response to fall due on or before the cutoff. Serve a request too late and the opposing party has no obligation to respond, appear at the deposition, or even file a protective order.16United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Local Rules United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida – Section: Rule 26.1(d)
Each interrogatory response or objection must immediately follow the quoted interrogatory. Any objection not raised within the time permitted is waived. When asserting privilege, the objection must identify the nature of the privilege claimed and, if state law governs, specify which state rule applies.
Summary Judgment: The Statement of Material Facts
Local Rule 56.1 is where many litigants stumble. Every motion for summary judgment and every opposition must be accompanied by a separate Statement of Material Facts filed as a standalone document. The movant lists the facts it contends are undisputed. The opponent must respond to each in the same order and numbering, beginning each response with “disputed” or “undisputed,” and may add facts supporting denial of the motion.17United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. Local Rules United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida – Section: Rule 56.1
Statements of Material Facts cannot exceed 10 pages. Each fact must appear in its own numbered paragraph, supported by pinpoint citations to specific parts of the record, including page numbers and, where appropriate, line numbers. A vague citation to an entire affidavit or deposition without a page reference does not comply. If the opponent asserts additional facts, the movant must file a reply statement addressing them even if no reply memorandum is filed.
Pro Hac Vice Admission
An attorney not admitted to the Southern District’s bar may appear in a particular case pro hac vice, but the application must be filed by local co-counsel who is already admitted. The motion must certify that the applicant has studied the local rules, is a member in good standing of a qualifying bar, and has not filed more than three pro hac vice motions in different cases in this district within the past 365 days.18Southern District of Florida | United States District Court. Pro Hac Vice Appearance
More than three such motions in separate cases within a year triggers a presumption that the attorney is engaged in a general practice in the district, which is prohibited unless the court grants a waiver. The motion must designate at least one local bar member authorized to file through CM/ECF, and that local counsel handles all electronic filing and service; the pro hac vice attorney cannot file directly.
The pro hac vice appearance fee is $250 per attorney per case under Administrative Order 2024-91.19United States District Court Southern District of Florida. Administrative Order 2024-91 – Fee for Attorneys Seeking Pro Hac Vice Appearance If the same attorney needs to appear for additional parties in the same case, a Notice of Appearance Pro Hac Vice is enough, with no additional fee.18Southern District of Florida | United States District Court. Pro Hac Vice Appearance
Mandatory Mediation
Local Rule 16.2 requires mediation in virtually every civil case. The court enters an order of referral directing that mediation occur no later than 60 days before the scheduled trial date.20United States District Court Southern District of Florida. Local Rule 16.2 Court Annexed Mediation – Section: (d) Procedures to Refer a Case The parties have 14 days from the referral order to agree on a mediator. They are encouraged to pick from the court’s certified list but may select anyone by mutual agreement.
After the session, the mediator reports to the presiding judge only whether the case settled fully or partially, whether mediation was adjourned for further sessions, whether an impasse was declared, whether the session was conducted in person or by videoconference, and whether any party failed to attend.21United States District Court Southern District of Florida. Local Rule 16.2 – Court Annexed Mediation – Section: (a) General Provisions If the case settles, the parties file dismissal paperwork.
Skipping mediation is not a viable strategy. Under Rule 16.2(l), failure to comply with any mediation requirement subjects the offending party or counsel to penalties that include dismissal of the case or the striking of defenses and entry of judgment.22United States District Court Southern District of Florida. Local Rule 16.2 Court Annexed Mediation – Section: (l) Penalty for Failure to Comply The mediator is required to report nonattendance, so there is no quiet way to avoid the consequences.