NBA in FLA

Some practitioners did not take note of the change last summer that rejecting a nonbinding arbitration award went from filing for trial de novo to requiring including notice requesting rejection. Effective July 1, 2024, amended rule 1.820(h) requires a notice of rejection of the arbitration decision and request for trial. This was done to to clarify the process for rejecting an arbitrator’s decision and requesting a trial de novo. Under the amended rule, an arbitration decision is deemed rejected only if such request is filed with the court within 20 days of service of the arbitrator’s written decision. See In re Amends. to Fla. Rules of Civ. Proc., 386 So. 3d 876, 878 (Fla. 2024). In a recent Fourth District Court of Appeal case, it was held that a request for trial de novo, which does not also include a notice of rejection of the arbitration decision, does not comply with amended rule 1.820(h). If a notice of rejection of the arbitration decision and request for trial is not timely made, the decision must be referred to the presiding judge, who must enter such orders and judgments as may be required to carry out the terms of the decision as provided by Section 44.103(5), Florida Statutes. See more here-- https://tinyurl.com/2rbdjdes