The Civil Division includes Circuit Civil, County Civil and Small Claims. Circuit Civil is comprised of Family Law Cases (divorces, name changes) and General Law cases (foreclosures, claims over $15,000). County Civil is comprised of tenant eviction cases and damage cases ($5,000 to $15,000). Small Claims includes claims less than $5,000.
The General Law division of Circuit Civil handles disputes in excess of $15,000. Other types of cases that fall under General Civil include mortgage and lien foreclosures, medical malpractice, auto negligence, eminent domain, contract and indebtedness and personal injury.
Court Fees To record a Lis Pendens, the fee is $5.00 for the first page and $4.00 for each additional page. The fee to reopen Circuit Civil cases is $50.00 for each occurrence.
The Family Law section of Circuit Civil handles Dissolution of Marriage (divorce). Other types of cases that fall under Family Law include domestic and repeat violence, annulment, name change, adoption, support, alimony, custody and paternity. Forms approved by the Supreme Court may be purchased in the Civil Division for $.15 per page or online through the Florida State Courts.
The forms used for filing a residential tenant eviction may be purchased in the Civil Division for $4.00 or they may be accessed and completed through the online forms program for a nominal fee. Before filing the complaint, a Three Day Notice must be served on the tenant(s) by posting, by hand delivery or by mail.
When filing a tenant eviction case, you will need the following:
For more information on Florida Tenant/Landlord Relations go to Florida PIRG
For further assistance you may want to view the PDF flowchart Tenant Eviction Process for Non-Payment of Rent.
If you are filing in Small Claims, it must be for damages under the amount of $5,000. You may obtain the forms at no charge, from the Small Claims Office. You may also access and complete the forms through the online forms program for a nominal fee.
You can file against either an individual or a business. If you are filing against a business, you need to find out if the business is incorporated. If the business is incorporated, you must obtain the name of an officer or a registered agent of the corporation. To obtain this information, contact the Secretary of State, Corporate Division, in Tallahassee at (850) 488-9000 or at www.sunbiz.org. When calling the Corporate Division, you will be able to find out if the business is incorporated, the name of a corporate officer or registered agent and an address for service.
At the time of filing your case, you have a choice of how to serve the defendant(s). You may request that the defendant(s) be served by the Sheriff's Department, special process server or certified mail. The Lee County Sheriff's Department charges $40.00 (cash or money order only) per defendant. Many of the out-of-county sheriff's offices also charge $40.00 per defendant. The Clerk will assess $10.00 to issue each summons and an additional $1.00 per defendent to cover postage for mailing any out-of-town County Sheriffs Offices. Clerk's fees should be a separate check made payable to the Lee County Clerk of Courts.
The Special Process Servers are appointed by the Chief Judge, please contact Court Administration for a list of approved process servers.
Certified mail can only be used within the State of Florida. The fee for service by registered mail is $7.00 per defendant. Checks should be made payable to the Lee County Clerk of the Courts.
It is required that you supply copies of any paperwork or documents that you plan to use to substantiate your claim. Documents - such as receipts, contracts or lease agreements – must be provided for the court file and one copy for each defendant that is named in your claim. Please have all documents copied prior to the time of filing. There is a $1.00 per page charge for all copies made by the Clerk’s Office.
If the defendant lives in another state, you will need to find out the county in which he/she resides. Call that county's Sheriff's Department (long distance information is the county's area code followed by 555-1212) to ascertain the following information:
Once you have obtained this information, complete the forms* and return them to the Clerks Office, along with the filing fee and service fee (including an additional $1.00 per defendant postage fee, made payable to the Lee County Clerk of Courts).
*Forms may be obtained, at no charge, from the Small Claims Office in the Clerk's office.
It will be necessary to know the address of the home office for the insurance company, when filing a claim against them. If you do not have the appropriate address, ask the clerk in Small Claims for a book used to obtain this information. The information cannot be given over the telephone.
All claims filed against an insurance company are served through the Insurance Commissioner for the State of Florida. An example of how the defendant should be listed on both your Statement of Claim form and the summons form would be as follows: ABC Insurance Company, 333 Main Street, Any town, AZ 12345, by serving Insurance Commissioner, State of Florida.
All documents that will be used to substantiate your claim should be filed with your claim. The Clerk’s Office requires one copy and the Insurance Commissioner requires three copies, making a total of four copies. If the Clerk’s Office is asked to make any copies, the charge is $1.00 per page.
The fee for service by the Insurance Commissioner is $15.00 (cashier’s check or money order only). Make the check payable to Insurance Commissioner, State of Florida. In addition to the service fee, the Clerk assesses a fee of $1.00 to cover postage. This should be a separate check made payable to Lee County Clerk of Court.
Please note: This information is intended to assist you if the trial court Judge awarded you money or property in the final judgment. Procedures are subject to change with Florida Statute changes. YOU will need to collect the judgment.
The responsibility for collecting this judgment rests entirely on you. The following outlines a method of collecting a judgment; however, we suggest you consult with a licensed Florida attorney.
Once you have been awarded a final judgment in a Small Claims case you may begin your steps of collection, however, the judgment will not be available for approximately 5-10 days from your hearing date. If you would like to check with the Clerk's office prior to coming in, please call (239) 533-5000. If you would like to purchase and record a certified copy of the judgment by mail, you may send your request with your case number, a $3.00 check and a $10.00 check, both made payable to the:
LEE COUNTY CLERK OF COURT and mailed to:
CLERK OF COURTS, SMALL CLAIMS DIVISION
P.O. Box 310 or
Fort Myers, FL 33902-9345
RECORDING JUDGMENT: Secure a certified copy of the judgment from the Clerk of Court. Take the certified copy to the Clerk's office, Recording Division located at 2115 Second Street, Fort Myers and have it recorded. Fees for these services are set by statute. This will give you a lien against any real property in Lee County owned now or in the future by the defendant. (To foreclose on the lien you will have to consult an attorney).
WRIT OF EXECUTION: Ten days after the date of the recording of the original judgment, you may secure a Writ of Execution from the Clerk of Court. Procedures for filing the Writ of Execution should be followed pursuant to Florida Statute 55.201 ? 55.209. You may visit the Secretary of State's web site @ www.sunbiz.org
WRIT OF GARNISHMENT: If there is no real or personal property to be seized under a Writ of Execution, look to see if the defendant has property in another's possession. If a third person owes the defendant money or has the defendant's property in his possession or if there is a bank account in the defendant's name, you may file a Writ of Garnishment against that person or the bank. To do this you will need to deposit with the Clerk of Court $103.00 for garnishee's attorney fees plus an additional $85.00 for the Clerk's filing fee in each individual case. Effective July 1, 2000 Florida Statute 77.041 requires a "Notice to Defendant" and "Claim of Exemption and Notice of Hearing" form attached to all Writs of Garnishments. This section requires the plaintiff to mail a "Notice" and "Claim of Exemption" along with a copy of the Motion for Writ and Writ of Garnishment to the defendant and requires the plaintiff to file a certificate as proof of such service. The garnishee will, of course, have a chance to answer the Writ.
BE AWARE: Certain property may not be taken to satisfy a judgment because it is considered exempt. Exempt property includes: a home where the defendant who is the head of a family residing in Florida or his family lives on ½ acre of land in a city or on up to 160 acres of contiguous land outside a city, personal property belonging to the head of a family residing in Florida of up to $1,000.00 in value (Art X, Section 4, Fla. Constitution). There are also restrictions on garnishing a defendant's wages from his place of employment. Generally, under Florida law, the wages of the person who is the head of a family cannot be garnished. (Fla. Statute Sections 222.11-12). Even when a person's wages are subject to garnishment, you as a creditor have to follow the limitations on garnishment set forth in the Federal Consumer Credit Protection Act, 15 U.S.C. Sections 1671-1691 (this act includes the limitation that no more than approximately ¼ of a person's wages may be garnished from a paycheck).
There are exceptions to some of these general rules and other types of property are exempt. Once you as the prevailing party collect the judgment you MUST record the Satisfaction of Judgment (Clerks Office-Recording Division,2115 Second Street, Fort Myers) and send a copy to the person who made the full payment. For collecting or satisfying a judgment, we again suggest you consult with an attorney. You also may want to look to the Florida Statutes (and Constitution) and the United States Code.
The County Civil Division handles disputes in the monetary range of $5,000 to $15,000. The types of cases maintained in County Civil are tenant evictions, declaratory judgments, mortgage and lien foreclosures, negligence, breach of contract, foreign judgment, replevin and damages.
Foreclosure sales are conducted at 11:00 a.m. at the Lee County Justice Center, 1700 Monroe St., 2nd Floor, Civil Office Lobby. The Notices of Sale are published in a local newspaper once a week for two (2) consecutive weeks. Procedures at the sales include:
The Certificate of Title will be issued approximately 11 days later.
Uncontested Dissolution of Marriage without Children
Uncontested Dissolution of Marriage with Children
Reopen case - $50.00 each occurrence.
