Pro hac vice sponsorship · Filing review · Hearing coverage
Your case is in Florida. Your firm isn’t.
I associate as your Florida counsel of record — signing and filing the verified motion seeking your attorneys’ admission, clearing your filings through Florida procedure, and covering hearings anywhere in the state.
You keep the client, the strategy, and the merits. I keep the admission motion and your filings moving.
Start with a conflicts check
Two lines is enough. Send the court and the deadline and I will tell you exactly what local counsel handles on your matter.
Start here
Do you actually need local counsel in Florida?
Yes in Florida state court. Fla. R. Gen. Prac. & Jud. Admin. 2.510(a) permits an out-of-state attorney to appear pro hac vice only “provided that a member of The Florida Bar in good standing is associated as an attorney of record.” In federal court it depends on the district: the Southern District requires it, the Middle and Northern Districts do not.
Below is the whole picture in one table — the thing that is otherwise scattered across five different court websites.
| Court | Local counsel required? | Who e-files? | Appearance limit | What the court or Bar charges |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida state courts | Yes — Rule 2.510(a) | Local counsel, until The Florida Bar issues your PHV number — including the admission motion itself | More than 3 in separate cases per 365 days is presumed a “general practice” | $250 to The Florida Bar + $100 to the clerk |
| S.D. Fla. | Yes — Special Rule 4(b) | Local counsel — pro hac vice attorneys may not register as CM/ECF users here | More than 3 pro hac vice motions in separate cases per 365 days | $250 |
| M.D. Fla. | No | You do, after special admission under Local Rule 2.01(c) | No cap — 36-month appearance disclosure instead | $150 |
| N.D. Fla. | No | You do, after admission registration — L.R. 11.1(C) | Not in the rule | $219 |
As published by each court and by The Florida Bar, August 2026. The $250 goes to the Bar, not the court; the $100 is the statutory clerk fee under Fla. Stat. § 28.241(6). None of it is my fee, which is quoted separately and in writing.
The trap most firms hit first
You cannot file the motion that would admit you. Until the Bar issues your pro hac vice number, every document in a Florida state case — the admission motion included — has to go through the Portal under a Florida lawyer’s credentials. Same in the Southern District, where a pro hac vice attorney is barred outright from registering for CM/ECF.
Where you don’t need me — and why firms call anyway
In the Middle and Northern Districts, local counsel isn’t required and I’ll tell you so on the first call. There are still reasons to retain local counsel there: hearing coverage without a flight, a Florida read before filing, and the companion state-court action that usually turns up beside a removed case.
What I do
Three ways I keep a Florida matter moving.
Pro hac vice sponsorship & admission
I associate as your designated Florida counsel of record, sign the verified motion seeking admission of your out-of-state attorneys, and file it.
- Verified motion on the form required by Rule 2.510(b)
- Served on The Florida Bar and all counsel of record
- Designation and written consent as Florida counsel
- S.D. Fla. Special Rule 4(b) co-counsel designation and CM/ECF filing
- Supplementation within 10 days when anything in the motion changes
Filing review & Florida procedure
Florida procedure carries traps that get filings rejected and deadlines missed. I read your work for state-specific compliance before it goes out.
- Fla. R. Civ. P. and the General Practice and Judicial Administration rules
- Portal formatting, e-service and Rule 2.516 requirements
- Deadline computation under Rule 2.514
- Division assignment and judge-specific practices
- Removal, remand and companion state-court timing
Hearings, depositions & trial
A Florida-admitted body in the room when you need one — from a five-minute motion calendar to second chair at trial.
- Motion calendar, UMC and special-set hearings
- Deposition attendance and defense of the record
- Emergency, TRO and injunction hearings
- Second chair through trial
- Case management and status conferences
Why a solo
The lawyer who signs your motion is the lawyer who answers the phone.
You are not buying brand. You are buying a Florida signature, a Portal login, and someone who will pick up on a Friday afternoon when the clerk rejects a filing. That is a solo’s job, and you get the number in writing before you commit.
One lawyer, named
No intake queue, no associate handoff, no conflict between your matter and a partner’s book of business. You get me.
Conflicts first, fast
Conflicts run and answered within one business day — including when the answer is no. You are never left waiting on a maybe.
Filing fluency
Regular filing work in the Florida Courts E-Filing Portal and in CM/ECF; admitted in all three Florida districts and the Eleventh Circuit.
More than Florida
Also admitted in the District of Colorado, the District of Nebraska, and the Western District of Wisconsin — useful when your Florida case has a sibling elsewhere.
You see the engagement letter before you owe anything.
Conflicts, the quote, and a written division of responsibility — who controls the client, who drafts, who files, who calendars — all of it settled in writing before either of us signs.
Fees & scope
You get the number before you get an engagement letter.
Flat, per appearance, or hourly and monthly — whichever actually fits the scope. It goes in writing before either of us signs anything, so you can get client approval before you commit. What the court charges is separate, and I itemize both. See fees & scope.
Flat fee
Defined-scope work with a knowable end: pro hac vice sponsorship and filing, a single filing review, one hearing.
Per appearance
Hearings, depositions, calendar calls and case management conferences, quoted per appearance with travel identified separately.
Hourly or monthly
Ongoing coverage on an active docket, where the work is continuous and a flat fee would be a guess for both of us.
Where I appear
Available in every circuit. Based in South Florida.
How it works
From first email to trial, in four steps.
Send the matter
Court, case number, parties, and what you need. Two lines is genuinely enough to start.
Conflicts and engagement
I run conflicts and send an engagement letter with the quote and a written division of responsibility. One business day.
Admission
I prepare, sign and file the verified motion, serve The Florida Bar and all counsel, and confirm your pro hac vice number.
Coverage
Filings, hearings, depositions and trial support for as long as the case runs — plus a calendar reminder for the 30-day and annual Rule 1-3.10(e) reports, which remain your attorney’s duty.
Common questions
Answers out-of-state counsel actually ask for.
Do I need Florida local counsel?
Yes in Florida state court. Fla. R. Gen. Prac. & Jud. Admin. 2.510(a) permits an out-of-state attorney to appear pro hac vice only “provided that a member of The Florida Bar in good standing is associated as an attorney of record.” That Florida lawyer signs the verified motion and becomes counsel of record.
In federal court it depends on the district. The Southern District of Florida requires it — Special Rule 4(b) has the motion filed and served by co-counsel admitted in that district. The Middle and Northern Districts do not require local counsel at all.
Can I file my own pro hac vice motion in Florida state court?
No. Until The Florida Bar issues your pro hac vice number, every document — including the motion that would admit you — must be e-filed through the Florida Courts E-Filing Portal by the Florida attorney designated in the motion. The Bar issues the number only after it receives a copy of the motion and the $250 fee.
The same trap exists in the Southern District of Florida, where an attorney admitted pro hac vice is expressly not permitted to register as a CM/ECF user.
What does pro hac vice admission cost in Florida?
In state court: $250 per lawyer, per case, to The Florida Bar, plus a $100 statutory clerk fee under Fla. Stat. § 28.241(6). Three lawyers on one case means $750 to the Bar.
In federal court the Florida Bar fee does not apply. Each district charges its own: $250 in the Southern District, $150 in the Middle District, $219 in the Northern District.
None of that is my fee. I quote mine separately and in writing before there is an engagement letter.
How many times can I appear pro hac vice in Florida?
More than three appearances in separate cases within a 365-day period is presumed to be a “general practice,” which Rule 2.510 does not permit. Two things soften it: appearances at different levels of the court system in the same case count as one appearance, and the count is of initial appearances only, not every filing.
If you are near the line, say so in the first email. It changes what we file and when.
What happens to my client relationship?
Nothing. You keep the client, the strategy, and the merits. My role is Florida counsel of record — signing and filing the admission motion, keeping filings compliant with Florida procedure, and appearing when the court needs a Florida lawyer in the room.
The engagement letter says so in writing, along with who bills whom, before either of us signs.
How fast can you be engaged?
Conflicts run first, and you get an answer within one business day — including when the answer is that I have a conflict and cannot take it. Engagement letter and quote follow the same day conflicts clear; the verified motion follows shortly after.
If your deadline is shorter than that, call (561) 308-9119 and say it is a pro hac vice deadline.
Do you take Florida education-law matters as co-counsel?
Yes. My separate practice is student–university litigation — academic dismissal, Title IX, Section 504 and ADA accommodations, FERPA, and professionalism findings — at astudentslawyer.com. Out-of-state firms with a Florida student or higher-education matter can retain me as local counsel or as co-counsel on the merits.
Rule and fee citations current as of August 2026. Rule 2.510 was last amended February 7, 2022; Rule Regulating The Florida Bar 1-3.10(e), adding pro hac vice reporting duties, took effect October 27, 2025. General information only — not legal advice.
Have a Florida matter on the horizon?
Send the court and the deadline. I will tell you exactly what local counsel handles on your matter, what it costs, and whether you need me at all — usually within one business day.
Retain Florida local counsel
Conflicts first. A quote in writing. An engagement letter before anything else moves.