When must a Florida party serve a trial-court costs or fees motion?

Identify the judgment or voluntary-dismissal notice and the party for whom the action concludes.

Preserve judgment filing or actual notice service according to the established branch.

Check independent entitlement, fee pleading and actual motion requirements.

1. Identify the judgment or voluntary-dismissal notice and the party for whom the action concludes.
2. Rule 1.090(a) incorporates Rule 2.514(a). Exclude the established event. For seven days or longer, begin with the next day that is not Saturday, Sunday or a legal holiday. Count intermediate calendar days. For fewer than seven days, omit intermediate Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays. Do not treat a seven-day period as seven business days.
3. Check the observed statutory holidays, actual clerk calendar and chief-justice directions.
4. Complete the required act with the proper court or recipient.

Apply the observed New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. birthday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Veterans’ Day, Thanksgiving Day, Friday after Thanksgiving and Christmas Day holidays. Section 110.117 observes Saturday holidays on the preceding Friday and Sunday holidays on the following Monday. Rule 2.514 also includes clerk-observed holidays and days designated by the chief justice or chief judge. An ineligible final day moves in the counting direction. The bundled Florida calendar covers 2026 through 2028. Verify additional closures and chief-justice extensions separately.

Fictitious example

Fictitious facts. The judgment is actually filed and concludes the action as to the party seeking costs or fees. The established event occurs August 2, 2027. No mail-only addition, further clerk closure, different order or unestablished branch applies.

Fictitious facts. Establish the stated procedure and actual event separately. No mail-only addition, further clerk holiday, tolling motion, chief-justice extension or different actual court order is assumed.

The event must conclude the action as to the seeking party

Rule 1.525 attaches to the judgment or notice that concludes the action as to that party. A nonfinal or partial event that does not do so cannot be assumed to trigger this period.

Judgment filing and voluntary notice service differ

The rule uses filing of the judgment, including dismissal, but service of the voluntary-dismissal notice. Preserve the actual branch rather than treating filing and service as interchangeable.

Timing does not supply entitlement or replace fee pleading

The Rule 1.525 court commentary expressly preserves the separate pleading requirements described in Stockman v. Downs. This page establishes neither entitlement nor compliance with those requirements.

Motion form and conferral require separate compliance

Rule 1.100(b) requires the prescribed written grounds and requested relief except the stated hearing or trial procedure. Rule 1.202 separately addresses conferral and its certificate. Summary judgment, injunctive relief and Rule 1.530 motions are expressly exempt from conferral. The rule also excludes an unrepresented movant or nonmovant. Those exemptions do not dispense with valid motion form, filing or service.

• This page does not establish grounds for relief, an actual court hearing, a bond amount, fee entitlement or appeal preservation.
• Check the operative procedural edition, actual filing and service records, motions, court directions and additional closures.

• Identify the judgment or voluntary-dismissal notice and the party for whom the action concludes.
• Preserve judgment filing or actual notice service according to the established branch.
• Check independent entitlement, fee pleading and actual motion requirements.
• Rule 1.525 attaches to the judgment or notice that concludes the action as to that party. A nonfinal or partial event that does not do so cannot be assumed to trigger this period.
• The rule uses filing of the judgment, including dismissal, but service of the voluntary-dismissal notice. Preserve the actual branch rather than treating filing and service as interchangeable.
• The Rule 1.525 court commentary expressly preserves the separate pleading requirements described in Stockman v. Downs. This page establishes neither entitlement nor compliance with those requirements.
• Rule 1.100(b) requires the prescribed written grounds and requested relief except the stated hearing or trial procedure. Rule 1.202 separately addresses conferral and its certificate. Summary judgment, injunctive relief and Rule 1.530 motions are expressly exempt from conferral. The rule also excludes an unrepresented movant or nonmovant. Those exemptions do not dispense with valid motion form, filing or service.
• Serve the actual costs or attorneys’ fees motion on the required recipients within the applicable period and complete prescribed court filing separately. Preserve the concluding event, party status, motion and actual service. A timely calculation does not determine recoverable amounts, entitlement or satisfaction of the separate pleading requirement.