Rule 6-13.4 - RECERTIFICATIONThe applicant must satisfy the following requirements for recertification during the 5-year period immediately preceding application.
(a) Substantial Involvement. The applicant must demonstrate continuous and substantial involvement in the practice of law, of which at least 30 percent must have been spent in actual participation in appellate practice.(b) Appellate Actions. The applicant must have had sole or primary responsibility in at least 15 appellate actions for the filing of principal briefs in appeals, petitions, or responses to filed petitions in extraordinary writ cases. For good cause, the appellate practice certification committee may waive this requirement for applicants who have been continuously certified for 14 or more years.(c) Oral Arguments. The applicant must have presented at least 3 oral arguments to an appellate court in the first recertification cycle, and 2 appellate arguments for subsequent recertification cycles, unless otherwise stated in this chapter. Cases where the applicant did not have sole or primary responsibility as described above can still be listed on the application to meet the oral argument requirement.(d) Education. The applicant must complete 50 credit hours of approved continuing legal education for appellate practice certification. This requirement may be satisfied by the applicant's completion of at least 30 hours of continuing judicial education approved by the Supreme Court of Florida.(e) Peer Review.(1)Lawyer References. The applicant must submit the names and addresses of at least 4 lawyers who are neither relatives nor current associates or partners to complete peer review forms. These lawyers must be involved in appellate practice and familiar with the applicant's practice.(2)Judicial References. The applicant must submit the names and addresses of at least 2 judges before whom the applicant has appeared on appellate matters within the last 2 years to complete peer review forms.(f) Judges.(1) Full time service as an appellate court judge on a Florida district court of appeal, the Supreme Court of Florida, a United States court of appeals, or the United States Supreme Court satisfies the substantial involvement, minimum number of appellate actions, and minimum number of oral arguments for an applicant who applies for recertification while serving as a judge of that court.(2) Full time service performing judicial functions during a substantial portion of the period since the last date of certification by an applicant subject to the Code of Judicial Conduct satisfies the substantial involvement, minimum number of appellate actions, and minimum number of oral arguments if the applicant has complied with all other requirements for recertification.(g) Good Cause. Subject to the requirements of rule 6-13.2(h), in determining good cause under this rule, the appellate practice certification committee will consider, if requested, the length of time the applicant has been certified; the applicant's supervisory responsibility for appellate actions or oral arguments since the date of the last certification application; the nature and complexity of the applicant's appellate actions since the last application for certification; the number of appellate actions in the applicant's career; and any health, career, or other factors that may have limited the number of appellate actions or oral arguments since the date of the last application for certification.Adopted July 1, 1993 (621 So.2d 1032). Amended Nov. 21, 1997; April 9, 1999; August 17, 2007; February 1, 2008; May 31, 2013; January 29, 2016, by the Board of Governors of The Florida Bar; amended and effective 12/4/2020 by The Florida Bar Board of Governors; amended and effective 7/23/2021 by The Florida Bar Board of Governors.