A Day in the Life of a Miami Pro Se Litigant ...

Dealing with Miami-Dade County Family Court — 
It just got harder for the Pro Se

Guest Post by Elisa Epstein

Pro Se litigant’s dealings with the Miami Dade County Family Court system has never been more difficult with the recent hiring of court’s supervisors who make every effort to push Pro Se litigants through the “self-help” desk located on the 24^th floor. Try to “bypass “the “self-help desk” and simply file your documents directly with the clerk and you will be met with the recently hired filing’s “police”. This new crop of supervisors stand, both literally and figuratively, between you and the filing clerks.

These supervisors will insist you disclose your matter on command in front of whatever audience happens to be waiting in line, and, tell you that as a Pro Se you must first go to the “self-help” desk. If you tell them you don’t want to use “self-help”, they will then try to intimidate you by telling you that the filing clerks are trained now to reject and red-stamp a Pro Se filings no matter how correctly the forms are filled out.

The unwitting and unfortunate Pro Se who bends to this tyrannical attitude and retreats to the” self-help” program will be given a new set of burdens and hardships-- there is the long line in the dingy, crowded, windowless room, fees for form “packets” (forms which are easy accessible and FREE from the Supreme Court website), and, additional filing fees for modifications to prior judgments. But worst of all, for the anxious litigant wanting to quickly resolve their matter, the several week or more delay to have your case heard while the “self-help” division processes your forms.

So why is Dade now insisting on “self-help” for Pro Se Litigants? The city will insist it’s helping the public by making the court more efficient and accessible for the public. But when you look at the revenue stream the city generates from the “self-help” desk from form packet , extra filing fees, use of their own notaries etc., one easily wonders if the “self-help” desk is really there to serve the public, or whether it is just another revenue stream for the city.

So what’s a Pro Se to do with all this “self-help”?

There are two possible ways to go about it-- use the e-filing system (which the clerks will swear only exists for attorneys or, stand your ground and file your documents directly. When you actually make it to the clerk, usually they will be helpful and answer some questions you might have if they happen to know what they are doing. I’d highly suggest passing any important questions through more than one clerk.

The advantage of e-filing is fairly obvious—no potential harassment, no travel, no parking fees. But filing in-person has its own distinct advantages. When you file in-person, you can get certified copies of your documents that lists the date of filing (for a few bucks). Having certified copies puts a little additional pressure on the clerks to actually file your documents, file them in a timely fashion and gives you an established, undisputable record with the court.

If the supervisor tells you your docs will be rejected because you are pro se, smile, accept their frown, and politely tell them that you will keep coming back until the documents are correct. This is basically the last thing they want to hear.

Whether you chose to E-File or file in-person, your case should pop up for hearing in a few weeks

Dade… thanks for the “self-help”, but no thanks.