Florida Senate - 2016                              CS for SB 352
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Judiciary; and Senator Bradley
       
       
       
       
       
       590-01327-16                                           2016352c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to self-authentication of documents;
    3         amending s. 90.902, F.S.; allowing certified copies of
    4         official public documents to be filed electronically;
    5         providing a method for authenticating public documents
    6         other than by certified copies; amending s. 90.803,
    7         F.S.; conforming a cross-reference; providing an
    8         effective date.
    9          
   10  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   11  
   12         Section 1. Subsection (4) of section 90.902, Florida
   13  Statutes, is amended, subsections (5) through (11) of that
   14  section are renumbered as subsections (6) through (12),
   15  respectively, and a new subsection (5) is added to that section,
   16  to read:
   17         90.902 Self-authentication.—Extrinsic evidence of
   18  authenticity as a condition precedent to admissibility is not
   19  required for:
   20         (4) A copy of an official public record, report, or entry,
   21  or of a document authorized by law to be recorded or filed and
   22  actually recorded or filed in a public office, including data
   23  compilations in any form, certified as correct by the custodian
   24  or other person authorized to make the certification by
   25  certificate complying with subsection (1), subsection (2), or
   26  subsection (3) or complying with any act of the Legislature or
   27  rule adopted by the Supreme Court, which certified copy may be
   28  filed electronically pursuant to s. 28.22205. An electronically
   29  filed certified copy is admissible to the same extent as the
   30  original would be if it complies with this subsection.
   31         (5)A copy of any pleading, order, or other filing in any
   32  court sitting in the United States or a United States territory,
   33  or a document or record entry filed with or retained by the
   34  United States or any state, municipality, district,
   35  commonwealth, territory, or governmental department or agency of
   36  such an entity which is available to the public from a website
   37  operated by a governmental agency or authorized by a
   38  governmental agency.
   39         (a)The party seeking authentication of a document pursuant
   40  to this subsection must:
   41         1.File a Notice of Reliance on Electronic Records which
   42  attaches a copy of the document to be authenticated and
   43  discloses the website and web address where the document can be
   44  located.
   45         2.Serve the written Notice of Reliance on Electronic
   46  Records at least 20 days before a hearing at which the
   47  authenticity of the document or its acceptance by a court as an
   48  authentic document is at issue. The court may waive or shorten
   49  the time period for filing the notice set forth in this
   50  subparagraph.
   51         (b)A party may object to the authenticity of a document
   52  that is the subject of a Notice of Reliance on Electronic
   53  Records by filing and serving an affidavit on all other parties
   54  at least 5 days before a hearing, unless such time period is
   55  waived or shortened by the court. The affidavit must do one of
   56  the following:
   57         1. Challenge the authenticity of the document by detailing
   58  in writing the portion of the document which is not authentic. A
   59  copy of what the challenging party asserts is the true, correct,
   60  and authentic document must be attached to the affidavit.
   61         2. Assert that the document does not exist on the website
   62  or web address as specified in the Notice of Reliance on
   63  Electronic Records.
   64         (c)After review and consideration by the court, the court
   65  shall deem authentic the document that is the subject of the
   66  Notice of Reliance on Electronic Records unless:
   67         1.The party seeking authentication of the document does
   68  not satisfy the requirements of paragraph (a);
   69         2.An affidavit objecting to the authenticity of the
   70  document is filed pursuant to paragraph (b) and the court
   71  sustains the objection;
   72         3.The document does not have the same content or text, in
   73  all material respects, as the document that appears on the
   74  website identified in the Notice of Reliance on Electronic
   75  Records; or
   76         4.The court otherwise determines that the document is not
   77  authentic.
   78  
   79  This subsection does not prohibit a party from authenticating a
   80  document using the alternative methods of authentication under
   81  subsection (4) or s. 90.901.
   82         Section 2. Paragraph (a) of subsection (6) of section
   83  90.803, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   84         90.803 Hearsay exceptions; availability of declarant
   85  immaterial.—The provision of s. 90.802 to the contrary
   86  notwithstanding, the following are not inadmissible as evidence,
   87  even though the declarant is available as a witness:
   88         (6) RECORDS OF REGULARLY CONDUCTED BUSINESS ACTIVITY.—
   89         (a) A memorandum, report, record, or data compilation, in
   90  any form, of acts, events, conditions, opinion, or diagnosis,
   91  made at or near the time by, or from information transmitted by,
   92  a person with knowledge, if kept in the course of a regularly
   93  conducted business activity and if it was the regular practice
   94  of that business activity to make such memorandum, report,
   95  record, or data compilation, all as shown by the testimony of
   96  the custodian or other qualified witness, or as shown by a
   97  certification or declaration that complies with paragraph (c)
   98  and s. 90.902(12) 90.902(11), unless the sources of information
   99  or other circumstances show lack of trustworthiness. The term
  100  “business” as used in this paragraph includes a business,
  101  institution, association, profession, occupation, and calling of
  102  every kind, whether or not conducted for profit.
  103         Section 3. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.
  104