The Florida Senate

394.473  Attorney's fee; expert witness fee.--

(1)  In case of indigency of any person for whom an attorney is appointed pursuant to the provisions of this part, the attorney shall be entitled to a reasonable fee to be determined by the court and paid from the general fund of the county from which the patient was involuntarily detained. In case of indigency of any such person, the court may appoint a public defender. The public defender shall receive no additional compensation other than that usually paid his or her office.

¹(2)  In case of indigency of any person for whom expert testimony is required in a court hearing pursuant to the provisions of this act, the expert, except one who is classified as a full-time employee of the state or who is receiving remuneration from the state for his ²or her time in attendance at the hearing, shall be entitled to a reasonable fee to be determined by the court and paid from the general fund of the county from which the patient was involuntarily detained.

History.--s. 13, ch. 71-131; s. 10, ch. 73-133; s. 25, ch. 73-334; s. 12, ch. 79-298; s. 3, ch. 82-176; s. 14, ch. 82-212; s. 713, ch. 95-148.

¹Note.--Published as amended by s. 14, ch. 82-212. The amendment of this subsection by s. 3, ch. 82-176, during the special session of March 29-April 7, 1982, failed to incorporate the amendment of the same subsection by s. 14, ch. 82-212, during the regular session. Although the circumstance that separate sessions were involved takes the transaction out of the operation of s. 1.04, there was no apparent legislative intent to nullify the amendment of the regular session. However, s. 7, ch. 82-176, provides that those provisions of that act "which provide for state assumption of witness fees which are currently paid by the counties shall take effect on a date determined by the appropriation of funds for this purpose." Giving full effect to both amendments, the subsection reads:

(2)  In case of indigency of any person for whom expert testimony is required in a court hearing pursuant to the provisions of this act, the expert, except one who is classified as a full-time employee of the state or who is receiving remuneration from the state for his ²or her time in attendance at the hearing, shall be entitled to a reasonable fee to be determined by the court and paid by the state.

²Note.--The words "or her" were inserted by the editors to conform to the directive of the Legislature in s. 1, ch. 93-199, to remove gender-specific references applicable to human beings from the Florida Statutes. Inclusion of subsection (2) in a reviser's bill pursuant to ch. 93-199 is not practicable pending clarification of the effect of s. 3, ch. 82-176, and s. 14, ch. 82-212, on the text of the subsection.