R. Gregg Jerald

Scheduling Hearings:

Prior to scheduling a motion for hearing, the motion sought to be heard MUST be filed. Scheduling of a hearing shall be done by contacting the Judicial Assistant via e-mail at rkinsey@circuit5.org and including the other party and/or Counsel if they are represented. The Judicial Assistant will offer a maximum of seven (7) dates to the parties, should none of the provided date/times offered work, proof of conflict must be provided to the Court. If one party is pro se and the hearing can be scheduled with sufficient notice to the pro se party, the hearing will not need to be coordinated with the pro se party.

Telephonic and ZOOM Appearances:

All evidentiary hearings are held in-person at the Marion County Judicial Center, located at 110 N.W. 1^st Avenue, Ocala, FL 34475, except as otherwise set forth herein.  Requests to appear at a hearing via audio/video communication platform(s), such as telephone or Zoom, must generally be made by the filing of a motion and will only be allowed by court order.  Hearings on motions to withdraw and pre-trial conferences will be held exclusively by Zoom unless otherwise expressly ordered.

Procedure for Canceling Hearings/Trial:

In addition to the filing a Notice of Cancellation, the Judicial Assistant must be notified by e-mail as soon as reasonably able if a hearing which has been noticed by an attorney has been cancelled.  If a case has settled and the parties are requesting to cancel a final hearing, the Court must be notified immediately, and it will be up to the Court’s discretion. Only the party that schedules the hearing has the authority to cancel the hearing.  If a hearing is set by court order said hearing can only be canceled by order of the court.

Cross-Noticing Hearing:

Before cross-noticing an additional motion(s) for a previously scheduled hearing, the attorneys and/or pro se party MUST contact the Judicial Assistant so the Court can determine if sufficient time is available to have the motion(s) heard together.

Proposed Orders:

Proposed orders are not being accepted through the e-portal at this time. Proposed orders must be submitted to the Judicial Assistant via e-mail at rkinsey@circuit5.org in Microsoft Word format.  Orders on routine motions including, but not limited to, motions to compel discovery and motions for leave to amend shall be accompanied by a proposed order which shall be submitted by email to rkinsey@circuit5.org for consideration by the Court.  All proposed orders shall be submitted in Microsoft Word.

Evidence:

If a party/counsel intends to introduce any document or item into evidence during a hearing, hard copies of the proposed evidence shall be hand delivered to the Judicial Assistant 48 hours in advance of the hearing. No exceptions will be made to this.

If a hearing is being conducted via ZOOM and the intended evidence exceeds 10 pages, hard copies of the evidence must be submitted to the Court 48 hours in advance of the hearing. If the evidence is under 10 pages, the evidence may be submitting in PDF format to the Judicial Assistant 48 hours in advance of the hearing.