In re Standard Jury Instructions—Contract & Business Cases, 116 So. 3d 284

Florida Supreme Court authorizes publication and use of Standard Jury Instructions—Contract and Business Cases, following a 2006 Administrative Order creating the Committee to develop uniform jury instructions in contract and business litigation.
The Committee conducted six subcommittees, drafted Florida-specific Florida-law instructions modeled on California form, and obtained permission to duplicate certain sections from the Civil Cases book.
The Court acknowledges that approval of forms does not resolve substantive law in any case and trial judges retain the responsibility to instruct the jury correctly based on Florida law.
The Court approves publication and distribution of the instructions, with Sections 100, 300, 600 approved and Sections 200, 700, 800 approved with minor modifications.
The Court modifies specific items (e.g., 202.2 Objections language, Section 700 closing instructions, and Notes on Use for 801.2 Read-Back) and directs continued refinement and publication, while noting that comments reflect Committee views rather than the Court’s views on correctness.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Authority to publish standard jury instructions	Committee work merits publication	Court should not adopt or publish new forms without case-specific ruling	Authorized and directed to publish and use with modifications
Modifications to 202.2/Section 700/Notes on Use	Alignment with other civil instructions; improve clarity	Maintain consistency with Florida law and practice	Modifications approved as appropriate
Disclaimers on correctness and future changes	Instructions are a framework, not final statements of law	Court should retain broader control over changes	Court-approved with cautionary language and ongoing review
Role and continuation of the Committee	Perpetual existence ensures maintenance of standards	Need for ongoing Court oversight	Committee continued as independent working committee per AOSC6-47
Impact on references and administration	References to Florida Standard Jury Instructions updated	Potential for further revisions as law evolves	References updated; publication directed; amendments recommended as experience demonstrates

In re Supreme Court Committee on Standard Jury Instructions—Contract and Business Cases, 115 So.3d 208 (Fla.2013), 115 So.3d 208 (Fla.2013) (approval framework for standard jury instructions; not a substantive adjudication of correctness)
Johnson v. State, 53 So.3d 1003 (Fla.2010) (read-back of testimony prohibited from being framed as a denial)
St. Joe Corp. v. McIver, 875 So.2d 375 (Fla.2004) (contract formation principles; used to support interpretation standards)