Governor DeSantis signed into law House Bill 837 on March 24, 2023. The bill applies to causes of action filed after that date. 

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It was announced as the most comprehensive legal reform in decades, aimed at decreasing frivolous lawsuits and preventing certain predatory trial practices. Not surprisingly, plaintiffs’ attorneys rushed to file lawsuits on March 23, 2023, when the bill passed in the Florida Senate, to avoid the application of the new laws. 

 

The bill is truly revolutionary. Although many of its reforms align Florida with the trend in many other states, the contrast with prior Florida law is stark.  To help visualize the changes, we put together the following chart, which, although not all-inclusive, we hope captures the most important developments in Florida law resulting from HB 837. 

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