Florida Guardianship Form Updates Take Effect January 1, 2027

On October 15, 2026, the Supreme Court of Florida amended nine Florida Probate Rules that govern guardianship accountings, objections to guardianship reports and the official guardianship forms. The amendments, adopted in case SC2026-0558, take effect January 1, 2027, at 12:01 a.m. They move the case caption on the guardianship forms to the left side of the page and replace the certificate of service wording in those forms.

Guardianship Rules and Forms Covered by the Opinion

The Florida Bar's Probate Rules Committee proposed the changes. They reach Rule 5.696 on guardian accountings, Rule 5.700 on objections to guardianship reports, the form rules numbered 5.901 through 5.906, and Rule 5.910 on the guardianship inventory.

The affected forms include the petition to determine incapacity, the petition and order for appointment of a guardian, letters of guardianship, initial and annual guardianship plans, and the petition, notice, order and letters for a guardian advocate of the person. The Committee published the proposals on The Florida Bar's website, and the Court published them in The Florida Bar News.

No comments were received after either publication. The Court adopted the amendments as proposed in a unanimous per curiam opinion.

Case Caption Moves to the Left Side of Each Form

On the current forms, the case style naming the judicial circuit, county, probate division and case number sits in the right-hand corner of the first page. The amended forms place that block in the left-hand corner, above the "In Re: Guardianship of" line.

The Court said the move conforms the forms to Rule 2.520(a)(4) of the Florida Rules of General Practice and Judicial Administration. That rule requires documents that will be recorded in the official records to leave a 3-inch by 3-inch blank space at the top right corner of the first page.

Certificate of Service Wording Follows the 2025 Service Rule

The old certificate in the guardianship forms stated that the document "has been furnished to" named persons at their service, mailing and e-mail addresses "by (e-mail) (delivery) (mail) (fax)" on a stated date. The new certificate states the date first, then the names and service addresses of the persons served, then the method of service, "such as portal, e-mail, delivery, or mail." Fax no longer appears among the listed methods.

The change tracks 2025 amendments to Rule 2.516(f), which took effect July 1, 2025. Under that rule, a person establishes prima facie proof of service by including a certification, the date of service, the names of the persons served, their service addresses and the method of service.

The 2025 amendments also shortened the title of Rule 2.516 from "Service of Pleadings and Documents" to "Service." The Court updated the rule references in the committee notes to Rules 5.696 and 5.700 to reflect that new title.

Wording Updates and Effect on Guardians and Petitioners

Throughout the amended rules and forms, "shall" becomes "must," "pursuant to" becomes "under," and "his or her" is replaced with "the ward's" or "the respondent's." In the order appointing a guardian, the choices describing the authority of a health care surrogate or guardian over health care decisions now say "will" instead of "shall."

The opinion's discussion addresses only the caption, certificate of service and rule reference changes. Apart from those edits and the wording updates, the questions in the petitions, plans and inventory in the appendix carry over from the current forms.

Petitioners, proposed guardians, guardians and guardian advocates who prepare or sign these forms, along with their attorneys, are the groups most directly affected. The current versions of the rules and forms remain in place until January 1, 2027, and the opinion states that a motion for rehearing will not change that effective date.