The statewide portal lets you send documents to the clerk in any Florida county, at any hour. The account is free. The court's own filing fee still applies, and paying it online adds a processing charge of about 3.5% by card or $5 by electronic check.

How it works

1. Register at myflcourtaccess.com and choose the Self-Represented Litigant role.
2. Activate the account from the email the portal sends you.
3. Pick your county, choose new or existing case, and upload your signed PDFs.
4. Pay any fee, submit, and wait for the clerk's acceptance email.

If you cannot afford the filing fee, the clerk can waive or defer it. In a civil case, a waiver generally covers the filing fee and the cost of issuing the summons. It does not cover every cost in a case.

How it works

1. Complete the Application for Determination of Civil Indigent Status, available from your county clerk.
2. File it with your first documents, online or at the counter.
3. The clerk reviews your income and household size and tells you whether you qualify.

A summons is the official notice that tells the other party a case has been filed and that they must respond. The clerk must sign and seal it before anyone can serve it.

How it works

1. Upload a completed summons form with your new case in the portal.
2. Pay the issuance fee along with your filing fee.
3. The clerk returns the issued summons to you electronically.

The first papers in most cases must be handed to the other party in person. You cannot do this yourself. The sheriff in the county where the other party lives or works will do it for a fee fixed by Florida law.

How it works

1. Find the civil process unit of the sheriff's office in the county where the other party can be found.
2. Send the issued summons, a copy of what you filed, the best address you have, and the fee. Many offices accept an electronic copy that the clerk has certified.
3. A deputy attempts delivery and completes a return of service, which is then filed in your case.

Private process servers certified or appointed in the county can serve the same papers. Unlike the sheriff, they set their own prices, so ask for the total in writing before you hire one. People choose them when speed matters or when the other party is hard to find. Many take orders and payment online.

How it works

1. Confirm the server is authorized in the county where service will happen.
2. Send the issued summons and your filed documents, usually by upload or email.
3. The server delivers the papers and gives you a signed return of service to file.

After the case is open and the other side has appeared, later documents such as motions and notices are usually served by email. The portal can send them for you at the moment you file.

How it works

1. When filing in an existing case, review the e-service list the portal shows for that case.
2. Add your own email address so you receive what others file.
3. Select the recipients and submit. The portal emails each of them a link to the document.

Many Florida court forms, including financial affidavits and some petitions, must be notarized. A Florida online notary can do this over live video. State law caps the notary's fee at $25 per online notarial act. The technology platform may add its own separate charge.

How it works

1. Upload the unsigned document to an online notarization service that uses Florida-commissioned online notaries.
2. Prove your identity with a government photo ID and a short set of identity questions.
3. Join a recorded video session and sign electronically while the notary watches.
4. Download the notarized PDF, ready to e-file.

Parents in a Florida divorce or paternity case involving minor children must complete the Parent Education and Family Stabilization Course. Approved providers offer it online, and prices differ from one provider to the next.

How it works

1. Choose a provider from the approved list kept by the Florida Department of Children and Families, and check that your county accepts online completion.
2. Take the course at your own pace. It runs about four hours.
3. Download your certificate of completion and e-file it in your case.

Judges send most contested family cases to mediation before trial. Each circuit's court mediation program charges a per-session fee based on the couple's combined income: $60 per person when it is under $50,000 a year, and $120 per person when it is between $50,000 and $100,000. Couples above $100,000 use private mediators, who commonly bill by the hour. Many programs now hold sessions by video.

How it works

1. The judge orders mediation, or your circuit refers the case automatically.
2. File a financial affidavit so the program can set your fee, then pay the clerk.
3. Attend the session in person or by video link. Any agreement you reach is written up, signed, and filed.

Many short hearings, including uncontested final hearings in some counties, are held by video conference. Whether yours can be remote is up to the judge.

How it works

1. Read your notice of hearing. It states whether the hearing is in person or remote and gives the link.
2. Check the judge's page on your circuit court website for that judge's remote hearing rules.
3. Test your camera and microphone, join a few minutes early, and have your ID and documents within reach.

Each county clerk runs an online records search where you can follow your docket and see what has been filed. Viewing is free. Paper and certified copies, such as a certified final judgment, carry per-page clerk fees listed on the clerk's fee schedule.

How it works

1. Go to your county clerk's website and open the court records search.
2. Search by case number or by name.
3. Order certified copies online or by mail if you need them for a name change, a bank, or another agency.