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Hon. James F. Stewart — Judicial Procedures

Collier County General Civil (Including Foreclosure)

Quick operational summary based on publicly available court procedure materials. Always verify with the official court source before relying on this information.

Quick Rules

15 rules

Zoom Hearings

Regular Zoom or other remote appearances are not permitted for parents, their attorneys, DCF attorneys, or case managers in court proceedings.

Verified Aug 10, 2026

Children may appear by Zoom during school hours on school days or when they reside or attend school outside Collier County, Florida.

Verified Aug 10, 2026

Caregivers residing outside Collier County, Florida, may appear by Zoom.

Verified Aug 10, 2026

Experts may be permitted to testify by Zoom during evidentiary proceedings upon motion by the attorney calling the witness.

Verified Aug 10, 2026

Special Set Hearings

All people and parties must be ready for trial as scheduled; trials are called under a rolling schedule based on case age and legal requirements.

Verified Aug 10, 2026

Attorneys and unrepresented parties must be prepared to give a short opening statement and closing argument; the court may require a written closing or schedule oral closing argument later.

Verified Aug 10, 2026

Attorneys, clients, and necessary parties must be present at the beginning of the scheduled group time period for Judicial Review hearings, subject to the stated exceptions.

Verified Aug 10, 2026

Other

A motion must be filed in the court file before hearing time is obtained; a recently filed motion may be scanned and emailed with the hearing-time request if it is not yet visible in the file.

Verified Aug 10, 2026

Specified evidentiary motions must be filed before the applicable pretrial hearing or at least two weeks before the first day of a dependency adjudicatory trial period, and must be heard before that trial period begins.

Verified Aug 10, 2026

When scheduling a motion hearing by email, attorneys must copy all attorneys of record, identify the case number and motion, provide the filing date or docket line number, attach a recently filed motion if applicable, identify upcoming deadlines, and limit communication to scheduling matters.

Verified Aug 10, 2026

Attorneys must file witness and exhibit lists at least two weeks before the first day of the scheduled trial period; witness lists must identify the subject of testimony and whether expert testimony will be offered, except for parents at issue.

Verified Aug 10, 2026

Attorneys are expected to confer no later than two days before trial and, when possible, agree on exhibit admission.

Verified Aug 10, 2026

To schedule a motion hearing, contact Judge Stewart’s Judicial Assistant, Carol Andrews, at the expressly listed email address.

Verified Aug 10, 2026

The court, its Dependency Case Manager, and DCF attorneys are responsible for scheduling under applicable statutory time frames.

Verified Aug 10, 2026

Continuances may be limited and are governed by Florida Rule of Juvenile Procedure 8.200(d) and the listed statutory provisions.

Verified Aug 10, 2026

Contact Information

Judicial Assistant

Carol

Zoom

Join Meeting

ID: 820-1959-326

Official Page

Court Website

Last Verified

June 30, 2026

Official Sources

Source: Official court page or published division procedure material.

Official court pageDivision procedures page

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