Hon. Benjamin J. Rich — Judicial Procedures
County Criminal
Quick operational summary based on publicly available court procedure materials. Always verify with the official court source before relying on this information.
Quick Rules
UMC / Motion Calendar
Parties should contact the opposing party before filing or upon receiving a motion to determine whether the matter can be resolved or an agreed order submitted.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Qualifying credit-card-case MSJ or MSD hearings of no more than 15 minutes may be reserved by emailing the judicial assistant.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Hearings may not be scheduled on motions that have not yet been filed, and a notice of hearing must be filed immediately after securing hearing time.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
The scheduling party must reserve sufficient time for all parties’ arguments; hearings with insufficient time will be stricken and continued.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Before unilaterally scheduling a hearing, the requesting party must make good-faith reasonable efforts to coordinate; the notice and written certification must identify those efforts.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
The scheduling party must immediately file and serve the notice of hearing after reserving time, including specified case, hearing, matter, judge, time, remote-appearance, and ADA information.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Courtesy Copies
Additional memoranda or legal authorities may be filed at least three business days before the hearing, with simultaneous delivery to opposing parties.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Zoom Hearings
Hearings scheduled for one hour or longer or that are evidentiary must be attended in person; non-evidentiary hearings under one hour may be attended in person or remotely.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Proposed Orders
Proposed orders must be submitted in Microsoft Word by division email; PDFs are not accepted and the email may be used only for proposed orders.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Emails submitting agreed proposed orders should identify the agreement and use an “Agreed Order…” or “Unopposed Order…” title.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Proposed orders must be submitted within 10 days after a hearing unless the court instructs otherwise.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Special Set Hearings
When evidence is not otherwise required to be provided to the opposing party before the hearing, parties should bring two additional copies of exhibits.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Texts and photos available only on electronic devices must be printed, and videos must be saved to a flash drive.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
To set a case for trial, a party must file a notice for trial.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Trial counsel and self-represented parties must attend docket sounding with calendars and the availability of important witnesses for the trial week.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Emergency Motions
A party seeking an emergency hearing must file a detailed motion stating the issues, reasons an emergency hearing is necessary, and time needed for each party’s presentation.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
After filing an emergency motion, the party should contact the judicial assistant by emailing a copy of the motion; if the court determines an emergency exists, the court schedules the hearing.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Discovery Disputes
Proposed ex parte orders compelling discovery must comply with Administrative Order CV-2022-004-SC, including written notice giving the opposing party 10 days to provide discovery and attaching that notice to the motion to compel.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Cancellations
Hearings may be cancelled only by authorized persons; cancellation requires immediate email and phone notice to the judicial assistant and immediate filing and service of a notice of cancellation.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Hearings may not be cancelled fewer than two business days before the hearing unless the case fully settles or an agreed order fully resolves the matters.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Other
Email subject lines should include the case number, case name, and relevant matter.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
All parties must be copied on emails to the judicial office unless an ex parte communication is authorized by law.
Verified Aug 10, 2026
Contact Information
Judicial Assistant
Carolyn Ryan
JA Email
division67@circuit7.orgPhone
(904) 827-5652Official Page
Court WebsiteLast Verified
June 30, 2026
Official Sources
Source: Official court page or published division procedure material.
Official court pageDivision procedures pageOther St. Johns County judges
- Hon. Alexander R. Christine, Jr.County Court
- Hon. Casey L. WoolseyCounty Criminal
- Hon. Christopher FerebeeCircuit Criminal
- Hon. Howard M. MaltzCircuit Civil
- Hon. Howard O. McGillin, Jr.Probate
- Hon. Kenneth J. Janesk, IIFamily Division
