(1) Before taking judicial notice of a matter, the court may allow the parties to be heard on the propriety of taking judicial notice and on the nature of the matter to be noticed.
(2) If the court takes judicial notice of a matter before a party has been notified, the court shall, upon request, afford the party an opportunity to be heard.
(3) In a jury trial, the court shall instruct the jury that it may, but is not required to, accept as conclusive any matter judicially noticed.
Procedural Fairness: This statute outlines the procedure a court must follow when taking judicial notice to ensure that all parties have a chance to be heard on the issue.
Right to Be Heard: A party has a right to argue to the judge about whether it is proper to take judicial notice of a fact. Even if the judge takes notice of a fact without telling the parties first, a party can request a hearing on the matter after the fact to present their arguments.
Jury Instructions: This is a key feature of Florida law. For any matter that is judicially noticed, the judge must instruct the jury that they may, but are not required to, accept the fact as true. The jury has the final say on whether to accept the noticed fact as conclusive. This applies in both civil and criminal cases.
