§ 90.206, Fla. Stat. — Instructing the Jury on Judicial Notice
Plain English
This is what gives judicial notice its teeth in front of a jury. Once the court has taken judicial notice of a matter, it may instruct the jury to accept that matter as a fact. In other words, the jury doesn’t have to be persuaded of a noticed fact — the judge can tell them it’s established. (For the special civil-vs-criminal nuances on how conclusive that instruction is, see the related provisions in §§ 90.2035 and the federal rule below.)
From the Courtroom
An instruction that a fact is judicially noticed lands with real weight — the jury hears the court itself vouch that the point is settled. That’s exactly why the battle is fought earlier, at the notice stage: by the time the instruction is read, the fact is effectively locked in.
Key Points & Authority
- § 90.206, Fla. Stat. — The court may instruct the jury during trial to accept a judicially noticed matter as a fact.
- See § 90.2035(3) for the criminal-case nuance (jury told it may or may not accept noticed facts as conclusive).
- Federal parallel: Fed. R. Evid. 201(f) — in civil cases the jury must accept the noticed fact as conclusive; in criminal cases it may or may not.
Federal Parallel
The federal counterpart is Fed. R. Evid. 201(f), which draws an explicit line: in a civil case the court instructs the jury to accept the noticed fact as conclusive, while in a criminal case the jury may or may not accept it.
About this rule walkthrough
Part of The Evidence Code, hosted by John M. Phillips — Board Certified Civil Trial Lawyer, Court TV analyst, admitted in 8 states + 9 federal districts + SCOTUS.
Free consultation: (904) 444-4444 · About John Phillips
Educational only — not legal advice.
Rule Text (verbatim from the Florida Supreme Court)
The court may instruct the jury during the trial to accept as a fact a matter judicially noticed.
Educational reference. Educational only — not legal advice.
What this rule means in plain English
Section 90.206 allows the court to instruct the jury during trial to accept as a fact a matter that has been judicially noticed.