Recording Law for Family Law in Florida

Florida law says you cannot legally record someone’s voice without getting permission from everyone taking part in the conversation first, but only where the conversation qualifies as a protected “oral communication” under the statute. The law is found in Florida Statutes § 934.03(2)(d), which states that it is illegal to intercept a “wire, oral, or electronic communication” unless all parties have given prior consent. If you record without this consent, you could face up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine under § 934.03(4)(a). Note: Florida Statutes § 934.03 was amended in 2024 by Chapter 2024-131 to add subsections (2)(k), (2)(l), and (2)(m), which allow certain recordings of evidence of abuse or violence or violations of injunctions without all-party consent; these exceptions do not change the core all-party consent rule that applies to ordinary private-citizen recordings. The all-party consent rule applies in settings where a reasonable expectation of privacy exists, which is typically higher inside a private residence than in public.

Florida Statutes § 934.02(2) defines a protected “oral communication” as an utterance made by a person exhibiting an expectation that such communication is not subject to interception under circumstances justifying such expectation. Florida’s courts use a two-part test to decide if a conversation is protected: first, the speaker must have a subjective expectation of privacy, and second, that expectation must be reasonable given the circumstances. For example, a loud argument in a busy park, where bystanders can easily hear, would likely not be protected because the speakers have no reasonable expectation of privacy. However, if the conversation happens in a quieter corner of the park or the speakers lower their voices, a court might decide the expectation of privacy was reasonable. This is not a bright-line rule—each situation depends on the facts. State v. Inciarrano, a Florida Supreme Court case, supports this approach by holding that a secretly recorded conversation in a business office accessible to others was not protected because the speaker had no reasonable expectation of privacy.

Florida’s wiretapping law only applies to recordings that capture the content of a protected “oral communication,” meaning the audio of a conversation where a reasonable expectation of privacy exists. If you record video without capturing any audio of such a conversation, Florida law does not restrict it. For example, filming a custody exchange in a public park without recording the conversation would not violate § 934.03. However, be aware that a separate law, Florida Statutes § 810.145, makes it illegal to covertly record someone in a private place where they have a reasonable expectation of privacy, such as a bathroom or bedroom, even if the recording is silent. Always check the location and context before recording.

You generally have the right to record police officers performing their duties in public under the First Amendment, as recognized by the Eleventh Circuit in Smith v. City of Cumming and Crocker v. Beatty. However, a 2025 decision, Steven DeWitt v. Ceressa Haney (11th Cir. May 12, 2025), narrows this right for non-traditional public spaces like police stations or government buildings, and the issue is still pending before the U.S. Supreme Court. In practical terms, recording police on public streets or sidewalks is protected, but recording inside a police station or similar location should be treated as restricted until a lawyer reviews the specifics. Also, Florida’s “Halo Law” (Fla. Stat. § 843.31) makes it a second-degree misdemeanor to stand within 25 feet of a first responder, including a police officer, after being told to back off, even if you are recording. Note: Florida Statutes § 934.03(2)(c) allows one-party consent for law-enforcement officers or persons acting under their direction gathering evidence of a crime, but this exception does not apply to private citizens.

Recording someone without their consent in Florida can lead to both criminal and civil penalties. Florida’s statute sets varying penalties depending on the type of violation. Under § 934.03(4), violating the all-party consent rule is punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine for general violations, while other violations carry first- or second-degree misdemeanor penalties. You could also face a civil lawsuit under § 934.10, where the recorded person can sue for actual damages of at least $100 per day, up to $1,000, plus punitive damages and attorney’s fees. The law allows lawsuits even if the recording was made in good faith or for a legitimate purpose. These consequences apply whether you record in person, over the phone, or through an electronic device.

Imagine you are involved in a custody dispute and want to record the exchange of your child with your ex-partner in a store parking lot. The lot is open to the public, and other shoppers are nearby. If your ex-partner speaks loudly and does not try to keep the conversation private, a court would likely find there was no reasonable expectation of privacy, so recording the audio would not violate Florida’s wiretapping law. However, if your ex-partner lowers their voice, steps away from others, or asks you not to record, the conversation might be protected under § 934.02(2), and recording without consent could lead to legal trouble. In this situation, it is safest to ask for consent before recording, even in a public place.

Florida Statutes § 934.03(2)(k), (2)(l), and (2)(m) (added in 2024) allow certain recordings without all-party consent: minors may record evidence of sexual abuse or violence against themselves; parents or legal guardians may record a minor child’s communications capturing evidence of sexual abuse or physical violence against the child (with mandatory law-enforcement disclosure and use restrictions); and persons protected by an injunction may record violations of that injunction. These exceptions are narrowly tailored and do not alter the general all-party consent rule for ordinary private-citizen recordings.