Post-Judgment Interest in Florida

Post-judgment interest in Florida accrues on every money judgment from the date of entry until the judgment is paid. Florida Statute § 55.03 requires the Chief Financial Officer to set the applicable interest rate quarterly by averaging the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s discount rate over the preceding 12 months and adding 400 basis points. The current rate is published on the CFO’s website. In recent years, the statutory rate has ranged from approximately 4% to over 9%, depending on Federal Reserve policy.

Interest accrues as simple interest on the judgment principal. Florida courts do not compound post-judgment interest. At a hypothetical rate of 8%, a $500,000 judgment generates $40,000 per year in interest alone, and that interest continues accumulating for the full 20-year life of the judgment.

How the Rate Is Set

The CFO publishes the statutory rate four times per year, on December 1, March 1, June 1, and September 1, for the following calendar quarter. The formula is the 12-month average of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s discount rate plus 4%. When the Federal Reserve raises or lowers its rates, the Florida judgment interest rate follows with a lag.

The statutory rate applies unless a written contract between the parties specifies a different rate. Judgments arising from contracts that include an interest provision, such as promissory notes, commercial leases, or credit agreements, use the contractual rate instead. The contractual rate can be higher or lower than the statutory rate, and it remains fixed regardless of changes to the CFO’s published rate.

Three Statutory Eras

Florida’s approach to post-judgment interest has changed twice in the last three decades, creating three distinct regimes that still affect judgments in force today.

Before October 1998. The statutory rate was set annually and remained fixed for the life of the judgment. From October 1981 through December 1994, the rate was 12% per annum. Any judgment entered during that period that remains unsatisfied still accrues interest at 12%.

October 1998 through June 2011. The Legislature amended § 55.03 to provide that the rate established at entry would remain the same until the judgment was paid. The Florida Supreme Court in Townsend v. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. (2016) confirmed that litigants who obtained judgments during this window have a vested right to the fixed rate. A judgment entered in 2005 at 7% continues to accrue at 7% regardless of subsequent rate changes.

July 2011 to present. Chapter 2011-169 introduced annual rate adjustments. The rate is set at entry based on the current quarter’s rate, then adjusts every January 1 to whatever rate the CFO has established for that quarter. A judgment entered mid-year may start at one rate and shift to a different rate the following January, then adjust again each subsequent year until paid.

Era	Rate behavior	Example
Pre-1998	Fixed at entry for life of judgment	12% (1981–1994)
1998–2011	Fixed at entry per Townsend	7% judgment in 2005 stays at 7%
Post-2011	Adjusts annually on January 1	Rate at entry shifts each Jan 1

Federal Judgment Interest

Judgments entered in federal court use a different rate. Under 28 U.S.C. § 1961, federal post-judgment interest is calculated using the weekly average one-year Treasury bill rate as of the date the judgment is entered. The federal rate is typically lower than the Florida statutory rate—often by half or more.

This distinction matters for debtors facing both state and federal judgments. A $500,000 federal judgment may accrue roughly half the annual interest of the same amount in Florida state court. The difference grows significantly over time and can influence whether a debtor prioritizes settling one judgment over the other.

Calculating Interest on Partial Payments

When a debtor makes partial payments on a judgment, the payment applies first to accrued interest and then to principal—unless the parties agree otherwise. This allocation rule means early payments may not reduce the principal balance at all if substantial interest has already accumulated.

Consider a $200,000 judgment entered at 9%. After one year, approximately $18,000 in interest has accrued, bringing the total owed to $218,000. If the debtor pays $15,000 at the one-year mark, the entire payment goes to interest, leaving $3,000 in unpaid interest and the full $200,000 principal still outstanding. The debtor has paid $15,000 and reduced the total obligation by only $15,000 in interest rather than reducing the principal.

Prejudgment vs. Post-Judgment Interest

Prejudgment interest compensates the plaintiff for the loss of use of money between the date the obligation arose and the date the judgment is entered. In contract cases, prejudgment interest is generally available as a matter of right at the statutory rate from the date payment was due. In tort cases, courts have discretion to award prejudgment interest, but the analysis is more complex and outcomes vary.

Once a final judgment is entered, post-judgment interest replaces prejudgment interest and begins accruing automatically. The judgment should state the applicable interest rate on its face as required by § 55.03(2). If the judgment does not include the interest rate, the sheriff is not required to collect on the writ.

Prejudgment interest is generally not folded into the judgment amount for purposes of calculating post-judgment interest. Florida courts treat post-judgment interest as simple interest on the principal judgment, costs, and attorney’s fees—not on any previously awarded prejudgment interest. Including prejudgment interest in the base would effectively compound interest, which Florida law disfavors.

Interest and Settlement Strategy

Post-judgment interest creates financial pressure on both sides of a settlement negotiation. For the debtor, a judgment accruing at the statutory rate grows by tens of dollars per day for every $100,000 owed. Delay increases the total liability, and interest continues accruing even while the debtor claims exemptions or contests collection efforts.

For the creditor, the interest clock cuts both ways. A creditor holding an uncollectable judgment watches the nominal balance grow while receiving nothing. If the debtor’s assets are largely exempt—protected by homestead, head-of-household wages, retirement accounts, or tenants by entireties ownership—the growing interest balance represents theoretical rather than collectible value.

This dynamic is central to asset protection planning. A debtor whose assets are well protected can offer a lump-sum settlement that represents immediate, certain recovery for the creditor. The creditor’s alternative is continuing to hold a judgment that grows on paper but produces no actual payment. At current rates, a $300,000 judgment accrues over $25,000 per year in interest. A creditor who cannot reach the debtor’s protected assets may prefer $75,000 in hand today over $425,000 on paper five years from now.

Interest After Satisfaction or Bankruptcy

Post-judgment interest stops accruing when the judgment is satisfied in full, when the debtor files for bankruptcy and receives a discharge, or when the judgment expires after 20 years. A satisfaction of judgment filed under § 55.141 terminates both the judgment and any further interest accrual.

In bankruptcy, post-judgment interest on unsecured claims is generally not allowed under the Bankruptcy Code. If the debtor receives a Chapter 7 discharge, the underlying judgment and all accrued interest are extinguished. This is one reason creditors may prefer to negotiate a settlement rather than push a debtor into bankruptcy, where the creditor risks receiving nothing.

Understanding how interest accumulates on a Florida judgment is essential for evaluating the true cost of delay and the realistic value of settlement offers. The statutory rate, the three-era framework, and the interaction between interest and asset protection all shape the debtor’s strategic options.