What the Marchman Act does
Florida’s Marchman Act provides for voluntary admission and for involuntary assessment, stabilization, and treatment of adults and youth who are severely impaired by substance abuse. It exists for the situation families describe most often: someone whose use has taken away their ability to decide they need help, even though people who love them can see the harm.
It is a court process, not a treatment program and not an emergency service. If anyone in the household is in immediate danger, call 911 first. For a mental health crisis, call or text 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. A petition takes time to prepare and file, and it cannot replace getting help right now.
Filing is also not the only route. The Act covers voluntary admission as well, and a person who will accept help voluntarily avoids a hearing entirely. Families often learn that a loved one who refuses to walk into a program on their own will go after an assessment order is entered.
It is a two-step court process
Step one is a Petition for Involuntary Substance Abuse Assessment and Stabilization. The court decides whether your loved one should be ordered to undergo a substance abuse assessment. Step two is a Petition for Treatment, in which the court decides whether to order involuntary treatment for up to 90 days.
The second petition cannot be filed until the first one has been filed and ruled upon, so plan on the assessment being a separate stage rather than one hearing that settles everything. The court can also extend or release someone from involuntary services, and Florida publishes the required forms for those situations.
Because the process runs through the courts in your county, procedures and paperwork vary. Your clerk of court’s office can explain filing procedures and direct you to the forms, but clerk staff and court program staff are not your lawyers and cannot give legal advice.
Who can file, and what the court has to hear
For an adult, a petition may be filed by a spouse or legal guardian, any relative, a service provider, or an adult who has direct personal knowledge of the person’s substance abuse impairment and their prior course of assessment and treatment. For a minor, a parent, legal guardian, or service provider may file.
The filing standard is deliberately specific. There must be a good faith reason to believe the person is substance-abuse impaired and, because of that impairment, has lost the power of self-control over substance use. On top of that, one of two further conditions must be true.
Florida also allows the court to waive or law enforcement to waive service-of-process fees when a petitioner is indigent, so filing costs should not by themselves stop a family from asking the court to look at the situation.
- Good faith belief the person is substance-abuse impaired
- Loss of power of self-control over substance use
- Needs services and cannot rationally decide that they do, OR
- Likely to suffer harmful neglect, or to threaten or attempt physical harm to self or others
- Indigent petitioners may have service fees waived
Practical things families should know before filing
Use the mandatory Florida forms exactly as issued. The Department of Children and Families publishes forms such as the Petition for Involuntary Substance Abuse Assessment and Stabilization, and warns that mandatory forms may not be altered—changing one can jeopardize its validity. Recommended forms are not required but should also be used as written.
Talk to a lawyer before you file if you can. Courts state plainly that people should obtain an attorney, and that the court and program staff do not represent you. The Florida Bar’s lawyer referral service is one way to find one; many families also find that a local treatment provider or recovery organization can point them toward experience with the local process.
Write down what you have personally seen and when, including prior assessments and treatment, because the petition asks about a course of impairment rather than a single bad week. Keep the documents you gather for the court separate from anything you share with a future housing provider—you are not required to send medical records to a sober living home by text message.
After an order: where recovery housing fits
An assessment or treatment order addresses the clinical question. It does not solve the housing question, and that is usually the harder problem once a hospital or treatment stay ends. Continuing care after a Marchman order commonly means outpatient treatment, recovery support, and a substance-free place to live with accountability.
A recovery residence is not part of the court order and is not clinical care. Brevard Grace House is a recovery residence, not a licensed treatment provider: it cannot file a petition, provide assessment or stabilization, deliver therapy, or supervise medication. It offers a women-only, structured home where a woman can keep the routine treatment asks of her.
That home is not open yet. Brevard Grace House opens January 15, 2027 and is accepting inquiries now for future admission at $195 per week, all-inclusive, plus a one-time $100 move-in fee. Children cannot currently live with residents. Call or text admissions at (407) 758-0958 and name Brevard Grace House to ask about the women’s program, MAT policy, and future admission.
This article is general information about a Florida statute, not legal advice. Court procedures differ by county, deadlines and forms change, and only an attorney can advise you on your own situation.
- Confirm the current forms with your clerk of court
- Ask a lawyer about your specific facts and timeline
- Keep your own written record of observations and prior treatment
- Plan housing and outpatient care for the day the order ends
- Call 911 for danger, 988 for a mental health crisis
Sources & further reading
These resources explain general recovery housing standards and support options; they do not certify or endorse Brevard Grace House.
General educational content, not medical or legal advice. Confirm house policies, rates, location, and availability directly with admissions.