Election Day – Amendment 5 News Coverage Roundup
Its election day and this is the rare election when a civil procedure issue is on the ballot. Florida’s Constitutional Amendment 5 would change how Florida’s courts operate and how Florida’s Supreme...
View ArticleAmendment 5 Defeated – Election Wrap-up
I will leave it to WPTV for the results: Amendment: 5: A Republican-sponsored proposal to give the GOP-dominated Legislature more control over Florida’s court system has been defeated at the polls....
View ArticleHappy New Year – Top 10 posts of 2012
Top 10 posts of 2012: New Rules for Service of Pleadings and Documents by E-mail Florida Supreme Court implements e-discovery amendments – Effective September 1st Rules Updates – New E-discovery and...
View ArticleOffer of Judgment Not Valid in Case With Monetary and Non-monetary Claims –...
In a case seeking monetary and non-monetary relief, pursuant to section 768.79, Florida Statutes (2011), Diamond Aircraft served Horowitch with an offer of judgment for $40,000. The offer of judgment...
View ArticleDefaulted Party Still Entitled to Hearing on Attorneys’ Fees – ZHOU v....
Caterpillar filed a complaint for damages and replevin against three defendants. After service on the defendants, they failed to answer, and Caterpillar secured a clerk’s default against them all. Two...
View ArticleTrial Court Could Look Beyond Four Corners of Complaint To Dismiss Case Based...
Plaintiff sued defendant for statutory and tort claims. Defendant moved to dismiss per Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.140 based on forum selection clause in contract signed with Plaintiff that governed all disputes...
View ArticleEffective Immediately – You Do Not Get Extra 5 Days for Mailing of Proposal...
Effective immediately, the Florida Supreme Court has amended Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.442 to clarify that you do not get an additional five days to respond to a proposal for settlement when...
View ArticleRecord Evidence Did Not Support Finding of Fraud on the Court – Ford v. Stimpson
In this products liability case, final judgment was entered in favor of the defendant following a four-week jury trial. The plaintiff alleged that the defendant had committed fraud on the court and...
View ArticleAmendment to Rule 1.490 re Use of Magistrates in Residential Foreclosures
The Florida Supreme Court has amended Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.490, effective immediately, to streamline the use magistrates in residential mortgage foreclosures. Subdivision (c) of the rule...
View ArticleFlorida E-filing Problems
Question for our attorney readers: Are you having trouble with e-filing? Ever since the switch, I have had numerous delays with the clerk processing basic matters. For instance, in one recent case in...
View ArticleError to Dismiss for Lack of Prosecution at Case Management Conference
After Plaintiff failed to attend a case management conference, the trial court issued an order which stated in its entirety: Neither plaintiff nor defendant appeared at duly set status conference....
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Please Take a Minute to Nominate the Florida Rules Decisions Reporter
The ABA is currently accepting nominations for the best legal blogs from around the country. For over four years, we have been keeping you up-to-date on the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure and...
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Plaintiff estopped from denying liability for attorneys’ fees
The Plaintiff in this Homeowner’s Association case lived and owned a home within a multi-association community. His neighborhood was governed by a Homeowners Association and the collection of...
View ArticleMatter Not At Issue – Reversible Error
In this mortgage foreclosure case, the trial court set the matter for trial within twenty days of the date on which the defendant answered the Complaint. Defense counsel objected to the trial...
View ArticleAfter One Year, Judgment Can Only Be Set Aside for Extrinsic Fraud
On February 25, 2010, an agreed final judgment of foreclosure was entered pursuant to a settlement agreement between the original lender and the defendants/appellees. On August 31, 2012, the defendants...
View ArticlePersonal Jurisdiction Over Judgment Debtor Not Necessary to Domesticate...
A judgment creditor sought to domesticate and enforce a foreign judgment in Florida. The judgment debtor challenged enforcement on the grounds that Florida lacked personal jurisdiction over the...
View ArticleCollecting on a Judgment
Miami-Dade County provides a nice guide to collecting on a money judgment. Some of the information is specific to Miami-Dade, but most of the information applies to judgments entered throughout the...
View ArticleTwo Requirements for Trial Court to Order Mental Evaluation of Party
In this family law case, the father sought to compel the examination of the mother by a psychologist pursuant to Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.360(a)(1). The trial court granted the motion and the...
View ArticleImproper to Enter Dismissal with Prejudice on Motion to Amend Complaint
In this medical malpractice case, the Plaintiff sought to file an Amended Complaint to, in part, add additional Defendants, which were referred to as the “Potential Defendants.” The Potential...
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