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 currently requires that no matter be referred to a magistrate without consent of the parties. The amendments authorize referral of residential mortgage foreclosure cases to a magistrate with… Read more
In this medical malpractice case, a husband sued after his wife died allegedly from kidney failure after the defendant doctor performed surgery. At the trial, the husband testified about various issues, including his wife’s active lifestyle before the surgery, and date of the onset of kidney problems. After the trial, the husband quarrelled with his… Read more
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 sought to set aside the final judgment pursuant to Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.540(b)(3). The trial court granted plaintiff’s motion finding that the defendant (1) had destroyed… Read more
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 the proposal is mailed. The ambiguity came about following the changes to Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.090 and Florida Rule of Judicial Administration 2.514(b). Florida Rule of… Read more
In this medical business dispute between a buyer and sellers of surgical centers, the trial court entered an order precluding the sellers from communicating with any third party, including those in other countries, about the facts of the case without first proceeding through the court’s formal discovery process. The appellate court reversed, holding that the… Read more
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 between the parties. Defendant introduced forum selection clause by attaching a copy of the applicable contact to his Motion to Dismiss. Plaintiff had… Read more
In this contentious foreclosure case, the lender filed multiple complaints that allegedly attached an inauthentic mortgage and assignment. After receiving a sanctions motion by defense counsel, the lender dismissed the action without prejudice. The lender then filed a second lawsuit in which it submitted yet another purported assignment with a different date and signed by… Read more
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 of the defendants attempted to set aside the default and Caterpillar filed its motion for final judgment based upon the clerk’s default. The summary judgment… Read more
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 stated: Diamond Aircraft offers to settle this case on the following terms: 1. Diamond Aircraft shall pay Plaintiff the sum of forty thousand dollars ($40,000.00).… Read more
In this case, the plaintiffs filed a complaint for a “pure bill of discovery” to obtain information attempting to confirm plaintifffs’ suspicions that a 50% owner of the subject company had misappropriated corporate assets. The trial court dismissed the complaint, and the appellate court affirmed, on the basis that “the bill of discovery was improper because the [plaintiffs]… Read more