45 Fla. L. Weekly D2114a Attorney’s fees — Proposal for settlement which was served by plaintiff after the death of the original defendant and prior to the proper substitution of estate as party defendant was a legal nullity — Proposal for settlement violated party substitution requirements of rule 1.260(a)(1) and timing requirements of rule 1.442(b) Read More »
Archives for September 2020
Insurance — Coverage — Post-loss obligations — Notice of claims — Discovery — Privileged information — Waiver — Trial court did not depart form essential requirements of the law by allowing insurer to depose claims adjuster and insurer’s counsel on topics relevant to notice where trial court appropriately limited discovery to topics not precluded by law — Trial court departed from essential requirements of the law in allowing insured to depose certain corporate representatives on topics insurer’s counsel had agreed to in letter to insured’s counsel where topics extended beyond notice and discovery issues and into areas of claims handling and matters otherwise prohibited by law — Privilege was not waived by insurer’s counsel’s letter as an attorney cannot waive a privilege objection for a client even if counsel indicates an intent to produce certain discovery but later raises a privilege objection to production of that discovery
45 Fla. L. Weekly D2105a Insurance — Coverage — Post-loss obligations — Notice of claims — Discovery — Privileged information — Waiver — Trial court did not depart form essential requirements of the law by allowing insurer to depose claims adjuster and insurer’s counsel on topics relevant to notice where trial court appropriately limited discovery Read More »
Insurance — Uninsured motorist — Bad faith — Evidence — Settlement offers — Mediation communications — New trial — Loss of consortium — No error in dismissing insured wife’s loss of consortium claim where wife failed to file a civil remedy notice — Trial court erred in admitting insurer’s activity log which memorialized the insureds’ settlement offer at mediation — Activity log note containing insureds’ mediation offer was irrelevant where it had nothing to do with whether insurer acted in bad faith when it failed to tender policy limits until after insured husband’s CRN had expired — Note was inadmissible pursuant to section 90.408 where note reflected settlement negotiations between the same parties involved in the bad faith trial — Additionally, activity log note was inadmissible because it was a privileged mediation communication — Although insureds and the insurer were parties to the mediation, activity log note was published to a party outside the ambit of those privileged to see it under section 44.405 when it was introduced into evidence and published to the jury — Remand for new trial
45 Fla. L. Weekly D2121b Insurance — Uninsured motorist — Bad faith — Evidence — Settlement offers — Mediation communications — New trial — Loss of consortium — No error in dismissing insured wife’s loss of consortium claim where wife failed to file a civil remedy notice — Trial court erred in admitting insurer’s activity Read More »