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Insurance — Automobile — Non-owned vehicles — Regular use — Coverage — Action stemming from fatal single-vehicle accident brought against non-owner driver’s insurer alleging a breach of duty to defend and indemnify in wrongful death action — Trial court erred in entering partial summary judgment in favor of plaintiff because there was no coverage for the subject loss under driver’s insurance policy, which defined a covered “non-owned auto” as a private passenger auto “not owned by, furnished or available for regular use” of either the insured or insured’s relative, other than a “temporary substitute auto” — The phrase “furnished or available for regular use” is clear and unambiguous, and trial court was required to construe it in accordance with its plain meaning — Subject vehicle was not covered under driver’s policy where, although the owner of the vehicle arguably may not have furnished the subject vehicle to the driver for regular use, the undisputed facts reflect that subject vehicle was nevertheless ready for use; readily obtainable; and accessible to the driver for usual, normal, or customary use at driver’s discretion, such that it was “available for regular use” — Remand for entry of final judgment in favor of insurer

46 Fla. L. Weekly D1079b GEICO INDEMNITY COMPANY, Appellant, v. BRIAN WALKER, as personal representative of the estate of SOPHIE C. WALKER and as assignee of the estate of ANDRES IGNACIO RODRIGUEZ GOMEZ, and CARLOS ENRIQUE GILL RAMIREZ a/k/a CARLOS GILL, Appellees. 4th District. Case No. 4D20-764. May 12, 2021. Appeal and cross-appeal from the Read More »

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Torts — Discovery — Plaintiff failed to meet his burden to establish reversible error in trial court’s order granting defendant’s motion for protective order and denying plaintiff’s motion to compel depositions where plaintiff has failed to provide transcript of hearing during which discovery motions were discussed — Summary judgment — Claim that trial court erred in denying plaintiff’s motion to continue summary judgment hearing was not preserved for appellate review where plaintiff never obtained an order denying his motion to continue hearing

46 Fla. L. Weekly D1028a HENRY TIEN, Appellant, v. AKERMAN LLP (and the terminated AKERMAN, SENTERFITT & EIDSON, P.A.), Appellees. 3rd District. Case No. 3D19-0281. L.T. Case No. 15-7219. May 5, 2021. An Appeal from the Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County, Thomas J. Rebull, Judge. Counsel: Henry Tien, in proper person. Kubicki Draper, P.A., and Read More »

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Rules of Civil Procedure — Amendment — Summary judgment — Adoption of amendment to rule 1.510 which largely replaces the text of rule 1.510 with text of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56 — Discussion of federal summary judgment standard and the application of the new rule 1.510 — Unlike rule 56, rule 1.510 makes the trial court’s obligation to state its reasons for granting or denying a summary judgment mandatory — Court must state reasons for its decisions with enough specificity to provide useful guidance to the parties and to allow for appellate review — Summary judgment motion must be filed at least 40 days before time fixed for a hearing, and nonmovant must respond with its supporting factual position at least 20 days before hearing — Discussion of application to pending cases

46 Fla. L. Weekly S95a IN RE: AMENDMENTS TO FLORIDA RULE OF CIVIL PROCEDURE 1.510. Supreme Court of Florida. Case No. SC20-1490. April 29, 2021. Original Proceeding — Florida Rules of Civil Procedure. Counsel: Evelyn Fletcher Davis on behalf of Hawkins Parnell & Young LLP, Atlanta, Georgia; Jennifer Marie Voss, Tampa, and Daniel B. Rogers Read More »

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Civil procedure — Default — Trial court erred in granting motion to vacate default judgment entered in action alleging fraudulent lien on homestead property where defendant failed to establish excusable neglect, meritorious defense, and due diligence — Ignorance of the law does not constitute excusable neglect — Delay of more than five months between learning of default and final judgment and filing of motion to vacate does not constitute due diligence

46 Fla. L. Weekly D914a WENDELL LOCKE, Appellant, v. LEVI WHITEHEAD and NICHOLA WHITEHEAD, Appellees. 4th District. Case No. 4D20-2097. April 21, 2021. Appeal of nonfinal order from the Circuit Court for the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, Broward County; Jeffrey R. Levenson, Judge; L.T. Case No. CACE19022311. Counsel: Wendell Locke of Locke Law, P.A., Plantation, for Read More »

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Torts — Jurors — For-cause challenge — Denial — New trial — Claim that plaintiff was denied a fair trial because trial court erroneously denied plaintiff’s for-cause challenge of a potential juror, forcing plaintiff to use a peremptory strike and leaving plaintiff without a challenge to strike another specified juror plaintiff found subjectively objectionable — Based on the methodology the trial court used for jury selection whereby six randomly selected jurors would be put “in the box” as a panel of presumptive principal jurors followed by two separate groups of presumptive alternatives and “on deck” jurors, plaintiff’s claim of error could not have resulted in a miscarriage of justice — Even if plaintiff had a peremptory strike left for the specified juror, plaintiff still would have had a juror plaintiff found subjectively objectionable serving on his jury because of the process by which struck jurors were replaced from the two groups of alternative jurors — In the absence of a demonstration by plaintiff that a miscarriage of justice stemmed from asserted error by the trial court, appellate court has no authority to reverse or grant a new trial

46 Fla. L. Weekly D938a JAMES SEADLER, Appellant, v. MARINA BAY RESORT CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION, INC. d/b/a MARINA BAY RESORT, Appellee. 1st District. Case No. 1D19-850. April 26, 2021. On appeal from the Circuit Court for Okaloosa County. William F. Stone, Judge. Counsel: Charles F. Beall, Jr., and Haley J. VanFleteren of Moore, Hill & Westmoreland, Read More »

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