48 Fla. L. Weekly D2218e HOMEOWNERS CHOICE PROPERTY & CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY, INC., Petitioner, v. THOMAS S. THOMPSON and LISA D. THOMPSON, Respondents. 1st District. Case No. 1D2023-0970. November 22, 2023. Petition for Writ of Certiorari — Original Jurisdiction. Counsel: Curt Allen, Bryan D. Hull, and Lauren B. Yevich of Bush Ross, P.A., Tampa, for Read More »
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Torts — Premises liability — Restaurants — Slip and fall — Knowledge of dangerous condition — Evidence — Hearsay — Exceptions — Party admission — No error in entering summary judgment in favor of defendant — Trial court properly disregarded alleged oral statement of an anonymous server at the restaurant as inadmissible hearsay which could not be used to defeat motion for summary judgment based on defendant’s lack of knowledge of transitory foreign substance — While it was not necessary for plaintiff to know the name of the alleged server, the circumstantial evidence of the server’s identity as a defendant employee was insufficient where plaintiff provided only a physical description and did not attest to any characteristics such as a uniform or name tag, or what items, if any, the server was carrying to support plaintiff’s assertion that the anonymous declarant was in fact a server working for defendant
48 Fla. L. Weekly D2197a ELIZABETH SENTZ, Appellant, v. BONEFISH GRILL, LLC, Appellee. 4th District. Case No. 4D2022-2899. November 15, 2023. Appeal from the Circuit Court for the Nineteenth Judicial Circuit, Indian River County; Janet C. Croom, Judge; L.T. Case No. 312021CA000528. Counsel: Carlos D. Cabrera of Florida Advocates, Dania Beach, for appellant. Steven R. Read More »
Contracts — Settlement agreements — Enforcement — Trial court erred by enforcing settlement agreement without holding evidentiary hearing to settle dispute regarding whether a settlement agreement had been reached — Additionally, trial court erred by enforcing settlement at the same hearing in which the trial court allowed defendant’s attorney to withdraw, leaving defendant unrepresented
48 Fla. L. Weekly D2198b RADICA HARRIPERSAD, Appellant, v. LAKE PARK GARDENS #1, INC., a condominium, Appellee. 4th District. Case Nos. 4D2023-0318 and 4D2023-0319. November 15, 2023. Consolidated appeals from the Circuit Court for the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, Broward County; Michael Robinson, Judge; L.T. Case Nos. CACE20-11497 and CACE20-10884. Counsel: Herbert B. Dell of Herbert Read More »
Torts — Automobile accident — Vicarious liability — Dangerous instrumentality doctrine — Family members — Bailee — Driver of vehicle involved in automobile accident given permission to use vehicle by his mother, who was vehicle’s primary user, and his father, who held sole title to the vehicle — District court properly found that liability did not extend to the driver’s mother where driver’s father was found vicariously liable — Discussion of dangerous instrumentality doctrine — Under the dangerous instrumentality doctrine, one family member who is a bailee of a vehicle cannot be held vicariously liable when the vehicle’s acknowledged title owner is another family member who is also vicariously liable under the doctrine — While persons with property interests other than legal title may be vicariously liable under the dangerous instrumentality doctrine, the number of people liable under the doctrine is not multiplied every time a vehicle is shared — Those who originate the danger by entrusting the automobile to another, whether directly or by authorizing others, remain principally liable — Because driver’s father originated danger at issue by giving driver blanket permission to use vehicle, it was he, and not the driver’s mother, who is in the best position to face plaintiff’s claim for damages under dangerous instrumentality doctrine — While driver also had mother’s permission to use the vehicle, that fact is immaterial because the title holder gave them both the same permission to use the car
48 Fla. L. Weekly S227a BRUCE KYLE EMERSON, Petitioner, v. KYLE MICHAEL LAMBERT, et al., Respondents. Supreme Court of Florida. Case No. SC2020-1311. November 16, 2023. Application for Review of the Decision of the District Court of Appeal Certified Great Public Importance/Direct Conflict of Decisions. Second District – Case Nos. 2D18-1872 & 2D18-4103 (Pasco County). Read More »
Insurance — Homeowners — Coverage — Water damage — Act of nature — Tear out costs — Water loss caused by deterioration of property’s cast iron plumbing — Trial court did not err in determining that water damage exclusion endorsement in subject policy, which excluded coverage for the overflow of water caused by any act of nature, was applicable because corrosion of plumbing is an “act of nature” — Discussion of meaning of “act of nature” — Only contextually reasonable meaning of “act of nature” is “something that naturally occurs,” which includes a naturally occurring process like rust and corrosion — Trial court erred in determining that limited water damage coverage endorsement, which only applied to “covered property” that suffered “sudden and accidental direct physical loss,” covered tear out and replacement cost of concrete slab that insureds had to destroy to access plumbing system — Slab was an ancillary loss and ancillary losses were excluded by the WDX endorsement — Additionally, ancillary slab damage caused by tear out was not a direct physical loss, much less a sudden and accidental one
48 Fla. L. Weekly D2172d PEOPLE’S TRUST INSURANCE COMPANY, Appellant/Cross-Appellee, v. PAUL GUNSSER, Appellee/Cross-Appellant. 6th District. Case No. 6D23-492. L.T. Case No. 20-CA-002396. November 9, 2023. Appeal from the Circuit Court for Lee County. Sherra Winesett, Judge. Counsel: Mark D. Tinker and Francesca M. Stein, of Cole, Scott & Kissane, P.A., Tampa, for Appellant/Cross-Appellee. Mark Read More »