46 Fla. L. Weekly D194a FRED MEYERS and NINIBETH MEYERS, Appellants, v. BONNEVA SHONTZ, Appellee. 2nd District. Case No. 2D19-1294. Opinion filed January 20, 2021. Appeal from the Circuit Court for Pinellas County; Pamela A.M. Campbell, Judge. Counsel: Elizabeth C. Wheeler of Elizabeth C. Wheeler, P.A., Orlando, for Appellants. Robert W. Hitchens of Hitchens & Read More »
Uncategorized
Torts — Premises liability — Action against general contractor on construction project by employee of subcontractor who was injured when he stepped into an uncovered drain on the construction project — Error to enter summary judgment for defendant on basis that defendant had no duty to warn plaintiff of open and obvious danger — Further, even if danger was open and obvious, defendant still had duty to maintain premises in reasonably safe condition, and defendant failed to establish that it should not have anticipated the potential harm to plaintiff as a result of the uncovered drain notwithstanding his knowledge of the danger
46 Fla. L. Weekly D186a JONATHAN PRATUS, Appellant, v. MARZUCCO’S CONSTRUCTION & COATINGS, INC., Appellee. 2nd District. Case No. 2D19-2807. Opinion filed January 15, 2021. Appeal from the Circuit Court for Lee County; Alane C. Laboda, Judge. Counsel: Alexander Brockmeyer of Boyle, Leonard & Anderson, P.A., Fort Myers, for Appellant. Robert Anderson of Yeslow & Read More »
Insurance — Property — Consequential damages — In a first-party breach of contract action brought by an insured against its insurer, Florida law does not allow the insured to recover extra-contractual, consequential damages, such as damages for lost rental income — Contractual amount due to the insured is the amount owed pursuant to express terms and conditions of policy — Extra-contractual damages are recoverable in a separate bad faith action, but are not recoverable in an action against Citizens Property Insurance Corporation because Citizens is statutorily immune from first-party bad faith claims
46 Fla. L. Weekly S21a CITIZENS PROPERTY INSURANCE CORPORATION, Petitioner, v. MANOR HOUSE, LLC, et al., Respondents. Supreme Court of Florida. Case No. SC19-1394. January 21, 2021. Application for Review of the Decision of the District Court of Appeal — Certified Great Public Importance. Fifth District – Case No. 5D17-2841 (Brevard County). Counsel: Raoul G. Read More »
Torts — Negligence — High school athletics — Contracts — Release from liability — Action filed against school board alleging school board should have covered or moved a cement barrier upon which plaintiff student athlete injured himself after opponent hit plaintiff into barrier during soccer match — No error in entering summary judgment in favor of school board based on determination that an executed pre-game consent and release from liability certificate barred plaintiff’s claim — Plaintiff’s claims that release was ambiguous and unenforceable and that, for public policy reasons, it should be treated no differently than a pre-injury release for commercial establishments were not preserved for appeal — Even if plaintiff had preserved claims, the subject release was unambiguous and enforceable where it stated that the school board was released from liability for any injury or claim resulting from athletic participation — Fact that language releasing the school board from any injury or claim resulting from athletic participation was a smaller font size than portion of release addressing inherent dangers does not somehow change its meaning or render the release unclear or ambiguous
46 Fla. L. Weekly D114a ETHAN ELALOUF, Appellant, v. SCHOOL BOARD OF BROWARD COUNTY, a political subdivision of the State of Florida, Appellee. 4th District. Case No. 4D19-3272. January 6, 2021. Appeal from the Circuit Court for the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, Broward County; Michael A. Robinson, Judge; L.T. Case No. CACE17-022265 (13). Counsel: Donna Greenspan Read More »
Torts — Premises liability — Trip and fall — Minors — Open and obvious danger — Action arising from injuries seven-year-old student suffered as a result of running into a glass table in private school’s auditorium after being required to run through a makeshift course during gym class — Error to enter final summary judgment in favor of defendant on basis that the table was an open and obvious risk of which plaintiff was aware — Given disputed facts about where table was placed, whether it had been on the running course before, and reasonableness of a seven-year-old’s potential distraction under the circumstances, it cannot be said that the table was “open and obvious” as a matter of law — Even if table was considered an open and obvious danger to someone of plaintiff’s age under the circumstances, it is a separate and independent issue of negligence whether defendant created a hazardous condition by using the auditorium for running, placing the glass top table in the pathway of the children’s running course, failing to properly supervise the children’s indoor running class, and generally failing to maintain a safe premises under the circumstances — While open and obvious danger doctrine can absolve a property owner on a failure to warn theory, it does not absolve a property owner’s duty to protect invitees from reasonably foreseeable risks, even if invitees are aware of the dangerous conditions, particularly ones they cannot avoid — Telling seven-year-olds to look forward and avoid distractions when running with classmates on a makeshift running course fails to account for the higher duty of care and is insufficient to avoid all liability under these circumstances, which is true even if the seven-year-old was aware of the pedestal table
46 Fla. L. Weekly D140c SOPHIA COLLIAS, a minor, by and through her parents and legal guardians, JOHN COLLIAS and HELEN COLLIAS, both individually and as parents of Sophia Collias, Appellants, v. GATEWAY ACADEMY OF WALTON COUNTY, INC., Appellee. 1st District. Case No. 1D19-262. January 11, 2021. On appeal from the Circuit Court for Walton Read More »