Abbey Adams Logo

Defending Liability, Workers' Compensation, Employment Claims and Appeals Since 1982

  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

  • Bloglovin
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Phone
  • Home
  • Locations
    • Where We Practice in Florida
    • Where We Practice In Illinois
  • Practices
  • Attorneys
    • David J. Abbey
    • Jeffrey M. Adams
    • Bruce D. Burk
    • Robert P. Byelick
    • Jaime Eagan
    • Jennifer J. Kennedy
    • John D. Kiernan (1947-2016)
    • V. Joseph Mueller
    • Steven A. Ochsner
    • Alexis C. Upton
  • Blog
  • Links
  • Contact Us

April 3, 2020 by Jennifer Kennedy

Insurance — Appraisal — Video and audio recording — Appeals — Certiorari — Trial court did not depart from essential requirements of the law in allowing insured to make a video and audio recording of insurer’s appraiser’s inspection of the insured property — Allowing insured to record appraisal does not violate appraiser’s constitutional right to privacy, as constitutional right to privacy protects persons from governmental, not private, intrusion — Possibility that making of the recording might be unfairly used to harass or intimidate the appraiser does not rise to the level of irreparable harm

45 Fla. L. Weekly D756b

Insurance — Appraisal — Video and audio recording — Appeals — Certiorari — Trial court did not depart from essential requirements of the law in allowing insured to make a video and audio recording of insurer’s appraiser’s inspection of the insured property — Allowing insured to record appraisal does not violate appraiser’s constitutional right to privacy, as constitutional right to privacy protects persons from governmental, not private, intrusion — Possibility that making of the recording might be unfairly used to harass or intimidate the appraiser does not rise to the level of irreparable harm

STATE FARM FLORIDA INSURANCE COMPANY, Petitioner, v. ARMANDO CHIRINO, Respondent. 3rd District. Case No. 3D20-105. L.T. Case No. 19-6602. April 1, 2020. On Petition for Writ of Certiorari from the Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County, Spencer Eig, Judge. Counsel: Link & Rockenbach, P.A., and Kara Rockenbach Link and David A. Noel (West Palm Beach); Methe & Rothell, P.A., and Kristi Bergemann Rothell (West Palm Beach), for petitioner. Diener Law Firm, and Daniel Cruz (Plantation); Law Office of Gray Proctor and Gray Proctor (Richmond, VA), for respondent.

(Before LOGUE, LINDSEY, and GORDO, JJ.)

(LOGUE, J.) State Farm petitions for a writ of certiorari to quash the trial court’s decision allowing its insured, Armando Chirino, to make a video and audio recording of State Farm’s appraiser’s inspection of the insured property for purposes of an appraisal authorized under the policy.

“To grant certiorari relief, there must be: ‘(1) a material injury in the proceedings that cannot be corrected on appeal (sometimes referred to as irreparable harm); and (2) a departure from the essential requirements of the law.’ ” Florida Power & Light Co. v. Cook, 277 So. 3d 263, 264 (Fla. 3d DCA 2019) (quoting Nader v. Fla. Dep’t of Highway Safety & Motor Vehicles, 87 So. 3d 712, 721 (Fla. 2012)).

Among other things, State Farm asserts its appraiser has a right to privacy protected by the Florida Constitution when he visits the insured’s home for purposes of conducting the inspection. Art. I, § 23, Fla. Const. (“Every natural person has the right to be let alone and free from governmental intrusion into the person’s private life except as otherwise provided herein.”). State Farm argues that irreparable harm exists because its appraiser will lose the benefit of this right if the appraisal visit is recorded. We are not persuaded. Florida’s Constitutional right to privacy protects persons from governmental, not private intrusion. Mr. Chirino and his representatives are entitled to be present during the inspection. We therefore do not believe State Farm has shown how the trial court violated the privacy right provided by Article I, section 23 or otherwise departed from the essential requirements of law in authorizing Mr. Chirino, or someone on his behalf, from openly making such a recording of a legally required inspection in his own home.

State Farm notes that the making of the recording might be unfairly used to harass or intimidate its appraiser. The possibility of such misconduct, which presumably will be remedied by the trial court if it occurs, does not rise to the level of the irreparable harm required for certiorari. Thus, “[a]lthough [the petitioner] may have meritorious arguments in favor of a protective order at some later time in the litigation when the record is more developed, the record before us does not reflect that the orders under review amount to irreparable harm.” Cook, 277 So. 3d at 265. In this regard, the trial court expressly provided in the order that copies of the recordings must be made available to any party upon request.

Petition dismissed.

* * *

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Primary Sidebar

Blog Archives

  • January 2021
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013

Footer

The materials available at this website are for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. You should contact your attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue or problem. Use of and access to this Website or any of the e-mail links contained within the site do not create an attorney-client relationship between Abbey, Adams, Byelick & Mueller, L.L.P. and the user or browser. The opinions expressed at or through this site are the opinions of the individual author and may not reflect the opinions of the firm or any individual attorney. opens in a new windowAbbey, Adams, Byelick, & Mueller XML Sitemap Index

Copyright © 2021 · Abbey Adams Byelick & Mueller, LLP · All Rights Reserved · Defending Liability, Workers' Compensation, Employment Claims and Appeals Since 1982