FAMILY LAW: DUE PROCESS: TRIAL COURT DID NOT VIOLATE DUE PROCESS BY DENYING PETITION FOR MODIFICATION WITHOUT A HEARING BECAUSE PETITION WAS ACTUALLY AN UNTIMELY MOTION FOR REHEARING OR RECONSIDERATION

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Westwood v. Westwood, ___ So. 3d ___, 40 Fla. L. Weekly D539 (Fla. 5th DCA February 27, 2015)

The trial court entered a partial final judgment of dissolution of marriage permitting the minor children to move to the United Kingdom with their father. The mother did not appeal but, thirty four days later, she filed a petition for modification … Click To Read Full Case Law Review...

TRUSTS: GUARDIANSHIP: CIVIL PROCEDURE: SUMMARY JUDGMENT: ORDERS: RULES OF CONSTRUCTION: AMBIGUOUS ORDER: PAROL EVIDENCE: TRIAL COURT ERRED BY ENTERING SUMMARY JUDGMENT DETERMINING THAT STIPULATION AND GUADIANSHIP ORDER UNAMBIGUOUSLY PREVENTED MAKER FROM AMENDING HER TRUST: ON REMAND, TRIAL COURT SHOULD CONSIDER PAROL EVIDENCE

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Whiting v. Whiting, ___ So. 3d ___, 40 Fla. L. Weekly D539 (Fla. 5th DCA February 27, 2015)

The mother created a trust, which provided for equal distributions to her three sons upon her death. Three years before she died, “concerns about [the mother’s] mental competency arose,” and two of her sons filed competing petitions for appointment as her … Click To Read Full Case Law Review...

TORTS: NEGLIGENCE: WRONGFUL DEATH: INHERENTLY DANGEROUS ACTIVITIES: WHETHER PARKING A FLAT BED TRUCK WITH REPLACEMENT POWER POLES ALONGSIDE A ROADWAY WAS AN ULTRAHAZARDOUS ACTIVITY WAS A QUESTION OF FACT FOR THE JURY, BUT THE EVIDENCE DID NOT AS A MATTER OF LAW SUPPORT THE AWARD OF PUNITIVE DAMAGES: AN ATTEMPT TO COVER UP LIABILITY FOR AN ACCIDENT AFTER IT HAS OCCURRED DOES NOT JUSTIFY AN AWARD OF PUNITIVE DAMAGES

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The L.E. Myers Company v. Young, ___ So. 3d ___, 40 Fla. L. Weekly D541 (Fla. 2d DCA February 27, 2015)

FPL hired a general contractor to replace four 85 foot power poles, weighing 21,000 pounds apiece. While the work was in progress, a motorist, who was “traveling at 91 miles per hour in a 40-mile-per-hour zone and weaving in … Click To Read Full Case Law Review...

REAL ESTATE: MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE; CIVIL PROCEDURE: AMENDMENT: SUMMARY JUDGMENT: TRIAL COURT ABUSED DISCRETION BY DENYING ORAL MOTION AT SUMMARY JUDGMENT HEARING TO AMEND ANSWER TO ALLEGE NONCOMPLIANCE WITH NOTICE OF DEFAULT REQUIREMENT IN PARAGRAPH 22 OF MORTGAGE

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Cobbum v. CitiMortgage, Inc., ___ So. 3d ___, 40 Fla. L. Weekly D545 (Fla. 2d DCA February 27, 2015)

The borrowers’ answer in a mortgage foreclosure admitted compliance with conditions precedent to filing suit; however, when the lender moved for summary judgment, the buyers filed an affidavit swearing that the lender failed to comply with a condition precedent by not … Click To Read Full Case Law Review...

REAL ESTATE: MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE: BECAUSE NOTE EXPRESSLY INCORPORATED HUD REGULATIONS THAT REQUIRE WRITTEN NOTICE OF ACCELERATION, BORROWER WAS ENTITLED TO RAISE FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THOSE REGULATIONS AS A VALID DEFENSE TO FORECLOSURE; CIVIL PROCEDURE: SUMMARY JUDGMENT: SUMMARY JUDGMENT REVERSED BECAUSE LENDER DID NOT DENY THAT IT FAILED TO PROVIDE NOTICE OF ACCELERATION OR ENTER NOTICE IN EVIDENCE

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Laws v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., ___ So. 3d ___, 40 Fla. L. Weekly D548 (Fla. 1st DCA February 27, 2015)

The appellate court reversed final summary judgment of mortgage foreclosure for the lender. “Because the note contain[ed] language specifically and expressly incorporating HUD regulations that require a written notice of acceleration, [the borrower] was entitled to raise failure … Click To Read Full Case Law Review...