2016

41 Fla. L. Weekly D1114b
190 So. 3d 1155

Insurance — Automobile liability — Attorney’s fees and costs — Trial court properly awarded attorney’s fees and costs against insurer jointly and severally with insured pursuant to plaintiff’s proposal for settlement — Policy provision stating that insurer would cover “other expenses incurred at our request” included costs associated with choosing to litigate a case instead of settling it — Conflict certified

41 Fla. L. Weekly D1649a
200 So. 3d 200

Attorney’s fees — Insurance — Sinkhole claims — Florida Insurance Guaranty Association — Homeowner who filed suit to enforce sinkhole policy was not entitled to recover attorney’s fees from FIGA where undisputed facts showed that FIGA did not deny claim by affirmative action — Discussion of interplay between section 631.70 which allows insured to seek attorney’s fees from FIGA related to enforcement of policy under certain circumstances and section 631.54(3)(c) that excludes attorney’s fees from “covered claims” in relation to a sinkhole loss

41 Fla. L. Weekly D788b
190 So. 3d 1110

Insurance — Sinkhole claims — Multi-building condominium property — Insured prevailing in action against insurer — Costs — Trial court abused its discretion in including reimbursement for public adjuster and property management fees in taxable costs, as property management fees and public adjuster fees were not litigation costs — Trial court erred in awarding as taxable cost various expenses and fees incurred in appraisal process where policy required insured to pay its own appraiser and bear equal share of umpire and other appraisal expenses — Attorney’s fees — Multiplier — Error to apply contingency risk multiplier where fee agreement guaranteed payment at a lesser hourly rate, which mitigated the risk of nonpayment, and evidence showed that attorney had been paid under the contract — Trial court erred by limiting recovery of attorney’s fees and prejudgment interest to only one building where suit encompassed other buildings in condominium complex

41 Fla. L. Weekly D1902a
209 So. 3d 11

Attorney’s fees — Appellate — Insurance — Insured prevailing in action against insurer — Attorney’s fees may be awarded under section 627.428 for services in appellate court, whether proceeding is direct appeal or petition for writ of certiorari — Insureds’ amended motion for attorney’s fees incurred in certiorari proceedings granted, conditioned upon their ultimately prevailing in trial court

41 Fla. L. Weekly D685b
190 So. 3d 154

Insurance — Health insurance — Forum selection clause — Arbitration — Trial court properly determined that there was a valid and enforceable forum selection clause in certificate of insurance which provided for mandatory and exclusive jurisdiction of action by insured against insurer in Delaware — Having determined that Delaware is the proper forum, court erred in contemporaneously compelling arbitration, as any order compelling arbitration must be rendered in Delaware as well

41 Fla. L. Weekly D998c
189 So. 3d 340

Insurance — Assignment of benefits — Where assignment of benefits from insured to plaintiff was clear and unambiguous, it was error to allow introduction of extrinsic evidence to determine meaning of agreement — Assignment of insurance benefits transferred to assignee standing to litigate coverage issue raised by insurer when it denied claim

41 Fla. L. Weekly D1385a
192 So. 3d 1275

Insurance — Homeowners — Post-loss claims are assignable without consent of insurer — Error to enter summary judgment in favor of insurer in assignee’s action against insurer

41 Fla. L. Weekly D349a
185 So. 3d 638

Insurance — Homeowners — Post-loss assignment of benefits — Trial court erred in finding that insured was precluded from assigning benefits of homeowners policy to emergency water mitigation company without consent of insurer — Language of policy merely prohibited insured’s unilateral assignment of the entire policy, not a financial benefit derived from the policy — Florida law prohibits an insurer from restricting an insured’s unilateral post-loss assignment of a benefit derived from policy

41 Fla. L. Weekly D730a
187 So. 3d 932

Insurance — Windstorm damage to roofs of condominium buildings — Trial court erred in entering summary judgment and attorney’s fees award in favor of insured based on finding that insurer’s voluntary payment of appraisal award after suit was filed amounted to confession of judgment — Voluntary payment of appraisal award after suit was filed did not amount to confession of judgment as matter of law where there was disputed issue as to whether insured was forced to litigate in order to get insurer to pay claim, whether insured breached contract by failing to participate in appraisal process, and whether insurer timely provided notice of mediation as required by statute — Discovery — Documents requested by insurer, including copy of communication between insured and any public adjuster or contractor hired by insured, were relevant to issue of whether insured continued to dispute insurer’s estimate and was forced to file suit to resolve claim

41 Fla. L. Weekly D1133a
191 So. 3d 961

Insurance — Homeowners — Appraisal — Claim by assignee that trial court erred by compelling appraisal “with the named insured” not considered on appeal where order simply granted motion to compel appraisal and, in hearing on the motion, trial court simply told parties to “work it out” when asked whether it was requiring insured himself to comply with appraisal terms — Selecting an appraiser was not a non-assignable duty under the policy at issue