2017

42 Fla. L. Weekly D2597a
238 So. 3d 372

Attorney’s fees — Insurance — Offer of judgment — Trial court properly denied insureds’ motion for attorney’s fees pursuant to section 627.428, Florida Statutes, where insureds did not recover a judgment in their favor in their action against insurer for breach of contract and declaratory judgment — Trial court erred in denying insurer’s motion for attorney’s fees pursuant to offer of judgment statute on basis that insureds’ action sought both equitable relief and money damages where true relief sought by insureds was money damages for breach of contract, and not equitable relief

42 Fla. L. Weekly S852a
228 So. 3d 1122

Attorney’s fees — Contingency fee multiplier — The application of a contingency fee multiplier to an award of attorney’s fees to a prevailing party is not limited to “rare” and “exceptional” circumstances — Trial court properly applied 2.0 contingency fee multiplier to award of attorney’s fees to insureds that prevailed in action against insurer upon finding that relevant market required contingency fee multiplier for insureds to obtain competent counsel, that insureds’ attorney could not have mitigated the risk of nonpayment, that case was a complex commercial case, and that likelihood of success at the outset was even at best

42 Fla. L. Weekly S731a
228 So. 3d 1111

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 — Where policy index indicated that insurer would make additional payments under liability coverages for legal expenses and court costs, subsection of Additional Payments provision stated that insurer would cover all investigative and legal costs, and another subsection of the same provision provided that insurer would pay all reasonable costs incurred by an insured at the insurer’s request, policy was ambiguous regarding whether attorneys’ fees were included or excluded from coverage — Ambiguity must be construed in favor of coverage — Insurer’s argument that “reasonable expenses incurred by insured at insurer’s request” did not cover attorney’s fees and costs under offer of judgment statute is without merit, as insurer had control over settling case

42 Fla. L. Weekly D2459b
229 So. 3d 896

Insurance — Attorney’s fees — Insured prevailing in action against insurer — Where attorney representing insured had worked at law firm that originated insured’s claim, and continued to represent insured after leaving that firm, it was error for trial court to refuse to consider hours expended by attorney while working at prior firm in calculating attorney’s fee award — Trial court should have considered all of hours reasonably expended by all of insured’s attorneys in its calculation of fee to be awarded to insured — Prejudgment interest — Trial court also erred in limiting prejudgment interest calculation by only including interest accruing through evidentiary fee hearing rather than date judgment was entered

42 Fla. L. Weekly D2543a
232 So. 3d 1157

Insurance — Homeowners — Post-loss assignment of benefits — Office of Insurance Regulation properly disapproved insurer’s request to amend policy language to restrict ability of policyholders to assign post-loss benefits absent the consent of all insureds, all additional insureds, and all mortgagees named in policies

42 Fla. L. Weekly D2038a
227 So. 3d 735

Insurance — Homeowners — Trial court properly entered judgment for insurer in insured’s breach of contract action where jury found that insurer paid insured the reasonable costs to repair direct physical loss caused by water leak, and declined to award insured any money for additional damages she was claiming — Order finding entitlement to attorney’s fees but not fixing the amount is not appealable

42 Fla. L. Weekly D2345a
233 So. 3d 1159

Insurance — Equine mortality — Arbitration — Waiver — Where insured horse was owned by individual, but suit was filed against insurer after death of horse by individual’s wholly owned corporation which had no ownership rights in horse, insurer did not waive right to arbitrate the issue of the actual cash value of the horse after individual owner was made a plaintiff by initially defending the action on the basis that corporate plaintiff was not the owner of the horse

42 Fla. L. Weekly D1649a
225 So. 3d 336

Insurance — Commercial general liability — Duty to defend — Appeals — Order granting motion for summary judgment declaring that insurer has duty to defend claims against insured is a non-final, non-appealable order where order merely grants summary judgment but does not enter judgment

42 Fla. L. Weekly D1648d
225 So. 3d 906

Insurance — Appeals — Order granting judgment for insured in insured’s breach of contract claim against insurer is not an appealable partial final judgment where insured’s negligence per se claim remains pending in trial court and is interdependent with facts giving rise to breach of contract claim

42 Fla. L. Weekly D682a
215 So. 3d 141

Insurance — Homeowners — Appraisal — Ordinance and law — Where initial appraisal found that roof tiles damaged by hurricane comprised 3 percent of roof and stated that it did not appraise any allowance for the effects of law and ordinances, insured was not entitled to a second appraisal after a roofing contractor submitted a permit application to repair 30 percent of the roof which was rejected by building and zoning authority, as building code requires that not more than 25 percent of total roof can be repaired, and insured entered into contract with roofing contractor for a full roof — Notation on appraisal award that law and ordinance was not appraised indicated that appraisal panel concluded that building code requirements did not require replacement of entire roof, and that appraisal could not be circumvented by a later finding by a roofing contractor that 30 percent of the roof needed to be replaced, necessitating replacement of the entire roof