Christine Askew, etc. v. Florida Department of Children and Families, 385 So.3d 1034

Kevin Askew resigned from the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) after being accused of accessing files for personal reasons.
He sued DCF for unlawful constructive termination based on disability and gender under the Florida Civil Rights Act.
A jury found in Askew's favor, but the First District Court of Appeal reversed the decision, granting DCF a directed verdict.
After Kevin Askew's death, Christine Askew, as personal representative of his estate, was substituted as petitioner.
Christine Askew sought Florida Supreme Court review, claiming the First District misapplied precedent from the Third District.
The Florida Supreme Court considered whether it had conflict jurisdiction to review the First District's decision based on alleged "misapplication" of precedent.

Issue	Askew's Argument	DCF's Argument	Held
Whether the Supreme Court has conflict jurisdiction based solely on misapplication of precedent	Misapplication of precedent creates conflict jurisdiction	No express and direct conflict as required	No conflict jurisdiction under misapplication alone

Florida Department of Children & Families v. Askew, 365 So. 3d 1211 (Fla. 1st DCA 2023) (underlying appellate decision reversing jury verdict)
City of Miami v. Kory, 394 So. 2d 494 (Fla. 3d DCA 1981) (alleged conflict case on constructive termination)
Gibson v. Avis Rent-A-Car System, Inc., 386 So. 2d 520 (Fla. 1980) (prior support for misapplication jurisdiction)
Advanced Chiropractic & Rehabilitation Ctr. Corp. v. United Auto. Ins. Co., 140 So. 3d 529 (Fla. 2014) (misapplication as potential grounds for jurisdiction)
Kartsonis v. State, 319 So. 3d 622 (Fla. 2021) (reaffirmed narrow conflict jurisdiction centered on direct and express conflict)
Nielsen v. City of Sarasota, 117 So. 2d 731 (Fla. 1960) (set out "real, live and vital conflict" standard for review)