Josifov v. Kamal-Hashmat, 217 So. 3d 1085

Plaintiff (personal representative of decedent) sued Hotel after decedent drowned in the Hotel pool and sought discovery from a non-party guest survey service of all guest surveys related to the pool from 2008 to present.
The Hotel objected, produced a spreadsheet and later a database from the survey service, asserting guests’ names and contact information were confidential and redacting them under Article I, §23 of the Florida Constitution.
The trial court ordered production of the database with a privilege log and later compelled production of the redacted names/contact information; the Hotel petitioned for certiorari.
The Hotel argued the non-party guests have a constitutional right to privacy in their identifying information and that disclosure requires a showing of necessity outweighing privacy interests.
Plaintiff argued she was entitled to the names because (a) survey respondents could be potential witnesses and witness identities are discoverable, and (b) guests waived privacy by providing reservation information to the Hotel.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the trial court erred in ordering production of non-party survey respondents’ names and contact information	Names/contact info discoverable because respondents may be witnesses; no reasonable expectation of privacy after giving info to Hotel	Non-party guests maintain constitutional privacy rights; disclosure requires a showing of necessity that outweighs privacy; reservation data is not a waiver	Court quashed order — names/contact info are constitutionally protected; disclosure only if survey shows a respondent is a witness (then identity discoverable)

Rasmussen v. S. Fla. Blood Serv., Inc., 500 So. 2d 533 (Fla. 1987) (recognizing privacy protection for donor/client identifying information)
Amente v. Newman, 653 So. 2d 1030 (Fla. 1995) (privacy rights and discovery limits)
Chambers v. Loftin, 67 So. 2d 220 (Fla. 1953) (prior similar accidents admissible to show dangerous condition and knowledge)
Sovereign Healthcare of Port St. Lucie, LLC v. Fernandes, 132 So. 3d 855 (Fla. 4th DCA 2013) (disclosure of client names/contact info proper when client is witness to incident)
Delta Health Grp. v. Estate of Collins, 36 So. 3d 711 (Fla. 1st DCA 2010) (permitting disclosure of single potential witness’s contact info while protecting other information)
Berkeley v. Eisen, 699 So. 2d 789 (Fla. 4th DCA 1997) (no waiver of privacy by providing reservation information; redaction protects privacy while allowing legitimate discovery)
Higgs v. Kampgrounds of Am., 526 So. 2d 980 (Fla. 3d DCA 1988) (party seeking confidential information must show necessity outweighing confidentiality interest)
CAC–Ramsay Health Plans, Inc. v. Johnson, 641 So. 2d 434 (Fla. 3d DCA 1994) (confidentiality balancing in discovery)
Allstate Ins. Co. v. Langston, 655 So. 2d 91 (Fla. 1995) (certiorari appropriate where trial court departs from essential requirements of law and no adequate remedy on appeal)
Fla. Dep't of Health & Rehab. Servs. v. Myers, 675 So. 2d 700 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996) (non-party lack of direct appeal supports certiorari relief)