History
  • No items yet
midpage
Browning v. Scott
884 So. 2d 298
Fla. Dist. Ct. App.
2004
Check Treatment
NORTHCUTT, Judge.

In these consolidated appeals, Karl Browning and Jeffrey Bullard challenge a final judgment in favor of Mr. and Mrs. Scott for damages arising from an accident and an order awarding attorney’s fees to Mr. Scott based on a proposal for settlement. We affirm the damages judgment without discussion, but we reverse the attorney’s fee award.

Section 768.79(3), Florida Statutes (2000), and Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.442(d) state that an offer of judgment or a proposal for settlement shall be served on the opposing party but shall not be filed unless accepted or unless filing is necessary to enforce the statute or the rule. As Mr. Scott admitted below and on appeal, his proposal for settlement was filed prematurely, in violation of the express requirements of the statute and rule. This court has previously held that a prematurely filed settlement proposal is void. Bottcher v. Walsh, 834 So.2d 183 (Fla. 2d DCA 2002). Therefore, we reverse the award of attorney’s fees.

Case number 2D03-4583 is affirmed. Case number 2D03-5695 is reversed.

CANADY and WALLACE, JJ., Concur.

Case Details

Case Name: Browning v. Scott
Court Name: District Court of Appeal of Florida
Date Published: Aug 18, 2004
Citation: 884 So. 2d 298
Docket Number: Nos. 2D03-4583, 2D03-5695
Court Abbreviation: Fla. Dist. Ct. App.
AI-generated responses must be verified and are not legal advice.
Your Notebook is empty. To add cases, bookmark them from your search, or select Add Cases to extract citations from a PDF or a block of text.