FRANK SILVESTRI, INC., ET AL., APPELLANTS,
v.
HILLTOP DEVELOPERS, INC., APPELLEE
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Frank Silvestri, Inc. and Frank Silvestri appeal a judgment for damages in a real estate contract breach case. The appellate court reversed and remanded because the trial court erroneously imposed joint and several liability without proper pleading, failed to establish which defendant was actually liable, and awarded damages without evidence of fair market value.
The trial court erred in entering joint and several judgment against all three defendants because Hilltop failed to allege or prove joint and several liability, the record was unclear regarding which party actually breached the contract, and there was no evidence of the fair market value of the property on the date of breach needed to calculate proper damages.
[1] A judgment imposing joint and several liability against multiple defendants is erroneous when the plaintiff's pleadings do not allege joint and several liability.
[2] A trial court may err by entering a final judgment that does not conform to its own findings of fact.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“We have reviewed the record and have failed to find that Hilltop amended its pleadings to allege joint and several liability. Even if the trial court's order is viewed as adding Frank Silvestri Investment, Inc., to the complaint, the complaint itself alleged liability only in the alternative. In view of the failure of Hilltop to allege joint and several liability, the judgment against all three defendants was clearly error.”
Establishes that the trial court's imposition of joint and several liability was error because the pleadings did not support such liability.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceHilltop Developers sued Frank Silvestri individually and Frank Silvestri, Inc. for breach of a real estate purchase contract. Before trial, a motion t…
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FRANK D. UPCHURCH, Jr., Judge.
Appellants, the defendants below, appeal from a judgment entered against them for damages arising from the breach of a real estate contract.
Appellee Hilltop Developers initially sued Frank Silvestri, Inc., and Frank Silvestri, individually, claiming damages against them in the alternative. Before trial, Frank Silvestri moved the court to change the name of Frank Silvestri, Inc. to Frank Silvestri Investments, Inc., claiming that the latter was the real party in interest. The court denied this motion but entered an order naming Frank Silvestri, individually, Frank Silvestri, Inc., and Frank Silvestri Investments, Inc., as defendants. The court further ordered that the original complaint be deemed to be a complaint against all three defendants.
After the trial was held, the court entered judgment against all three defendants jointly and severally. We have reviewed the record and have failed to find that Hilltop amended its pleadings to allege joint and several liability. Even if the trial court’s order is viewed as adding Frank Silvestri Investment, Inc., to the complaint, the complaint itself alleged liability only in the alternative. In view of the failure of Hilltop to allege joint and several liability, the judgment against all three defendants was clearly error.
However, because of the confusion in the record, we reject appellants’ suggestion to simply strike the names of Frank Silvestri, individually, and Frank Silvestri, Inc., from the judgment. While we recognize that the closing documents prepared by Hilltop indicate that Frank Silvestri Investments, Inc., was the buyer, the contract was signed by Frank Silvestri whose capacity as an agent or representative of the corporation was not pleaded nor established by Hilltop. Also, the court specifically found in a document styled “Findings” that Frank Silvestri had breached the contract.
Nevertheless, the final judgment (which was supposed to incorporate the above findings) found that Frank Silvestri Investments, Inc., had breached the contract. In these circumstances, we cannot determine which party is properly liable. In addition to the error in imposing joint and several liability, the trial court also erred in awarding damages.
Upon a breach of contract by the buyer on his contract to purchase land, the seller generally has two alternative remedies available: 1) he may sue to compel specific performance and, as an incident to such relief, may be awarded damages for the injuries he has suffered or 2) he may retain the property and sue for breach of contract. Clements v. Leonard, 70 So. 2d 840 (Fla. 1954); Miller v. Rolfe, 97 So. 2d 132 (Fla. 1st DCA 1957). In the latter instance, the measure of damages is the difference between the price the buyer agreed to pay for the property and the fair market value of the property on the date of the breach.1 Clements v. Leonard, 70 So. 2d at 843.
We find no evidence of the fair market value of the property on the date of the breach of contract.
Therefore, we also reverse the damages portion of the final judgment and remand for reconsideration in accordance with the principles outlined above.
REVERSED and REMANDED for re-pleading and retrial.
DAUKSCH and COBB, JJ., concur. . Hilltop was also awarded substantial damages for maintaining the property after a lis pendens had been filed by appellants in connection with their counterclaim. If a seller has suffered additional damage, he must allege and prove that those damages were contemplated by the parties and were a natural and proximate result of the breach. See Popwell v. Abel, 226 So. 2d 418 (Fla. 4th DCA 1969).
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Blue Lakes Apts., Ltd. v. George Gowing, Inc., 464 So. 2d 705 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985)…property [at the time of breach] and the contract price.” Wolofsky v. Behrman, 454 So. 2d 614, 615 (Fla. 4th DCA 1984); see also Zipper v. Affordable Homes, Inc., 461 So. 2d 988 (Fla. 1st DCA 1984); Frank Silvestri, Inc. v. Hilltop Developers, Inc., 418 So. 2d 1201 (Fla. 5th DCA 1982). The trial court’s award of $6,000 compensatory damages is substantiated by evidence that, at the time of the seller’s repudiation, comparable units were selling for $60,000. Additionally, Gowing testified that his other identica…
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In re Standard Jury Instructions-Contract & Bus. Cases, 116 So. 3d 284 (Fla. 2013)…sue for breach of contract, “the measure of damages is the difference between the price the buyer agreed to pay for the property and the fair market value of the property on the date of the breach.” Frank Silvestri, Inc. v. Hilltop Developers, Inc., 418 So. 2d 1201, 1203 (Fla. 5th DCA 1982). “If a seller has suffered additional damage, he must allege and prove that those damages were contemplated by the parties and were a natural and proximate result of the breach.” Id. at 1203 n. 1. 4. Cohen v. Champlain Tow…
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DePRINCE v. Starboard Cruise Servs., Inc., 163 So. 3d 586 (Fla. 3d DCA 2015)…of right.” (emphasis added)); Linkous v. Linkous, 941 So. 2d 530, 530 (Fla. 1st DCA 2006) (“Specific performance is an appropriate remedy only when there is no adequate remedy at law.” (emphasis added)); Frank Silvestri, Inc. v. Hilltop Devs., Inc., 418 So. 2d 1201, 1203 (Fla. 5th DCA 1982) (explaining that in a breach of contract for the sale of real property, the seller can elect either the remedy of specific performance or retain the property and sue for damages for breach of contract). “It is a well-establ…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Popwell v. Abel, 226 So. 2d 418 (Fla. 4th DCA 1969)
- Julia Miller and Renick v. Smith, 97 So. 2d 132 (Fla. 1st DCA 1957)
- Clements v. Leonard, 70 So. 2d 840 (Fla. 1954)