FLORIDA AIR CONDITIONERS, INC., A FLORIDA CORPORATION, APPELLANT.
v.
COLONIAL SUPPLY COMPANY, A FLORIDA CORPORATION, CHARLES BUCHANAN AND WILLIAM F. HOWARD, JOINTLY AND SEVERALLY, APPELLEES
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
Reversed directed verdict and remanded for new trial because sufficient evidence existed that individual defendants were doing business as an unincorporated entity, creating a jury question on liability for the entity's debts.
When defendants hold themselves out as doing business under a corporate name that was never legally incorporated, a jury question exists as to whether they are individually liable for debts incurred in that name.
[1] When individuals hold themselves out as doing business under an unincorporated name, the question of their individual liability for debts incurred in that name is a jury…
Previewing 1 of 1 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceFlorida Air Conditioners sued Colonial Supply Company and individuals Charles Buchanan and William F. Howard for debts. Colonial Supply Company was ne…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Corporate Liability cases and more on FLexlaw
DAUKSCH, Judge.
This is an appeal from a final judgment after the court directed a verdict in a jury trial. Upon review we have determined there was sufficient evidence and reasonable inferences from the evidence which could have supported a verdict for appellant. Thus we must reverse the judgment and remand this matter for a new trial. Black v. Teel and Nationwide Insurance Company, 405 So. 2d 1068 (Fla. 5th DCA 1981); National Car Rental Systems, Inc. v. Bruce A. Ryals Enterprises, Inc., 380 So. 2d 529 (Fla. 5th DCA 1980); Budgen v. Brady, 103 So. 2d 672 (Fla. 1st DCA 1958). More particularly there was sufficient evidence at trial to sustain a verdict for appellant on its assertion that Charles Buchanan and William F. Howard were doing business as individuals even though they held themselves out to be doing business as Colonial Supply Company, which had never been legally incorporated. There is also evidence that Buchanan and Howard were not doing business as alleged but that Tropic Air Heating and Cooling, Inc., a de jure corporation, was the one acting as Colonial Supply Company. The question for the jury to decide is which is true, and who is responsible for the debts of Colonial Supply Company.
The judgment is reversed and a new trial is ordered.
REVERSED AND REMANDED.
ORFINGER, C.J., and COWART, J., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
John Hancock Mut. Life Ins. Co. v. Zalay, 522 So. 2d 944 (Fla. 2d DCA 1988)…is decision, should have been permitted to submit additional evidence. A party cannot be penalized for good faith reliance on a trial court’s ruling. Florida Air Conditioners, Inc. v. Colonial Supply Co., 390 So. 2d 174 (1980), appeal after remand, 421 So. 2d 1106 (Fla. 5th DCA 1982). Where a ruling is subsequently found to be erroneous, litigants must be granted an opportunity to present their case under the corrected ruling. As the Third District Court of Appeal noted on somewhat varying facts: “A party who…
-
Arky v. Bowmar Instrument Corp., 527 So. 2d 211 (Fla. 3d DCA 1987)…mand to reassert claim against defendant partnership where plaintiff had dismissed the claim in reliance on trial court ruling, later reversed, that action against individual defendants was not barred by statute of limitations), appeal after remand, 421 So. 2d 1106 (Fla. 5th DCA 1982); United Artists Corp. v. La Cage aux Folles, Inc., 771 F. 2d 1265 (9th Cir.1985) (litigant should not be penalized for his reasonable reliance upon the court’s mistake in granting extension of time for appeal); Willis v. Newsome,…
Authorities Cited
- Budgen v. Brady, 103 So. 2d 672 (Fla. 1st DCA 1958)
- Nat'l CAR Rental Sys., Inc. v. Bruce A. Ryals Enters., Inc., 380 So. 2d 529 (Fla. 5th DCA 1980)
- Vern Anthony Black v. Teel, 405 So. 2d 1068 (Fla. 5th DCA 1981)