J & J UTILITY COMPANY, INC., APPELLANT,
v.
WINDMILL VILLAGE BY THE SEA CONDOMINIUM NO. I ASSOCIATION, INC., APPELLEE
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.
The court held that a motion for judgment on the pleadings cannot be granted based on res judicata if it requires consideration of matters outside the pleadings.
J & J appealed a judgment on the pleadings that dismissed its complaint with prejudice due to res judicata. The trial court had previously found J & J…
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 Judgment On The Pleadings cases and more on FLexlaw
GUNTHER, Judge.
J & J appeals a final judgment that granted Windmill’s motion for judgment on the pleadings and dismissed J & J’s first amended complaint with prejudice on the grounds that the issues were res judicata. We reverse.
In the instant case, prior to the motion for judgment on the pleadings, the trial court had made a specific finding that J & J’s first amended complaint stated a cause of action. Thereafter, Windmill filed an answer and affirmative defenses raising the issue that the matter was res judicata. J & J denied that the matter was res judica-ta on the grounds that the issues were not the same as in a prior lawsuit between the parties.
A motion for judgment on the pleadings must be decided wholly on the pleadings without aid of outside matters. City of Miami v. J. C. Vereen & Sons, Inc., 359 So. 2d 533 (Fla.3d DCA 1978). In ruling on such a motion, all well-pleaded allegations of the party opposing the motion are to be taken as true, and all allegations of the moving party which are denied are taken as false. Id.; Wagner v. Wagner, 196 So. 2d 453, 454 (Fla.4th DCA 1967).
In order for the trial court to have decided that the issues were in fact the same in both cases, the judge would have had to review and rely on matters outside the pleadings in this case. Under the case law, the trial judge is precluded from relying on matters outside the pleadings and should not have granted the motion for judgment on the pleadings based on a finding that the issues were res judicata.
In the present case, the trial court specifically found that J & J’s allegations stated a cause of action. In the present procedural posture, this court must view these allegations as true, and we must view Windmill’s affirmative defense of res judicata as false. Therefore, we conclude that the trial court erred in granting the motion for judgment on the pleadings and in dismissing the cause with prejudice.
REVERSED.
HERSEY, C.J., and DOWNEY, J., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Tanglewood Mobile Sales, Inc. v. Saleh Hachem, 805 So. 2d 54 (Fla. 2d DCA 2001)…uck, Inc., 693 So. 2d 602 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997). Whether to grant a motion for judgment on the pleadings must be decided wholly on the pleadings, without the aid of outside matters. See J & J Util. Co. v. Windmill Village by the Sea Condo. No. 1 Ass’n, 485 So. 2d 36 (Fla. 4th DCA 1986). The trial court may grant a motion on the pleadings only if the moving party is clearly entitled to judgment as a matter of law. 1100 5th Ave. Corp. v. PHL/Millwork Div., Inc., 722 So. 2d 218 (Fla. 2d DCA 1998). It is improper t…
-
Jaramillo v. Dubow, 588 So. 2d 677 (Fla. 3d DCA 1991)…erroneously entered below and must be reversed. Although the point was not raised below, the error here is fundamental in nature and may be raised for the first time on appeal. J & J Util. Co. v. Windmill Village By the Sea Condominium No. 1 Ass’n, 485 So. 2d 36 (Fla. 4th DCA 1986); City of Miami v. J.C. Vereen & Sons, Inc., 359 So. 2d 533, 535 (Fla. 3d DCA 1978); see Keyes Co. v. Sens, 382 So. 2d 1273 (Fla. 3d DCA 1980). It is settled that “[a] motion for judgment on the pleadings must be decided wholly o…
-
Daniels v. Sorriso Dental Studio, LLC, 164 So. 3d 778 (Fla. 2d DCA 2015)…ore the county court was Daniels’ motion for judgment on the pleadings. “A motion for judgment on the pleadings must-be decided wholly on the pleadings without aid of outside matters.” J & J Util. Co. v. Windmill Vill. By The Sea Condo. No. 1 Ass’n, 485 So. 2d 36, 36 (Fla. 4th DCA 1986). Like a motion for summary judgment, a judgment on the pleadings may be granted only if the moving party is clearly entitled to judgment in his or her favor as a matter of law. See Farag v. Nat’l Databank Subscriptions, Inc.,…
Previewing 3 of 9 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Wagner v. Wagner, 196 So. 2d 453 (Fla. 4th DCA 1967)
- City OF Miami v. J. C. Vereen & Sons, Inc., 359 So. 2d 533 (Fla. 3d DCA 1978)