BARBARA GERVER, APPELLANT,
v.
ERIC STEIN, TRUSTEE, 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.
Barbara Gerver appeals the trial court's order distributing foreclosure sale proceeds between herself and Eric Stein, a cotenant. The appellate court reversed, holding that Stein was entitled to only 50% contribution (not 100%) for the mortgage payment he made on behalf of both cotenants.
A paying cotenant is entitled to contribution from other cotenants for their proportionate share of a joint obligation paid, not full reimbursement of the amount paid. Stein was entitled to 50% contribution ($4,904.17) from Gerver for the mortgage payment he made on her behalf, not the full $9,808.34 awarded by the trial court.
[1] A cotenant who pays an obligation for which all cotenants are liable is entitled to contribution from the other cotenants for their proportionate shares.
[2] A cotenant is entitled to contribution from a non-paying cotenant for one-half of a mortgage payment made by the paying cotenant for the benefit of both.
Previewing 2 of 3 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“As a general rule the payment by one cotenant of an obligation for which all are liable is regarded as the act of all, and the paying cotenant is entitled to have the others refund to him their proportionate shares of the amount paid.”
Establishes the foundational legal principle governing cotenant contribution rights
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceGerver and Stein were cotenants of real property that was foreclosed. The foreclosure sale left $15,000 in the court registry. Stein had paid the full…
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 Foreclosure Sale Proceeds cases and more on FLexlaw
PER CURIAM.
The appellant, Barbara Gerver, seeks reversal of an order on disbursement of an overage of foreclosure sale proceeds relative to certain real property in which the parties were cotenants.
The order appealed recited that there was remaining in the registry of the Circuit Court in and for Dade County the sum of $15,000.00, representing the balance of funds from the instant foreclosure sale. The court found that Eric Stein, Trustee, was entitled to the sum of $9,808.34 based upon his equitable claim that he paid one-half of a 1980 mortgage payment due on the property in question and that Barbara Gerver, or her predecessor in interest, failed to pay her portion of the 1980 mortgage payment. Accordingly, the court ruled that Barbara Gerver was entitled to the sum of $5,191.66, or the balance remaining in the court registry after deduction of defendant Stein’s $9,808.34 award.
The issue on appeal is whether the trial court was correct in its equitable apportionment of the overage of foreclosure sale proceeds.
As a general rule the payment by one cotenant of an obligation for which all are liable is regarded as the act of all, and the paying cotenant is entitled to have the others refund to him their proportionate shares of the amount paid.
12 Fla.Jur.2d Cotenancy and Partition § 28 at 250 (1979). Stein, who paid 50% of the mortgage payment, was entitled to contribution from cotenant Gerver for the portion of the payment he made which was for her benefit. See Meckler v. Weiss, 80 So. 2d 608 (Fla.1955); Berkan v. Brown, 246 So. 2d 207 (Fla. 3d DCA 1970), cert. denied, 246 So. 2d 111 (Fla.1971). The co-tenancy herein involves two cotenants, Stein and Gerver; Stein made a $9,808.34 mortgage payment, half of which was made for Gerver’s benefit, with no contribution from his cotenant Gerver or her predecessor in interest; Stein is therefore entitled to a 50% contribution from Gerver on this payment, to wit: $4,904.17. Accordingly, it follows that the trial court erred in awarding a $9,808.34 contribution — rather than a $4,904.17 contribution — to Stein.
Therefore, the trial court’s order is reversed and the cause is remanded for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
Reversed.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Biondo v. Althea A. Powers, 743 So. 2d 161 (Fla. 4th DCA 1999)…pon partition, a cotenant paying obligations of the property is entitled to a credit from the proceeds of the sale for the other cotenant’s proportionate share of those expenses. Goolsby v. Wiley, 547 So. 2d 227 (Fla. 4th DCA 1989); Gerver v. Stein, 490 So. 2d 1331 (Fla. 3d DCA 1986). Based on these principles, we hold that Biondo is correct. The evidence was unrefuted at trial that Powers possessed no more than a 50% interest in the property. While she made excess payments for his benefit toward obligations…
-
Fernandez v. Romena Marrero (Fla. 3d DCA 2019)…tenant paying [the] obligations of the property is entitled to a credit from the proceeds of the sale for the other cotenant’s proportionate share of those expenses.” Id. (citing Goolsby v. Wiley, 547 So. 2d 227 (Fla. 4th DCA 1989); Gerver v. Stein, 490 So. 2d 1331 (Fla. 3d DCA 1986)). A. Down Payment/Closing Costs In determining that Fernandez is not entitled to a credit for the down payment and closing costs, the trial court relied on O’Donnell, 823 So. 2d at 198. In O’Donnell, the Court found that “[w]here…
Authorities Cited
- Meckler v. Weiss, 80 So. 2d 608 (Fla. 1955)
- Colonnades, Inc. v. Panetta, 246 So. 2d 111 (Fla. 1971)