FLORENCE BROZ, APPELLANT,
v.
WINN-DIXIE STORES, INC., APPELLEE
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Florence Broz seeks to set aside a release she signed with Winn-Dixie Stores after a slip-and-fall injury, alleging mutual mistake of fact. The court reversed summary judgment, holding that whether the parties mutually believed the injuries were minor or nonexistent is a jury question that should not have been decided on summary judgment.
A release may be set aside when executed pursuant to a mutual mistake as to a past or present fact. Where substantial competent evidence shows the parties mutually believed the injuries were minor and temporary or nonexistent, the question of whether to set aside the release must be submitted to a jury rather than decided on summary judgment.
[1] A release of claims for personal injuries is not invalidated by the fact that the injuries prove to be more serious than anticipated at the time of execution.
[2] A release executed under a mistake as to a past or present fact, such as the existence of an injury, may be set aside under appropriate circumstances.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“a release may be set aside upon proof that it was executed pursuant to a mistake as to a past or present fact”
Establishes the fundamental legal standard for rescission of releases in Florida
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceMrs. Broz slipped on a grape in Winn-Dixie's meat department and fell on her knees. She initially told her husband and store employees she was not hur…
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FERGUSON, Judge.
Florence Broz, a personal injury plaintiff, seeks review of a summary judgment entered in favor of Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc. At issue is whether the parties were laboring under a mutual mistake of fact concerning the nature of Mrs. Broz’s injuries when she executed a release.
Mrs. Broz alleges that while shopping at Winn-Dixie she slipped on a grape lying on the floor of the meat department and fell on her knees. After the fall she told her husband and Winn-Dixie employees that she was not hurt. The next day Mrs. Broz went to a doctor for a previously scheduled routine examination. Although she told her doctor about her fall, she said her leg was not bothering her and the doctor did not examine it. The insurance representative for Winn-Dixie telephoned Mrs. Broz and asked her to sign a release “if your knee is not hurting you.” Although Mrs. Broz felt some discomfort in her knee after the fall, she accepted $50 from the adjuster and executed a release discharging Winn-Dixie from all claims, believing that the discomfort would soon ' subside. Two weeks later, Mrs. Broz experienced pain in her left knee, sought medical treatment, and discovered that a bone was fractured. She subsequently underwent three knee operations.
It is well established law in Florida that, while unknown or unexpected consequences of known injuries are insufficient to set aside an otherwise valid release, a release may be set aside upon proof that it was executed pursuant to a mistake as to a past or present fact. De Witt v. Miami Transit Co., 95 So. 2d 898, 901 (Fla.1957); Ormsby v. Ginolfi, 107 So. 2d 272, 273-274 (Fla. 3d DCA 1958), cert. denied, 114 So. 2d 439 (Fla.1959). When there is substantial competent evidence that tends to prove that there was a mutual mistake of fact in that the parties to the release believed that the injuries sustained were only of a minor and temporary nature, the question of whether the release should be set aside is an issue to be submitted to the jury. Boole v. Florida Power & Light Co., 147 Fla. 589, 3 So. 2d 335 (1941).
Mrs. Broz contends that at the time she executed the release she believed, as the defendant’s adjustor also must have believed, that she was not injured in the fall. Therefore, a genuine issue of fact was presented as to whether, at the time the release was executed, unknown injuries existed which were not within the contemplation of the parties and for which no consideration was paid. On a motion for summary judgment where the evidence before the court tends to show that there was a mutual mistake of fact which would permit a setting aside of the release, that evidence must be viewed in favor of the party opposing the motion. Ormsby v. Ginolfi, 107 So. 2d 272. Whether or not the parties were mistaken as to the existence of the injury is a question for the jury.
The final summary judgment is therefore reversed and the cause is remanded.
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Broz v. Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc., 546 So. 2d 83 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989)…PER CURIAM. Following this court’s opinion and decision rendered in Broz v. Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc., 512 So. 2d 335 (Fla. 3d DCA 1987) the cause recurred in the trial court. After deposition of the plaintiff and the store manager, the defendant moved for summary judgment; there being no evidence as to how long the grape had been on the floor, and the defense offe…
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Sponga v. Warro, 698 So. 2d 621 (Fla. 5th DCA 1997)…d REMANDED. W. SHARP and HARRIS, JJ., concur. . Boole v. Florida Power & Light Co., 147 Fla. 589, 3 So. 2d 335 (1941); Cardinale v. Thompson, 592 So. 2d 799 (Fla. 4th DCA), review denied, 602 So. 2d 943 (Fla.1992); Broz v. Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc., 512 So. 2d 335 (Fla. 3d DCA 1987). . De Witt v. Miami Transit Co., 95 So. 2d 898 (Fla.1957); Frechter v. K Mart Corp., 578 So. 2d 316 (Fla. 3d DCA) (release of customer's claim for personal injuries sustained in slip and fall at department store would not be set…
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Vada L. Conger & V.L.C. Corp. v. Szeman, Inc., 549 So. 2d 228 (Fla. 3d DCA 1989)…mative defenses of mutual mistake and waiver. The inability and failure to resolve the affirmative defenses should have precluded the trial court from entering the summary judgment in favor of the plaintiff/appellee. Broz v. Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc., 512 So. 2d 335 (Fla. 3d DCA 1987); Monroe County v. New Port Largo, Inc., 441 So. 2d 173 (Fla. 3d DCA 1983); Johnson v. Headley, 419 So. 2d 401 (Fla. 4th DCA 1982). Also, and in consideration of the foregoing, it appears that the trial court’s striking of the ap…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- DE Witt v. Miami Transit Co., 95 So. 2d 898 (Fla. 1957)
- Boole v. Fla. Power & Light Co., 147 Fla. 589 (Fla. 1941)
- Ormsby v. Ginolfi, 107 So. 2d 272 (Fla. 3d DCA 1958)
- Dean v. Deas, 114 So. 2d 439 (Fla. 1959)