PAULA J. CARROLL, APPELLANT,
v.
JAMES S. CARROLL, APPELLEE
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A trial court's order enforcing a disputed settlement agreement is reversed because the court relied solely on the husband's attorney's letter without evidence that the wife actually assented to the settlement terms. The appellate court reaffirms that a party seeking to enforce a settlement must prove the opposing party's acceptance, and a lawyer's failure to respond to a settlement letter cannot alone satisfy this burden.
The settlement agreement cannot be enforced. A party seeking judgment based on compromise and settlement bears the burden of establishing assent by the opposing party. The mere failure of an attorney to respond to a settlement letter cannot meet this burden of proof, and there was no evidence that Mrs. Carroll had ratified, authorized, or assented to the agreement.
[1] A party seeking to enforce a settlement agreement bears the burden of proving that an attorney had clear and unequivocal authority to settle on the client's behalf.
[2] Employment of an attorney to represent a client does not confer implied or apparent authority on the attorney to compromise or settle the client's claims.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“A party seeking judgment on the basis of compromise and settlement has the burden of establishing assent by the opposing party.”
Establishes the fundamental burden of proof in settlement enforcement cases
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceDuring litigation between spouses, the husband's attorney sent a letter to the wife's attorney confirming purported settlement terms. The wife's attor…
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PER CURIAM.
The order of the trial court, granting the husband’s motion to enforce a disputed settlement agreement, is reversed.
It is apparent from the record that the trial court accepted the husband’s proffer that a settlement had been reached, based solely upon a letter from husband’s attorney to the wife’s attorney confirming the terms of a purported agreement. The wife’s lawyer did not respond to the letter. The trial court made no finding regarding an acceptance of the agreement terms by the wife other than as incident to the conclusion, based on the failure of the wife’s lawyer to respond, that the lawyers had reached an agreement.
In Nehleber v. Anzalone, 345 So. 2d 822 (Fla. 4th DCA 1977), this court recognized the following general rules governing the enforcement of disputed settlement agreements:
(1) A party seeking judgment on the basis of compromise and settlement has the burden of establishing assent by the opposing party....
(2) The mere employment of an attorney does not itself give the attorney the implied or apparent authority to compromise his client’s cause of action. ...
(3) An exception to the general rule is a situation in which the attorney is confronted with an emergency which requires prompt action to protect his client’s interest and consultation with the client is impossible....
(4) A client may give his attorney special or express authority to compromise or settle his cause of action, but such authority must be clear and unequivocal. ...
(5) An unauthorized compromise, executed by an attorney, unless subsequently ratified by his client, is of no effect and may be repudiated or ignored and treated as a nullity by the client, [citations omitted]
Id. at 822-23. See also Palm Beach County v. Boca Development Associates, Ltd., 485 So. 2d 449 (Fla. 4th DCA 1986); State Department of Transportation v. Plunske, 267 So. 2d 337 (Fla. 4th DCA 1972); Cross-Aero Corp. v. Cross-Aero Service Corp., 326 So. 2d 249 (Fla. 3d DCA 1976); Goff v. Indian Lake Estates, Inc., 178 So. 2d 910 (Fla. 2d DCA 1965). Here, there was no evidence demonstrating that Mrs. Carroll had ever ratified, authorized, or otherwise assented to the agreement. To the contrary, all of the testimony, as offered by her attorney, indicated otherwise. Further, the facts do not fall within any recognized exception to the general rule. See Nehleber v. Anzalone. The failure of the wife’s attorney to respond to a letter from husband’s counsel cannot alone meet the required burden of proof. Cf. Albert v. Hoffman Electric Construction Company, 438 So. 2d 1015 (Fla. 4th DCA 1983).
The husband, relying on Dania Jai-Alai Palace, Inc. v. Sykes, 495 So. 2d 859 (Fla. 4th DCA 1986), contends that this court has departed from the burden recognized in Nehleber. However, we note that Dania Jai-Alai Palace, Inc. v. Sykes simply recognized that Nehleber was not controlling where the parties had reached an agreement on the essential terms and the only issue was how mutual releases should be worded.
Therefore, the trial court order granting appellee’s motion to enforce a settlement agreement is reversed. We remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
ANSTEAD, DELL and STONE, JJ., concur.
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Citator
Cited By (18 total)
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Spiegel v. H. Allen Holmes, Inc., 834 So. 2d 295 (Fla. 4th DCA 2002)…governed by the law of contracts. Williams v. Ingram, 605 So. 2d 890 (Fla. 1st DCA 1992). The party seeking to enforce a settlement agreement bears the burden of showing the opposing party assented to the terms of the agreement. Carroll v. Carroll, 532 So. 2d 1109 (Fla. 4th DCA 1988), rev. denied, 542 So. 2d 1332 (Fla.1989). To compel enforcement of a settlement agreement, its terms must be sufficiently specific and mutually agreed upon as to every essential element. Don L. Tullis and Assoc., Inc. v. Benge,…
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Williams v. Ingram, 605 So. 2d 890 (Fla. 1st DCA 1992)…he law of contracts. Don L. Tullis and Assocs., Inc. v. Benge, 473 So. 2d 1384 (Fla. 1st DCA 1985). A party seeking a judgment on the basis of compromise and settlement has the burden of establishing assent by the opposing party. Carroll v. Carroll, 532 So. 2d 1109 (Fla. 4th DCA 1988), rev. denied, 542 So. 2d 1332 (Fla.1989).2 The moving party must establish a meeting of the minds or mutual or reciprocal assent to a certain and definite proposition. Goff v. Indian Lake Estates, Inc., 178 So. 2d 910 (Fla. 2d DC…
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Solanje Cheverie v. Geisser, 783 So. 2d 1115 (Fla. 4th DCA 2001)…*1119] Although the law favors settlement agreements and their enforcement whenever possible, the evidence must clearly demonstrate that there was mutual agreement to the material settlement terms. See Robbie, 469 So. 2d at 1385; Carroll v. Carroll, 532 So. 2d 1109 (Fla. 4th DCA 1988). “The making of a contract depends not on the agreement of two minds in one intention but on the agreement of two sets of external signs.” Robbie, 469 So. 2d at 1385. A trial court’s finding of a meeting of the minds must be supp…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Renita Penfield Nehleber v. Anzalone, 345 So. 2d 822 (Fla. 4th DCA 1977)
- Goff v. Indian Lake Ests., Inc., 178 So. 2d 910 (Fla. 2d DCA 1965)
- Cross-Aero Corp. v. Cross-Aero Serv. Corp., 326 So. 2d 249 (Fla. 3d DCA 1976)
- State of Fla. Dep't OF Transp. v. Plunske, 267 So. 2d 337 (Fla. 4th DCA 1972)
- Dania Jai-Alai Palace, Inc. v. Sykes, 495 So. 2d 859 (Fla. 4th DCA 1986)
- State v. Keel, 438 So. 2d 1015 (Fla. 4th DCA 1983)
- Palm Beach Cnty. v. Boca Dev. Assocs., Ltd., 485 So. 2d 449 (Fla. 4th DCA 1986)