SAMARA JOHNSON
v.
LILI QIU
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The Third District Court of Appeal affirmed a lower court decision in a residential landlord-tenant dispute, holding that a tenant's failure to pay accrued rent into the court registry within five days of service constitutes an absolute waiver of all defenses other than payment.
Under § 83.60(2), Fla. Stat., when a tenant interposes any defense other than payment in a landlord's action for possession, the tenant must pay accrued rent into the court registry within five days of service of process. Failure to do so constitutes an absolute waiver of all defenses other than payment, entitling the landlord to an immediate default judgment for removal with a writ of possession.
[1] In a residential eviction action where a tenant asserts a non-payment defense, failure to pay accrued rent into the court registry or file a motion to determine the amoun…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“In an action by the landlord for possession of a dwelling unit, if the tenant interposes any defense other than payment, including, but not limited to, the defense of a defective 3-day notice, the tenant shall pay into the registry of the court the accrued rent as alleged in the complaint or as determined by the court and the rent that accrues during the pendency of the proceeding, when due.”
Establishes the core statutory requirement that tenants asserting non-payment defenses must deposit rent into the court registry
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceA landlord sued a tenant for possession of a dwelling unit. The tenant interposed a defense other than payment (such as a defective notice). The tenan…
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Third District Court of Appeal
State of Florida
Opinion filed November 26, 2025.
Not final until disposition of timely filed motion for rehearing.
No. 3D25-0935
Lower Tribunal No. 25-63277-CC-05
Samara Johnson,
Appellant,
vs.
Lili Qiu,
Appellee.
An Appeal from the County Court for Miami-Dade County, Michael G. Barket, Judge.
Samara Johnson, in proper person.
No appearance, for appellee.
Before FERNANDEZ, MILLER, and GOODEN, JJ.
PER CURIAM.
Affirmed. See § 83.60(2), Fla. Stat. (2025) (“In an action by the landlord for possession of a dwelling unit, if the tenant interposes any defense other than payment, including, but not limited to, the defense of a defective 3-day notice, the tenant shall pay into the registry of the court the accrued rent as alleged in the complaint or as determined by the court and the rent that accrues during the pendency of the proceeding, when due. The clerk shall notify the tenant of such requirement in the summons. Failure of the tenant to pay the rent into the registry of the court or to file a motion to determine the amount of rent to be paid into the registry within 5 days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, after the date of service of process constitutes an absolute waiver of the tenant's defenses other than payment, and the landlord is entitled to an immediate default judgment for removal of the tenant with a writ of possession to issue without further notice or hearing thereon.”); Minalla v. Equinamics Corp., 954 So. 2d 645, 648 (Fla. 3d DCA 2007) (“Section 83.60(2), Florida Statutes, requires payment of rent into the registry of the court in residential landlord tenant disputes under Part II of Chapter 83." (quoting Frey v. Livecchi, 852 So. 2d 896, 897 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003)).
2
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Authorities Cited
- Frey v. Livecchi, 852 So. 2d 896 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003)
- Dalia Minalla v. Equinamics Corp., 954 So. 2d 645 (Fla. 3d DCA 2007)