JUDY MARTIN, APPELLANT,
v.
CAROLYN AUSTGEN BROUSSEAU, APPELLEE

Fla. 4th DCA | 1990-07-18
No. 89-0471
DELL, J., concurs., GLICKSTEIN, J., dissents with opinion.
564 So. 2d 240 Florida District Court of Appeal, Fourth District (1990) Negative Treatment
Cited by 21 cases

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.

Synopsis

A plaintiff won a jury verdict for $7,500, but the defendant's offer of judgment for $10,200 contained conditions (requiring a release, hold harmless affidavit, and dismissal stipulation) not permitted by Florida statute or civil procedure rules. The court reversed the trial court's award of costs and attorneys' fees, holding that offers of judgment cannot include such conditions.


Holding

Offers of judgment may not include conditions not explicitly permitted by the statute or court rule. Because the offer in this case contained impermissible conditions, it was invalid, and therefore the trial court's award of costs and attorneys' fees must be reversed.


Headnotes

[1] An offer of judgment is invalid if it contains conditions not permitted by statute or rule.

[2] A party seeking costs and attorney's fees under a statute governing offers of judgment must make a valid offer of judgment.

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Key Quotes

“Neither the rule nor the statute provide for conditions upon an offer to allow a judgment to be taken against the party making the offer, and we find no such authority elsewhere.”

Establishes the core holding that offers of judgment cannot include conditions not authorized by statute or rule

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Facts & Procedural History

Martin obtained a jury verdict of $7,500 against Brousseau. Brousseau had made an offer of judgment for $10,200 that included requirements that Martin…

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Opinion of the Court
SALMON, MICHAEL H., Associate Judge.

SALMON, MICHAEL H., Associate Judge.

The appellant won a jury verdict but in an amount that was at least twenty-five percent less than the amount stated in an offer of judgment made by the appellee (the verdict was for $7,500; the offer of judgment was for $10,200). Upon motion made by the appellee, the trial court awarded costs and attorneys’ fees provided for in section 768.79, Florida Statutes (1987) (the “statute”) and Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.442 (the “court rule”).1 Because we conclude that the offer of judgment contained conditions not permitted by either the statute or the court rule, we reverse.

The offer of judgment states that it is made pursuant to the statute and the court rule. In addition to stating the amount of the judgment, the offer contained several requirements. The appellant was required to execute a full and complete release and satisfaction, a hold harmless affidavit, and a stipulation for dismissal with prejudice.2 The appellant did not accept the offer, nor did she complain about conditions imposed. Neither the rule nor the statute provide for conditions upon an offer to allow a judgment to be taken against the party making the offer, and we find no such authority elsewhere.

The appellee contends that this court’s opinion in BMW of North America, Inc. v. Krathen, 471 So. 2d 585 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985) expressly provides that conditions may be included in an offer of judgment. We do not agree. In that case, the Krath-ens sought money damages for breach of express and implied warranty under the Uniform Commercial Code and for violations of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act. BMW served an offer to allow the Krathens to take judgment against them in the amount of $20,500.00. The Krathens accepted “as written,” and judgment was entered by the clerk. BMW then moved to clarify the offer and vacate the judgment, claiming that at all times it intended for the Krathens to return the automobile as a condition precedent. This court was never called upon to determine whether conditions could be imposed to an offer of judgment. Despite a statement made in that part of the decision dealing with BMW’s attempt to be relieved of the judgment because of mistake, inadvertence, surprise or excusable neglect, this court decided only that once an offer of judgment was accepted, the resulting contract should be construed according to contract law, and governed solely by the language used by the parties if that language is without ambiguity.

Because we have held that the offer of judgment in this case was invalid on account of the conditions imposed, it is unnecessary to consider the other matters raised by the parties and amicus curiae.

Reversed and remanded with directions to enter judgment in accordance with the verdict.

DELL, J., concurs.

GLICKSTEIN, J., dissents with opinion.

. This rule has been substantially amended, effective January, 1990.

. The forms of these documents were not supplied with the offer.

Dissent
GLICKSTEIN, Judge,

GLICKSTEIN, Judge,

dissenting.

I would affirm, as neither the briefs nor the majority opinion provide an argument which persuades me to interfere with the trial judge’s decision. The plaintiff clearly received from the jury less than she needed to receive in order to fall within the statutory protection.

No authority nor legislative history is before us to guide us into having the tail, the additional documents, wag the dog, the amount offered and the amount awarded.


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Citator

Cited By

  • McMULLEN OIL Co., Inc. v. ISS Int'l Serv. Sys., Inc., 698 So. 2d 372 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997)
    …onditions not permitted by the statute and which will not allow immediate enforcement upon acceptance is invalid. Bush Leasing, Inc. v. Gallo, 634 So. 2d 737, 741-42 (Fla. 1st DCA 1994), review denied, 645 So. 2d 450 (Fla.1994); Martin v. Brousseau, 564 So. 2d 240 (Fla. 4th DCA 1990). Here, the offer of judgment was for $50,-001, “plus interest, costs and attorney fees as the court may award.” Had ISS accepted the offer, it still would have been forced to litigate both its entitlement to attorney’s fees2 and…
  • Palm Beach Polo Holdings, Inc. v. The Vill. OF Wellington, 904 So. 2d 652 (Fla. 4th DCA 2005)
    …rt stated: “[a] proposal for settlement should not include conditions that, if accepted, would cause an offeree to give up a claim or right that it could not have otherwise lost in the litigation.” 851 So. 2d at 746 n. 3 (citing Martin v. Brousseau, 564 So. 2d 240 (Fla. 4th DCA 1990)). Because the meaning of the release condition could not be determined without resort to clarification or judicial interpretation, the court found that it was not sufficiently particular and reversed the judgment awarding attorne…
  • Dryden v. Pedemonti, 910 So. 2d 854 (Fla. 5th DCA 2005)
    …the proposal was not made in good faith. A proposal for settlement should not include conditions that, if accepted, would cause an offeree to give up a claim or right that it could not have otherwise lost in the litigation. See Martin v. Brousseau, 564 So. 2d 240 (Fla. 4th DCA 1990). Otherwise, an offeror might seek to use the coercive aspects of the offer of judgment statute to exact concessions not legally available. When an offer contains as a condition a “general release,” care should be taken to insure…
    1 / 2

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