AVIAD VISOLY, APPELLANT,
v.
RALPH BODEK, ET AL., APPELLEES

Fla. 3d DCA | 1992-07-14
No. 91-884
Before JORGENSON, LEVY and GODERICH, JJ.
602 So. 2d 979 Florida District Court of Appeal, Third District (1992) Positive Treatment
Cited by 11 cases

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Synopsis

Aviad Visoly appeals from a trial court's denial of his request to voluntarily dismiss his action after the court granted a motion to strike his complaint as sham. The appellate court affirmed, holding that the voluntary dismissal rule's prohibition on dismissal after a hearing on a motion for summary judgment applies equally to motions to strike pleadings as sham.


Holding

The trial court correctly denied Visoly's request to voluntarily dismiss because the voluntary dismissal rule's limitation on dismissals 'before a hearing on motion for summary judgment' applies equally to motions to strike pleadings as sham, since no meaningful distinction exists between the two for purposes of voluntary dismissal.


Headnotes

[1] A motion to strike a complaint as sham should be tested by the same standards as a motion for summary judgment, as both are methods for promptly disposing of actions wher…

[2] A plaintiff may not voluntarily dismiss an action after a trial court has granted a defendant's motion to strike the complaint as sham, as such a motion is functionally e…

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Key Quotes

“The motion to strike a complaint as sham 'should be tested by the same standards as a motion for summary judgment' since '[s]uch a procedure is a method for promptly disposing of actions in which there is no genuine issue as to any material fact.'”

Establishes the legal equivalence between motions to strike and summary judgment motions for purposes of the voluntary dismissal rule

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Facts & Procedural History

Visoly filed a complaint against Ralph Bodek and others. Security Pacific Credit Corporation filed a verified motion to strike the complaint as sham p…

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Opinion of the Court
PER CURIAM.

PER CURIAM.

The plaintiff below, Aviad Visoly, appeals from a final judgment, which in part, does not permit him to voluntarily dismiss the action. We affirm.

The defendant below, Security Pacific Credit Corporation, filed a verified motion to strike the complaint as sham pursuant to Rule 1.150(a), Florida Rules of Civil Procedure.1 The trial court granted the motion. Thereafter, Visoly requested that he be permitted to voluntarily dismiss his action pursuant to Rule 1.420(a)(1), Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, arguing that the rule permits a plaintiff to voluntarily dismiss an action “before trial by serving, or during trial by stating on the record, a notice of dismissal at any time before a hearing on motion for summary judgment..." (emphasis added). The trial court denied the request stating that:

Rule 1.150, Fla.R.Civ.P. provides that upon granting a motion to strike for sham, the court may enter summary judgment. There is no difference or distinction between the summary judgment rule and the rule relating to the striking for sham pleadings so far as voluntary dismissals are concerned. Both rules authorize the entry of summary judgments. The voluntary dismissal is untimely and is denied.

Visoly contends that the trial court erred in denying his request to voluntarily dismiss his action where Rule 1.420(a)(1) does not specifically prohibit a plaintiff from voluntarily dismissing an action after the trial court has granted the defendant’s motion to strike the complaint as sham. We disagree.

The voluntary dismissal rule permits the plaintiff to voluntarily dismiss his action “at any time before a hearing on motion for summary judgment.” The rule, however, does not specifically refer to motions to strike as sham. Nonetheless, as far as voluntary dismissals are concerned, we see no distinction between motions for summary judgment and motions to strike a pleading as sham. The motion to strike a complaint as sham “should be tested by the same standards as a motion for summary judgment” since “[sjuch a procedure is a method for promptly disposing of actions in which there is no genuine issue as to any material fact....” Meadows v. Edwards, 82 So. 2d 733 (Fla.1955); see also, Slatko v. Virgin, 328 So. 2d 499 (Fla. 3d DCA 1976). Additionally, the rule relating to motions to strike as sham states, in part, that “summary judgment on the merits may be entered in the discretion of the court.” Rule 1.150, Fla.R.Civ.P. Accordingly, we find that the trial court correctly denied Visoly’s request to voluntarily dismiss his action.

We find that the remaining points lack merit.

Affirmed.

LEVY and GODERICH, JJ., concur. . Rule 1.150(a), Florida Rules of Civil Procedure provides as follows:

Motion to Strike. If a party deems any pleading or part thereof filed by another party to be a sham, he may move to strike said pleading or part thereof before the cause is set for trial and the court shall hear said motion, taking evidence of the respective parties, and if the motion is sustained, the pleading to which the motion is directed shall be stricken. Default and summary judgment on the merits may be entered in the discretion of the court or the court may permit additional pleadings to be filed for good cause shown.
Concurrence
JORGENSON, Judge,

JORGENSON, Judge,

specially concurring.

I agree with the result that the court has reached today and with the court’s reasoning. I write separately only to distinguish this case from our decision in Freeman v. Mintz, 523 So. 2d 606 (Fla. 3d DCA), rev. denied sub nom Coldwell Banker-Klock Co. v. Freeman, 534 So. 2d 398 (Fla.1988). In Freeman, we held that a trial court was without jurisdiction to dismiss a case involuntarily once plaintiffs counsel had filed a written notice of voluntary dismissal. In this case, unlike in Freeman, the defendant filed a motion to dismiss the complaint as sham. The court has properly likened that motion to a motion for summary judgment, thereby removing this case from the Freeman rule.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Ormond Beach Assocs. Ltd. v. Citation Mortg., Ltd., 835 So. 2d 292 (Fla. 5th DCA 2002)
    …ring and disposition of the case on the merits, has acquired some substantial rights in the cause, or where dismissal is inequitable. See Romar Int’l, Inc. v. Jim Rathman Chevrolet/Cadillac, Inc., 420 So. 2d 346 (Fla. 5th DCA 1982); Visoly v. Bodek, 602 So. 2d 979 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992). When presented with Citation Mortgage’s notice of voluntary dismissal without prejudice, the issue for the trial court to resolve was simply whether either (1) a hearing on a motion for summary judgment had been conducted prior…
  • Patterson v. Allstate Ins. Co., 884 So. 2d 178 (Fla. 2d DCA 2004)
    …Romar, 420 So. 2d at 347, where the defendant can demonstrate the common law exception to the right, Ormond Beach, 835 So. 2d at 295, or where the stage at which the dismissal is taken is deemed the equivalent of a summary judgment. Visoly v. Bodek, 602 So. 2d 979 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992). In this ease, the issue is whether a plaintiff may take a voluntary dismissal after a nonbinding arbitration decision has become final. Because rule 1.420(a) does not address this specific situation and therefore does not preclud…
  • Pino v. The Bank OF NEW York Mellon, 57 So. 3d 950 (Fla. 4th DCA 2011)
    …ring and disposition of the case on the merits, has acquired some substantial rights in the cause, or where dismissal is inequitable. See Romar Int’l, Inc. v. Jim Rothman Chevrolet/Cadillac, Inc., 420 So. 2d 346 (Fla. 5th DCA 1982); Visoly v. Bodek, 602 So. 2d 979 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992). Ormond, 835 So. 2d at 295. In Visoly, the court granted a motion to strike the complaint as a sham. Finding that rule 1.150(a) operated much like a motion for summary judgment, the court concluded that the plaintiff could not vo…

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