DONALD WATROUS, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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.
Florida appellate court remanded for a hearing on attorney's fees lien because trial court failed to give defendant opportunity to object to the fee amount before imposing the lien, though no ability-to-pay determination was required.
A trial court must give a defendant an opportunity to be heard and object to the amount of attorney's fees before imposing a lien under section 27.56(7), Florida Statutes.
[1] A trial court must provide a defendant with an opportunity to be heard and object to the amount of attorney's fees before imposing a lien under section 27.56(7), Florida…
Previewing 1 of 1 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“defendants must be given an opportunity to be heard and to object to the court's determination on the amount of attorney's fees and costs before a lien is imposed”
Interpreting section 27.56(7), Florida Statutes (1995)
Watrous was assessed a $1,420 lien by the trial court for attorney's fees paid to his appointed appellate counsel without being given an opportunity t…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Indigent Defense cases and more on FLexlaw
PER CURIAM.
Donald Watrous challenges a lien imposed in favor of Pasco County for attorney’s fees paid to his appointed appellate counsel. Watrous alleges the trial court erred by imposing the lien without giving him an opportunity to object to the amount of attorney’s fees awarded and by failing to determine his ability to pay before imposing the lien. We agree, in part, and remand for further proceedings.
Section 27.56(7), Florida Statutes (1995), provides that defendants must be given an opportunity to be heard and to object to the court’s determination on the amount of attorney’s fees and costs before a lien is imposed. In this case, the trial court imposed the $1,420 lien without giving Watrous this opportunity. Therefore, we remand with directions to give Watrous thirty days from the date of the mandate to file a written objection to the amount of the lien. If Wat-rous objects, the lien shall be stricken and a new lien imposed based on the trial court’s findings following a fee hearing. Bourque v. State, 595 So. 2d 222 (Fla. 2d DCA 1992). The trial court need not on remand make a determination as to appellant’s ability to pay the lien. See State v. Vamper, 579 So. 2d 730 (Fla.1991)(a statutory hen for attorney’s fees and costs may be imposed upon an indigent defendant without a determination, at time of imposition, as to the defendant’s ability to pay).
Remanded with directions.
ALTENBERND, A.C.J., and LAZZARA and QUINCE, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Authorities Cited
- Bourque v. State, 595 So. 2d 222 (Fla. 2d DCA 1992)
- State v. Vamper, 579 So. 2d 730 (Fla. 1991)
- Haven Fed. Sav. & Loan Ass'n v. Kirian, 579 So. 2d 730 (Fla. 1991)