CLINICA LOURDES, INC., ETC., ET AL., APPELLANTS,
v.
CARLOS MIRO, APPELLEE
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An offer of settlement is unenforceable if it contains an indefinite provision regarding the determination of attorneys' fees.
Defendants appealed an order denying their application for attorneys' fees after the plaintiff's recovery was less than their offer of settlement. The…
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PER CURIAM.
The defendants below appeal from an order denying their application for attorneys’ fees under § 768.79(2), Fla. Stat. (1995). While the plaintiff’s recovery was less than the dollar amount of the defendants’ unaccepted offer of settlement, the trial court ruled that the following provision of the “offer” rendered it unenforeeably indefinite:
All issues relating to both parties’ right to attorneys’ fees shall be submitted to and determined by the Court if the offer is accepted. We affirm on the controlling authority of State Farm Life Ins. Co. v. Bass, 605 So. 2d 908 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992). See also McMullen Oil Co. v. ISS Int’l Serv. Sys., Inc., 698 So. 2d 372 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997); Hartford Cas. Ins. Co. v. Silverman, 689 So. 2d 346 (Fla. 3d DCA 1997), review denied, 707 So. 2d 1124 (Fla.1998).1
Affirmed.
. The appellants ask us to certify that this opinion and Bass are in conflict with Siedlecki v. Arabia, 699 So. 2d 1040 (Fla. 4th DCA 1997), cause dismissed, 705 So. 2d 7 (Fla.1997), review dismissed, 707 So. 2d 1126 (Fla.1998), and Hellmann v. City of Orlando, 610 So. 2d 103 (Fla. 5th DCA 1992). We do not believe that such a conflict exists. If the Supreme Court disagrees, of course, it has jurisdiction to review this decision under Article V, section 3(b)(3), Fla. Const.
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White v. Steak & ALE OF Fla., Inc., 816 So. 2d 546 (Fla. 2002)…ler, 709 So. 2d 139 (Fla. 4th DCA 1998). 721 So. 2d at 411-12 (emphasis added) (footnote and some citations omitted). In the Third District, offers and demands for judgment under section 768.79 must include costs. See Clinica Lourdes, Inc. v. Miro, 713 So. 2d 1062 (Fla. 3d DCA 1998). Therefore, the Perez court reasoned that if offers or demands are inclusive of costs, then the judgment threshold under section 768.79 must also be inclusive of costs. However, not all districts require that offers and demands in…
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Leyton F. Perez v. Cir. City Stores, Inc., 721 So. 2d 409 (Fla. 3d DCA 1998)…es. In State Farm Life Insurance Co. v. Bass, 605 So. 2d 908 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992), we held that in order for a plaintiff to preserve his entitlement to attorney’s fees, the plaintiffs demand must include costs. See also Clinica Lourdes, Inc. v. Miro, 713 So. 2d 1062 (Fla. 3d DCA 1998) (applying Bass rule to Section 768.79 attorney’s fees motions); Stouffer Hotel Co. v. Teachers Insurance, 944 F.Supp. 874 (M.D.Fla.1995), aff'd, 101 F. 3d 707 (11th Cir.1996) (“An offer of judgment ought to fairly account for the…
Authorities Cited
- McMULLEN OIL Co., Inc. v. ISS Int'l Serv. Sys., Inc., 698 So. 2d 372 (Fla. 2d DCA 1997)
- State Farm Life Ins. Co. v. Bass, 605 So. 2d 908 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992)
- Hartford Cas. Ins. Co. v. Silverman, 689 So. 2d 346 (Fla. 3d DCA 1997)
- Hellmann v. City OF Orlando, 610 So. 2d 103 (Fla. 5th DCA 1992)
- Siedlecki v. Arabia, 699 So. 2d 1040 (Fla. 4th DCA 1997)