CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, APPELLANT,
v.
ALINA GUERRA, APPELLEE
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The City of Miami Beach appealed a jury verdict in favor of an employee who sued for negligence based on sexual harassment in the workplace. The court reversed, holding that Florida law does not recognize a cause of action for sexual harassment under a common law negligence theory.
Florida does not recognize a cause of action for sexual harassment under a common law negligence theory. The Supreme Court's decision in Byrd v. Richardson-Greenshields Securities, Inc. did not establish such a tort but rather addressed the narrower issue of whether corporations can use the workers' compensation exclusion to avoid liability for intentional torts committed as part of a sexually harassing environment.
[1] Florida law does not recognize a cause of action for sexual harassment under a common law negligence theory.
[2] The Florida Supreme Court in Byrd v. …
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“Since we hold that Florida does not recognize a cause of action for sexual harassment under a common law negligence theory, we reverse.”
The court's central holding and the basis for reversal
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAlina Guerra was a communications division employee of the Miami Beach Police Department who alleged she was subjected to a pattern of sexual harassme…
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NESBITT, J.
Alina Guerra was a communications division employee of the Miami Beach Police Department. Her one-count complaint for negligence against the City alleged that she was subjected to a pattern of sexual harassment as a Miami Beach Police Department employee. The one count amended complaint alleged that, as Guerra had informed her supervisor of the harassment, the City had a duty to ensure a safe work place and to protect her from a “hostile work environment.” The City moved for summary judgment on the grounds that there is no recognition in Florida law for a negligence action based on alleged sexual harassment in the workplace. The motion was denied, and the trial court allowed the case to proceed under a common law negligence theory for sexual harassment. The jury found for Ms. Guerra. The City’s post-judgment motions for a new trial and JNOV were denied. This appeal follows. Since we hold that Florida does not recognize a cause of action for sexual harassment under a common law negligence theory, we reverse.
Ms. Guerra argues that the Supreme Court of Florida’s opinion in Byrd v. Richardson-Greenshields Securities, Inc., 552 So. 2d 1099 (Fla.1989), permits a cause of action for common law negligence for sexual harassment. However, the court in Byrd specifically declined to reach this issue. Id. at 1105.
We agree with the holding in Vernon v. Medical Management Assocs. of Margate, Inc., 912 F.Supp. 1549 (S.D.Fla.1996), in which Judge Marcus discussed the Byrd decision: Although the Court’s opinion contains expansive language which might suggest that it was recognizing a new tort, when read carefully and considered in the context of the specific facts of Byrd, it seems clear that the Florida Supreme Court did not intend to establish a new common law tort related to sexual harassment. Rather, it appears that the Court simply adopted the more narrow position that corporations that allow employees to commit intentional torts such as battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress or assault as part of a sexually harassing environment can no longer hide behind the workers’ compensation exclusion rule to escape liability.
Id. at 1564. Therefore, since the only count contained in Ms. Guerra’s complaint is for a cause of action that does not exist, the final judgment is reversed.
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Footstar Corp. v. DOE, 932 So. 2d 1272 (Fla. 2d DCA 2006)…dson-Greenshields Securities, Inc., 552 So. 2d 1099 (Fla.1989), the trial court denied Footstar’s motion. Additionally, the trial court concluded: Although there is no common law cause of action for sexual harassment, City of Miami Beach v. Guerra, 746 So. 2d 1159 (Fla. 3d DCA 1999), the Byrd decision apparently does not require a discr[ete] statutory cause of action for sexual harassment to be pled in order to avoid the exclusivity of the Workers’ Compensation Act remedy. In Byrd, 552 So. 2d 1099, our supre…1 / 3
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Alina Guerra v. The City OF Miami Beach, 782 So. 2d 868 (Fla. 2001)…PER CURIAM. We initially accepted review of the decision of the district court of appeal in City of Miami Beach v. Guerra, 746 So. 2d 1159 (Fla. 3d DCA 1999), based on express and direct conflict with the decision in Byrd v. Richardson-Greenshields Securities, Inc., 552 So. 2d 1099 (Fla. 1989). Upon further consideration, we find that review was improvidently granted. Accordingly, this…
Authorities Cited
- Byrd v. Richardson-Greenshields Sec., Inc., 552 So. 2d 1099 (Fla. 1989)
- Vernon v. Med. Mgmt. Assocs. of Margate, Inc., 912 F. Supp. 1549 (S.D. Fla. 1996)