DIANA STEVENS, APPELLANT,
v.
AMERICAN IMPORT CAR SALES, D/B/A JUMBO AUTO AND TRUCK SALES, A FLORIDA CORPORATION, APPELLEE
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Diana Stevens appealed an order compelling settlement of a deceptive trade practices case against a used car dealer. The court affirmed, holding that Stevens's lawyer could not withdraw a $35,000 settlement offer after the defendant accepted it, even though subsequent discovery documents allegedly strengthened Stevens's position.
The court affirmed the order compelling settlement, holding that the settlement offer could not be withdrawn once accepted. An attorney who makes a settlement offer while discovery is outstanding assumes the risk that documents may later be discovered that support her claims.
[1] A settlement offer, once accepted, becomes a binding contract, and a party cannot unilaterally withdraw the offer based on information that could have been discovered thr…
[2] An attorney's awareness of potential weaknesses in their client's case does not, in itself, justify withdrawing a settlement offer after it has been accepted.
Previewing 2 of 4 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“By making an offer while some discovery was outstanding, Covey assumed the risk that documents would be unearthed that would support her claim.”
Establishes the key principle that a party making a settlement offer during pending discovery bears the risk of subsequently discovered favorable evidence.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceStevens purchased a used 1997 Pontiac Grand Am from American Import Car Sales (Jumbo Auto). Stevens's attorney, Rebecca Covey, had previously represen…
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PER CURIAM.
Diana Stevens appeals an order granting a motion to compel settlement. We affirm.
Stevens purchased a used 1997 Pontiac Grand Am from appellee American Import Car Sales d/b/a Jumbo Auto & Truck Sales. She sued Jumbo for deceptive trade practices, alleging that Jumbo had (1) concealed from her that the vehicle had undergone major repairs as a result of a prior accident, and (2) failed to disclose that the car was a salvage, rebuilt, or flood vehicle.
Stevens’s lawyer, Rebecca Covey, had represented Loretta Ramdial, a previous owner of the same Grand Am in a substantially similar lawsuit against Jumbo. Jumbo settled the lawsuit with Ramdial, accepted the Grand Am back into its inventory, and sold it to Stevens.
Stevens filed suit against Jumbo on March 1, 2001. In a letter dated March 15, 2002, Stevens proposed a “full and final settlement” with Jumbo for $35,000. On April 5, 2002, Jumbo’s counsel hand-delivered a letter to attorney Covey accepting the settlement offer. On April 10, 2002, Covey wrote to Jumbo’s lawyer withdrawing the March 15 offer of settlement and proposing a new offer of $150,000. The basis for Covey’s attempt to withdraw the settlement offer was that she had received a document during discovery from a third party which suggested that Jumbo had knowledge of the poor condition of the car at the time it first acquired it in 1997 or 1998. Arguably, this document strengthened the case against Jumbo. Having represented two clients regarding the Grand Am, Covey was well aware of the problems with the car at the time she made the March 15 settlement offer. In pleadings and in argument during the case, Covey had taken the position that Jumbo was not truthful in its protestations that it was unaware of the condition of the car before it was sold to Stevens. Covey extended the offer over a year after she had filed the case. By making an offer while some discovery was outstanding, Covey assumed the risk that documents would be unearthed that would support her claim. See BMW of N. Am., Inc. v. Krathen, 471 So. 2d 585, 588 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985) (holding that lack of due care on the part of defendant’s counsel leading to unilateral mistake did not justify setting aside settlement agreement).
This case is very different from Mazzoni Farms, Inc. v. E.I. DuPont De Nemours & Co., 761 So. 2d 306 (Fla.2000). In that case, after the parties settled the case, the plaintiffs discovered information which indicated that the defendant had intentionally concealed test results. Here, the document at issue is hardly the “smoking gun” involved in Mazzoni. Unlike the plaintiffs in Mazzoni, Stevens had reason to question the defendant’s position concerning what it knew about the Grand Am and in fact, was awaiting outstanding discovery directed to this issue.
AFFIRMED.
FARMER, C.J., GROSS and MAY, JJ„ concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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Rebecca J. Covey, P.A. v. Am. Imp. CAR Sales, 944 So. 2d 1202 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006)…eptance of the offer. Thereafter, the trial court granted Jumbo’s Motion to Compel Settlement, requiring Stevens to execute release documents. The trial court’s order compelling settlement was affirmed on appeal. See Stevens v. Am. Import Car Sales, 877 So. 2d 880 (Fla. 4th DCA 2004). SouthTrust was granted final summary judgment on Stevens’s claims, but remained a party to the proceedings to prosecute its counterclaims. SouthTrust prevailed on its counterclaims in a final judgment. SouthTrust was awarded $4…
Authorities Cited
- Mazzoni Farms, Inc. v. E.I. DuPONT DE Nemours & Co., 761 So. 2d 306 (Fla. 2000)
- BMW OF N. Am., Inc. v. Krathen, 471 So. 2d 585 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985)