ROBERT HEATH, APPELLANT,
v.
BEAR ISLAND HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION, INC., A FLORIDA NON-PROFIT CORPORATION, AND FRANK MOSCATO, APPELLEES
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Robert Heath, a homeowner at Bear Island, appealed a summary judgment dismissing his claims against the Bear Island Homeowners Association and board member Frank Moscato. The court affirmed the summary judgment, holding that the Association had no legal obligation to enforce the Declaration of Covenants and Restrictions and that Heath failed to establish a breach of fiduciary duty claim against Moscato.
The Association had no legal obligation to enforce the Declaration because Article XII explicitly made enforcement a discretionary decision rather than a mandatory duty. Consequently, Heath could not establish a clear legal right necessary to obtain injunctive relief. The summary judgment in favor of Moscato on the breach of fiduciary duty claim was also proper.
[1] A party seeking injunctive relief must demonstrate the existence of a clear legal right.
[2] A court may affirm a summary judgment even if the trial court's reasoning was incorrect, provided there is a valid basis in the record to support the judgment.
Previewing 2 of 3 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“The Developer, the Association, or any individual may, but shall not be required to, seek enforcement of the Declaration.”
The plain language of Article XII establishing that enforcement is discretionary, not mandatory, defeating Heath's claim for injunctive relief.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceRobert Heath is a resident of Bear Island and a party to the Declaration of Covenants and Restrictions. Heath sought an injunction to compel the Assoc…
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This is an appeal brought by Robert Heath, the plaintiff below, challenging the trial court’s entry of a summary judgment in favor of the defendants below, Bear Island Homeowners Association, Inc. (“the Association”) and Frank Moscato, a board *40member. We conclude that the trial court correctly entered a summary judgment in favor of the Association as to count one (injunctive relief) — albeit for the wrong reasons. Further, after carefully reviewing the arguments and the record, we also conclude that the trial court correctly entered a summary judgment in favor of Moscato as to count two (breach of fiduciary duty). Therefore, we affirm.
In count I of the complaint, Heath sought an injunction to compel the Association to enforce the terms of its Declaration of Covenants and Restrictions. Heath, a resident of Bear Island and as such a party to the Declaration, accused the Association of failing to enforce the terms of the Declaration as to certain homeowners. Heath provided the trial court with a list of other residences in Bear Island which he claimed had changes, modifications, or improvements that were made without first seeking the Association’s approval, in direct abrogation of the Declaration’s requirement that changes first be approved.
The Association, however, had no legal obligation to take legal action to enforce the Declaration. Article XII, entitled “Enforcement of Declaration,” states, in pertinent part:
The enforcement of this Declaration may be by proceeding at law for damages or in equity to compel compliance with its terms or to prevent violation or breach of any of the covenants or terms herein. The Developer, the Association, or any individual may, but shall not be required to, seek enforcement of the Declaration.
Quite simply, because this plain language explicitly makes enforcement of the Declaration a purely discretionary decision on the part of the Association, Heath had no clear legal right to an injunction to compel the Association to enforce the terms of the Declaration. See, e.g., Murtagh v. Hurley, 40 So.3d 62, 66 (Fla. 2d DCA 2010) (stating that in order to obtain an injunction, the “party seeking injunctive relief must show” among other things “the existence of a clear legal right”). While this was not the reasoning stated by the trial court for granting the summary judgment as to count one, we are compelled to affirm nonetheless. See Dade Cnty. Sch. Bd. v. Radio Station WQBA, 731 So.2d 638, 644 (Fla.1999) (“[I]f a trial court reaches the right result, but for the wrong reasons, it will be upheld if there is any basis which would support the judgment in the record.”).
We have also reviewed that portion of the summary judgment entered in favor of Moscato as to count two and find no error. Therefore, the summary judgment is affirmed.
Affirmed.
MAY, C.J., STEVENSON and CIKLIN, JJ., concur.
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Cited By
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Alden Hanson v. Fowler, White, Burnett, P.A., 117 So. 3d 1127 (Fla. 3d DCA 2012)…n. 3 (Fla. 3d DCA 1985) (recognizing that the "right for the wrong reason” appellate maxim applies to summary judgment proceedings where the issue was raised in the motion for summary judgment); see also Heath v. Bear Island Homeowners Ass’n, Inc., 76 So. 3d 39, 40 (Fla. 4th DCA 2011) (affirming summary judgment in favor of the appellee/defendant upon concluding that the trial court was correct "albeit for the wrong reasons,” citing Dade County School Board v. Radio Station WQBA, 731 So. 2d 638 (Fla.1999))…
Authorities Cited
- Dade Cnty. Sch. Bd. v. Radio Station Wqba, 731 So. 2d 638 (Fla. 1999)
- William O. Murtagh, M.D. v. Hurley, 40 So. 3d 62 (Fla. 2d DCA 2010)