DLJ MORTGAGE CAPITAL, INC., PETITIONER,
v.
NEIL B. FOX, RESPONDENT
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The court held that a party does not waive privilege objections by failing to file a privilege log when other non-privilege objections are pending and have not been ruled upon by the court.
[1] A trial court may find a waiver of privilege for failure to file a privilege log, but this rule should not be applied to categorical assertions of privilege.
[2] The obligation to file a privilege log is tolled until a trial court rules on other non-privilege objections to discovery requests.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligencePetitioner sought review of an order finding it waived work product and attorney-client privilege objections due to failure to file a privilege log. T…
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In this residential mortgage foreclosure action, Petitioner seeks review of an order finding that it waived the right to raise work product and attorney client privilege objections to a discovery request because it failed to file a privilege log. We grant the petition.
To support its position, Petitioner makes three arguments. First, it contends that the failure to file a privilege log did not justify finding a waiver because some of the objections were category-based. Second, it claims that a privilege log was not due for several of the items, because the court had not yet ruled on other grounds for objection that were simultaneously raised along with the work product or attorney client privilege. Finally, Petitioner argues that the court could not implicitly waive the privilege as a sanction for a serious discovery violation. Respondent argues that the court properly found a waiver because the crime-fraud exception applied. We agree with Petitioner that this argument has no merit because it does not appear that the trial court relied on this exception in rendering its decision. We do, however, find that Petitioner’s first two arguments have merit.
A trial court has discretion to find a waiver of privilege from the failure to file a privilege log. See Century Business Credit Corp. v. Fitness Innovations & Tech., Inc., 906 So.2d 1156 (Fla. 4th DCA 2005). However, the failure to file a log should not be applied to categorical assertions of privilege. See Nevin v. Palm Beach Co. Sch. Bd., 958 So.2d 1003, 1008 (Fla. 1st DCA 2007). Here, some of the requests appear to include items which would be categorically protected by the work product privilege, specifically, Items 13, 15, 16, 18, 19, and 20. These items seek the disclosure of materials from counsel which were made in the course of litigation or that patently reflect the attorney’s mental impressions. See Grinnell Corp. v. Palms 2100 Ocean Blvd., Ltd., 924 So.2d 887 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006). Florida disfavors the waiver of work-product protections. See Nevin, 958 So.2d at 1008. Thus, as to these items, we find that the *646trial court’s finding of a waiver was a departure from the essential requirements of the law.
To the extent that Petitioner claims that it had no obligation to file a privilege log on claims which included non-privilege objections, we agree. See Gosman v. Luzinski, 937 So.2d 293 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006) (holding that the time for filing a privilege log was tolled until the court had ruled on the party’s objections that the discovery requests were burdensome); Morton Plant Hosp. Ass’n. v. Shahbas ex rel. Shahbas, 960 So.2d 820 (Fla. 2d DCA 2007) (noting that until a trial court rules on a party’s other objections to discovery the party asserting the privilege need not file a privilege log). Here, Petitioner raised privilege and non-privilege objections as to Items 10, 13, 15, 16, 19, 20, 28, and 33. The court deferred ruling as to the non-privilege objections. Thus, Petitioner did not have a duty to file a privilege log for those items on which other objections were raised until the court had determined that those items were otherwise discoverable. Accordingly, Petitioner did not waive its right to assert privilege on the items described by failing to file a privilege log, because the time for filing the log was tolled until the court ruled on the other objections.
Finally, we agree that under the facts and circumstances of this case the court could not find a waiver as a sanction for a discovery violation. Although the objections were raised four months after the request was due, Respondent never moved to compel, nor did it request a privilege log. Cf. Kaye Scholer LLP v. Zalis, 878 So.2d 447 (Fla. 3d DCA 2004); see also Bankers Sec. Ins. Co. v. Symons, 889 So.2d 93 (Fla. 5th DCA 2004). In any event, it does not appear that the trial court found the waiver as a sanction; rather, its decision was based solely on the fact that Petitioner did not file a privilege log.
For these reasons, we find that the trial court departed from the essential requirements of the law by finding that Petitioner’s failure to file a privilege log constituted a waiver of privilege as to Items 10, 13, 15, 16, 18, 19, and 20, 28, and 33. See Nevin, 958 So.2d at 1008; Gasman, 937 So.2d at 296. We therefore grant the petition for certiorari as to the items challenged in the petition. The trial court should allow Petitioner to file a privilege log within a reasonable time after it rules on the non-privilege objections, so that an in camera inspection may be conducted.
Petition Granted.
POLEN, TAYLOR and LEVINE, JJ., concur.
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Avatar Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co. v. Jones, 291 So. 3d 663 (Fla. 2d DCA 2020)
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GKK v. Petronila Cruz, 251 So. 3d 967 (Fla. 3d DCA 2018)…that the items sought in these paragraphs are plainly protected.3 Therefore, the failure to file a [*970] privilege log did not waive the privilege as to these categories of items sought. Nevin, 958 So. 2d at 1008 ; DLJ Mortg. Capital, Inc. v. Fox, 112 So. 3d 644 (Fla. 4th DCA 2013). However, the same cannot be said as to the items or categories of items sought in paragraphs Two and Three. While some of the items sought may be subject to a privilege, others are not (at least on their face) subject to any pr…
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Int'l House OF Pancakes (Ihop) v. Robinson, 124 So. 3d 1004 (Fla. 4th DCA 2013)…xie Stores, Inc. v. Nakutis, 435 So. 2d 307, 308 (Fla. 5th DCA 1983)). The applicability of the work product exception is not changed by petitioners’ failure to file a privilege log at the time of the hearing below. DLJ Mortg. Capital, Inc. v. Fox, 112 So. 3d 644, 646 (Fla. 4th DCA 2013) (finding that failure to file a privilege log is not fatal to an otherwise viable work product claim where the trial court had not yet ruled on other grounds for nondisclosure at the time of the hearing). Furthermore, with r…
Previewing 3 of 7 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Morton Plant Hosp. Ass'n, Inc. v. Shahbas, 960 So. 2d 820 (Fla. 2d DCA 2007)
- Holbrook v. State, 937 So. 2d 293 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006)
- Bankers Sec. Ins. Co. v. Helene Symons and Chris Symons, 889 So. 2d 93 (Fla. 5th DCA 2004)
- Nevin v. Palm Beach Cnty. Sch. Bd. & F.A. Richard & Assocs., 958 So. 2d 1003 (Fla. 1st DCA 2007)
- Gosman v. Luzinski, 937 So. 2d 293 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006)
- Kaye Scholer LLP v. Zalis, 878 So. 2d 447 (Fla. 3d DCA 2004)
- Grinnell Corp. v. The Palms 2100 Ocean Boulevard, Ltd., 924 So. 2d 887 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006)
- Century Bus. Credit Corp. v. Fitness Innovations & Techs., Inc., 906 So. 2d 1156 (Fla. 4th DCA 2005)