R. PLANTS, INC., ET AL., APPELLANTS,
v.
DOME ENTERPRISES, INC., APPELLEE

Fla. 3d DCA | 2017-06-07
No. 3D16-2333
Before SUAREZ, C.J., and EMAS and LUCK, JJ.
221 So. 3d 752 Florida District Court of Appeal, Third District (2017) Positive Treatment
Cited by 5 cases

AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.

Synopsis

R Plants, Inc. and its president appealed a summary judgment award in favor of Dome Enterprises on a breach of contract claim. The court affirmed, holding that Dome met its burden as the moving party by presenting affidavits establishing all elements of breach of contract, and that R Plants failed to present any counterevidence or raise genuine issues of material fact.


Holding

The court held that Dome satisfied its burden as summary judgment movant by presenting affidavits establishing all material elements of breach of contract (valid contract, material breach, and damages), and R Plants' failure to present counterevidence created no genuine issue of material fact. The court further held that unliquidated damages can be decided by summary judgment if there is no counterevidence creating a genuine issue regarding the amount of damages.


Headnotes

[1] A plaintiff moving for summary judgment must present evidence supporting all material elements of its claim.

[2] Once a plaintiff moving for summary judgment presents evidence supporting all material elements of its claim, the opposing party must come forward with counterevidence su…

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Key Quotes

“The plaintiff ... as movant for summary judgment, had the burden ... to affirm with evidence all material facts necessary to support his complaint”

Establishes that the moving party must present evidence supporting all material elements of the claim

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Facts & Procedural History

Dome Enterprises entered into a written contract with R Plants, Inc. and its president Victor Rodriguez to construct a concrete pad on R Plants' prope…

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Opinion of the Court
PER CURIAM.

PER CURIAM.

The trial court granted Dome Enterprises, Inc.’s motion for summary judgment against R Plants, Inc. and its president, Victor Rodriguez, on Dome’s claim for breach of contract.1 On appeal, R Plants and Rodriguez contend that the trial court erred because: (1) Dome did not meet its initial burden to present evidence that they breached the contract; and (2) Dome was awarded unliquidated damages without an evidentiary hearing. We affirm.

As to the first issue, a plaintiff moving for summary judgment must present evidence supporting all the material elements of its claim. See First Nat. Entm’t Corp. v. Brumlik, 531 So.2d 403, 405 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988) (“The plaintiff ... as movant for summaiy judgment, had the burden ... to affirm with evidence all material facts necessary to support his complaint .... ”). *754Once it does, “the opposing party must come forward with counterevidence sufficient to reveal a genuine issue. It is not enough for the opposing party merely to assert that an issue does exist.” Landers v. Milton, 370 So.2d 368, 370 (Fla. 1979)

Here, Dome attached affidavits to its summary judgment motion providing that it entered into a written contract with R Plants and Rodriguez and performed all of its obligations; R Plants and Rodriguez breached the contract by refusing to perform their part under the contract; and the breach caused $61,290 in damages (not including costs, interest, and attorneys’ fees). See Abbott Labs., Inc. v. Gen. Elec. Capital, 765 So.2d 737, 740 (Fla. 5th DCA 2000) (“The elements of a breach of contract action are: (1) a valid contract; (2) a material breach; and (3) damages.”). R Plants and Rodriguez, in response, did not allege any affirmative defenses, and did not present evidence in opposition to the summary judgment motion. There being no counterevidence, there was no genuine issue of material fact on Dome’s breach of contract claim, and the trial court correctly granted summary judgment.

As to the second issue, whether the trial court erred in awarding unliqui-dated damages without an evidentiary hearing, “any claim for damages, liquidated or unliquidated, or for attorneys fees and costs can be' decided by summary judgment.” Sloan v. Freedom Sav. & Loan Ass’n, 525 So.2d 1000, 1001 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988). Dome’s summary judgment motion included affidavits providing the damages it suffered as a result of R Plants and Rodriguez’s breach of the contract, and the costs and attorneys’ fees that went into prosecuting its claim. If there had been counterevidence on the amount of damages, then a hearing or trial may have been required. Without a genuine issue of material fact on the amount of damages caused by the breach, summary judgment was appropriate.

Affirmed.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Garcia v. First Cmty. Ins. Co., 241 So. 3d 254 (Fla. 3d DCA 2018)
    …sues of material fact, “‘the opposing party must come forward with counterevidence sufficient to reveal a genuine issue. It is not enough for the opposing party merely to assert that an issue does exist.’” R. Plants, Inc. v. Dome Enters., Inc., 221 So. 3d 752, 754 (Fla. 3d DCA 2017) (quoting Landers v. Milton, 370 So. 2d 368, 370 (Fla. 1979)); see also McNabb v. Taylor Elevator Corp., 203 So. 3d 184, 185 (Fla. 2d DCA 2016) (“Once a movant meets his or her initial burden, the burden shifts to the oppos…
  • Volvo Aero Leasing, LLC v. Vas Aero Servs., LLC, 268 So. 3d 785 (Fla. 4th DCA 2019)

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