SHAFFER
v.
DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY, AS INDENTURE TRUSTEE, AMERICAN HOME MORTGAGE INVESTMENT TRUST 2006-1
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A trial court that dismisses a class counterclaim while leaving the individual claim intact effectively denies class certification and must issue findings of fact and conclusions of law under Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.220(d)(1), regardless of whether the counterclaim is compulsory or permissive.
[1] A trial court's dismissal of a class counterclaim while leaving the individual claim intact constitutes an effective denial of class certification requiring the issuance…
Previewing 1 of 1 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“Irrespective of whether the court determines that the claim or defense is maintainable on behalf of a class, the order [so determining] shall separately state the findings of fact and conclusions of law upon which the determination is based.”
Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.220(d)(1), cited by the court to establish the mandatory nature of the findings and conclusions requirement.
Deutsche Bank brought a foreclosure action against Linda Shaffer. Shaffer asserted a counterclaim (count three) seeking a declaration that Deutsche Ba…
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DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL OF FLORIDA
SECOND DISTRICT
LINDA L. SHAFFER,
Appellant,
v.
DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY,
AS INDENTURE TRUSTEE FOR AMERICAN HOME MORTGAGE
INVESTMENT TRUST 2006-1,
Appellee.
No. 2D2024-2310
July 18, 2025
Appeal pursuant to Fla. R. App. P. 9.130 from the Circuit Court for Manatee County; Edward Nicholas, Judge.
David W. Smith of Law Office of David W. Smith, Sarasota, for Appellant.
Matthew R. Feluren and Eve A. Cann of Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, PC, Fort Lauderdale, for Appellee.
ROTHSTEIN-YOUAKIM, Judge. In this foreclosure case brought by Deutsche Bank National Trust Company, Linda Shaffer appeals the trial court's grant of Deutsche Bank's motion to dismiss count three of her counterclaim on behalf of a putative class. Count three seeks a declaration that Deutsche Bank cannot enforce the underlying loan documents against Shaffer because it previously issued her an Internal Revenue Service Form 1099-C indicating that the loan had been discharged. Count three also seeks
1 Although we have jurisdiction over this appeal to the extent that the trial court's order effectively denied class certification on count three, see Fla. R. App. P. 9.130(a)(3)(C)(vi) (permitting appeal of orders determining "whether to certify a class"), we lack jurisdiction at this stage to determine whether that count states a cause of action, and our opinion should not be construed as taking a position on that issue, see Samples v. Hernando Taxpayers Ass'n, 682 So. 2d 184, 185 (Fla. 5th DCA 1996) (holding that "the issue of whether the trial court erred in failing to dismiss the complaint for failure to state a cause of action is not properly before this court" and limiting review instead to class certification).
VILLANTI and MOE, JJ., Concur.
Opinion subject to revision prior to official publication.
2 Deutsche Bank contends that the trial court was not required to set forth its findings and conclusions because Shaffer's count three asserts a permissive counterclaim rather than a compulsory one. As an initial matter, count three is doubtless compulsory: if Shaffer is right about the consequences of the 1099-C issued to her (again, about which we express no view), Deutsche Bank will be unable to enforce the loan documents against her. Cf. Cabrera, 281 So. 3d at 520 (determining that a counterclaim alleging that the foreclosing bank had improperly added fees and costs from a prior unsuccessful foreclosure action to the amount due on the loan was compulsory because it involved the "same aggregate of operative facts" (quoting Londono v. Turkey Creek, Inc., 609 So. 2d 14, 20 (Fla. 1992))); Ocean Bank v. Dep't of Fin. Servs., 902 So. 2d 833, 835 (Fla. 1st DCA 2005) (holding that a claim to void a mortgage was a compulsory counterclaim in a foreclosure action). But in any event, rule 1.220(d)(1) makes no such distinction, and although the cases on which the parties rely involve compulsory counterclaims, those cases do not suggest that the nature of those counterclaims dictates whether the court must follow the rule.
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Citator
Authorities Cited
- Les Samples v. Hernando Taxpayers Ass'n, 682 So. 2d 184 (Fla. 5th DCA 1996)
- Zacarias Cabrera v. U.S. Bank Nat'l Assoc., 281 So. 3d 516 (Fla. 4th DCA 2019)