RITTER'S HOTEL, INC.,
v.
HARRY SIDEBOTHOM
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This case concerns whether a landlord can recover attorneys' fees and bond premiums from a tenant who failed to pay rent. The court held that the lease agreement's language allowed for recovery of these costs, and the tenant failed to properly preserve an appeal regarding the reasonableness of the fees.
Yes, the lease agreement's provision for "all costs and charges" in collecting rent included attorneys' fees and bond premiums. No, the trial court did not err because the tenant failed to make a proper proffer of evidence to dispute the reasonableness of the attorneys' fees, thus failing to preserve the alleged error for appeal.
“It is clear that by the use of the word “attorney” in the lease the parties intended that attorneys’ fees were to be included in 'all costs and charges' of collecting the rent.”
Establishes the contractual basis for recovering attorneys' fees.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceA tenant failed to pay rent, leading the landlord to initiate distress proceedings and obtain a judgment for the rent owed. The landlord then filed a …
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Certiorari from the circuit court of Dade County.
Respondent, Harry Sidebothom, owned a hotel on Miami Beach which he leased to petitioner for a stipulated rental. On the failure of petitioner to pay the rent, distress proceedings were instituted against him and judgment for the *172rent with interest and cost was obtained. The premiums on the distress bond and the attorneys’ fees were not included in that judgment, and this suit was instituted in the Civil Court of Record of Dade County to recover said premiums and attorneys’ fees. That Court finally entered judgment in favor of respondent for the premiums and fees paid out in the distress proceedings. Appeal was taken to the Circuit Court of Dade County and the judgment of the Civil Court of Record was affirmed.
At the trial respondent introduced testimony as to the amount of the bond premiums and attorney’s fees, together with -receipts showing payment thereof, and rested. The judge stated that he would take notice of what was a reasonable fee in that jurisdiction, and by his actions intimated that he would refuse any testimony offered by petitioner to dispute the reasonableness of the fee. In the face of this petitioner declined to proffer any testimony as to the reasonableness of the fees and verdict was directed for respondent for attorneys’ fees, premiums, interest and costs of court.
While it is true that the judge of the trial court by his actions and statements from the bench intimated that he would not permit petitioner to introduce testimony as to the unreasonableness of the fees, the following question was asked the Court by attorney for petitioner: “On your Honor’s statement, there can be no testimony offered as to reasonableness for the reason that there is no controversy as (to) the reasonableness of the attorneys’ fees in the case?” To which the Court answered: “I will let you tender your testimony if you desire, and I will take that up as it comes along.” There was, then, no refusal to allow testimony as to reasonableness to be introduced.
The party seeking to introduce the testimony must, in order to have the ruling reviewed on appeal, make an offer *173of what he proposes to prove, so that the trial and appellate courts can determine whether the proposed evidence is material or not; otherwise he has failed to make the alleged error appear. Boykin v. State, 40 Fla. 484, 24 So. 141; Morey v. State, 72 Fla. 45, 72 So. 490. There being no evidence to dispute the reasonableness of the attorneys’ fees, the trial judge did not err in directing a verdict' for respondent.
In the lease agreement it was provided that” * * * in case of the failure of the lessee to pay the rent herein réserved when the same shall become due, and the same is collected by suit or through an attorney, the Lessee agrees to pay the Lessor all costs and charges thereof.” It' is fundamental law that contracts' may be entered into for the payment of attorney’s fees and when so entered into are enforceable. In Gralynn Laundry, Inc., v. Virginia Bond and Mortgage Corp., et al., 121 Fla. 312, 163 So. 706, after stating that the allowance of attorney fees is purely a matter of contract, the court went on to hold that if the instrument on its face evidenced a clear intent to pay attorney fees and it was shown that they were incurred within the terms of the instrument, the mere fact that the language employed for setting up such fees in the contract was not as good as it might have been would not defeat the purpose.
In Williams v. Flowers, 90 Ala. 136, 7 So. 439, 24 Am. St. Rep. 772, the Supreme Court of Alabama, in commenting on the use of the words “costs of collecting” in a promissory note, has said:
“* * * ln common parlance the compensation paid an attorney is denominated a ‘fee’ in contradistinction to the costs incident to the judgment; but in its legal sense the term ‘costs’ denotes not only the expenses incurred by reason of being a party to legal proceedings, but also the *174charges which an attorney is entitled to recover from his client as remuneration for his professional services. Rap. & L. Law Diet. It is manifest that the parties meant that the term ‘costs for collecting,’ as used in the note, should be understood in' its broadest signification; otherwise the stipulation would have no effect, for without it defendants would be liable to the costs incident to the decree. We therefore construe the term as having been intended to include the compensation which the payee of the note might have to pay an attorney for bringing a suit to enforce its collection.”
It is clear that by the use of the word “attorney” in the lease the parties intended that attorneys’ fees were to be included in' “all costs and charges” of collecting the rent. There being sufficient contractual basis on which to ground this action, and no errors appearing in the record, the judgment is hereby affirmed.
It is so ordered.
Whitfield, P. J., and Brown and Chapman, J. J., concur.
Terrell, C. J., concurs in opinion and judgment.
Justices Buford and Thomas not participating as authorized by Section 4697, Compiled General Laws.of 1927, and Rule 21-A of the Rules of this Court.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By (14 total)
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Brickell BAY Club Condo. Ass'n, Inc. v. Forte, 397 So. 2d 959 (Fla. 3d DCA 1981)…tion below, a clear and unequivocal right to the recovery of both attorney’s fees and costs.2 The courts have no discretion to decline to enforce such an undertaking, any more than any other contractual provision. Ritter’s Hotel, Inc. v. Sidebothom, 142 Fla. 171, 194 So. 322 (1940); Kendall East Estates, Inc. v. Banks, 386 So. 2d 1245, 1247 (Fla. 3d DCA 1980); Silver Blue Lake Apts., No. 3, Inc. v. Manson, 334 So. 2d 48 (Fla. 3d DCA 1976). Accordingly, the cause is remanded for the sole purpose of determini…
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Musachia v. Terry, 140 So. 2d 605 (Fla. 3d DCA 1962)…on the record, it is necessary to make a proffer thereof so that a reviewing court may determine what was excluded and whether the exclusion was prejudicial. See Lawson v. Loftin, 155 Fla. 685, 21 So. 2d 202, 204; Ritter’s Hotel, Inc. v. Sidebothom, 142 Fla. 171, 194 So. 322, 323; Green v. Hood, Fla.App.1960, 120 So. 2d 223, 226; Conrad, Modern Trial Evidence § 1219 (1956). After it is made, if the proffer is objected to, a ruling follows either allowing the testimony to be presented in the case, or sustain…
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Fred Howland, Inc. v. Gore, 152 Fla. 781 (Fla. 1942)…ntemplates judicial proceedings for these purposes if necessary, and, read together, they warrant the payment of reasonable attorney’s fees for such proceedings.” To the same effect was our holding in the case of Ritter’s Hotel Inc., v. Sidebotham, 142 Fla. 171, 194 So. 322. The provision above quoted from the contract here under consideration does not warrant any such construction as was applied to the instruments involved in either the Ritter’s Hotel case or in the Gralynn Laundry case. It cannot be sa…
Previewing 3 of 14 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Morey v. State, 72 Fla. 45 (Fla. 1916)
- Boykin v. State, 40 Fla. 484 (Fla. 1898)
- Gralynn Laundry, Inc. v. The Va. Bond & Mortg. Corp., 121 Fla. 312 (Fla. 1935)