JOHN HANCOCK MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, A MASSACHUSETTS CORPORATION, APPELLANT,
v.
MARK-A, INC., A FLORIDA CORPORATION, APPELLEE
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.
The trial judge's award of damages was supported by sufficient evidence and a sound exercise of discretion.
Appellee sued appellant for the value of missing furniture entrusted to appellant. The case was tried on a bailment theory, and the trial court entere…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Bailment cases and more on FLexlaw
PER CURIAM.
Appellee, Mark-A, Inc., filed suit against appellant, John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company, claiming that upon an inventory taken by appellee it was determined that a quantity of furniture, entrusted to the appellant, was missing. The cause was tried on the theory of bailment before the court without a jury. Final judgment was entered in favor of appellee, assessing damages against appellant in the amount of $8,000. Appellant timely filed this appeal.
We have considered the three points raised by appellant and deem that only one of them merits discussion. This issue concerns the basis upon which the trial court awarded damages to appellee.
We agree with the well-established principles that awards for damage must be supported by evidence and cannot be based on speculation and conjecture. On the other hand, the law is also clear to the effect that where damages cannot be precisely and mathematically determined, the trial judge is vested with reasonable discretion in making awards of damages. We are persuaded that the trial judge’s award in this case is not based substantially on speculation, but, rather, on a sound exercise of discretion in a reasonable manner and on sufficient competent testimony.
We hold that the trial judge was correct in his rulings of law and his findings of fact are supported by substantial evidence.
Affirmed.
McNULTY, C. J., and HOBSON and BOARDMAN, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
U.S. Home Corp. v. Suncoast Utils., Inc., 454 So. 2d 601 (Fla. 2d DCA 1984)…udge is vested with reasonable discretion in awarding damages where they cannot be precisely determined. Clearwater Associates v. Hicks Laundry Equipment Corp., 433 So. 2d 7 (Fla. 2d DCA 1983); John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Co. v. Mark-A, Inc., 324 So. 2d 674 (Fla. 2d DCA 1975). Nevertheless, we think this case is distinguishable in that Suncoast did not show either by Tunstall’s testimony or any other evidence the factors upon which it based its claim for lost profits. Accordingly, Sun-coast is entitled…
-
Clearwater Assocs. v. Hicks Laundry Equip. Corp., 433 So. 2d 7 (Fla. 2d DCA 1983)…Conner v. Atlas Aircraft Corp., 310 So. 2d 352 (Fla. 3d DCA 1975). Where damages cannot be precisely determined, the trial judge is vested with reasonable discretion in making the award of damages. John Hancock Mutual Life Ins. Co. v. Mark-A, Inc., 324 So. 2d 674 (Fla. 2d DCA 1975). We cannot say that the record in this case does not provide reasonable basis for the trial court’s award. As to appellant's remaining contentions, we are unable to establish from the record that the trial court erred. AFFIRME…
-
Mori v. Matsushita Elec. Corp. OF Am., 380 So. 2d 461 (Fla. 3d DCA 1980)…owever, it is also well established “that where damages cannot be precisely and mathematically determined, the trial judge is vested with reasonable discretion in making awards of damages.” John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Company v. Mark-A, Inc., 324 So. 2d 674 (Fla. 2d DCA 1975). We find, in review of the record before the court, that there was ample evidence to ascertain the amount of these expenses. The degree of certainty required is not one of precise measure but rather one which- may be established b…
Previewing 3 of 8 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence