JOHN GORMAN, APPELLANT,
v.
UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI, APPELLEE
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John Gorman appealed a summary judgment dismissing his wrongful termination claim against the University of Miami. The court held that summary judgment was improper on the primary count because genuine issues of material fact existed regarding when Gorman earned tenure, but affirmed summary judgment on a secondary count alleging breach of an oral contract with the University's president.
Summary judgment was improperly entered on count one of the complaint because genuine issues of material fact existed regarding the timing of tenure acquisition. Summary judgment was properly entered on count two alleging breach of an oral contract by the president because the president was acting in his official capacity and any oral promise did not constitute an individual contract separate from the employment agreement.
[1] Summary judgment is improperly entered when pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, affidavits, and other evidentiary matters show a genuine issue of material…
[2] A court considering a motion for summary judgment must not weigh evidence, but rather determine if, after giving effect to undisputed facts, the appellant has no cause of…
Previewing 2 of 6 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“Upon a motion for summary judgment, the court is not to weigh evidence, but simply to determine whether, after giving effect to the undisputed facts, the appellant has no cause of action.”
Establishes the proper standard for summary judgment review and that the trial court erred by effectively weighing conflicting evidence about tenure dates.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceGorman was employed by the University of Miami and claimed he had earned tenure under his employment contract, which incorporated the university's fac…
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PER CURIAM.
This is an appeal from a summary final judgment in an action where the appellant, John Gorman, was the plaintiff claiming damages for the wrongful termination of his employment with the University of Miami.
We hold that the summary judgment was improperly entered because the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, affidavits and other evidentiary matters filed in the cause show that there is a genuine issue of material fact. See Central Investments, Inc. v. Old Southern Golf Utility Corp., 197 So. 2d 17 (Fla. 4th DCA 1967); Laichak v. Bacon, 223 So. 2d 752 (Fla. 3d DCA 1969), and Stringfellow v. State Farm Fire & Casualty Co., 295 So. 2d 686 (Fla. 2d DCA 1974).
Dr. Gorman contends that he had earned tenure under his contract of employment which included the provisions of the faulty manual of the University. On the other hand, the defendants contend that the terms of the plaintiff’s employment are to be determined from the annual Faculty Appointments, which gave a later date for the plaintiff’s obtaining tenure than that which would be computed from the faculty manual. It is undisputed that the later date was an error occasioned by the action of the University. There is conflicting evidence concerning the plaintiff’s actions upon learning that he had been mistakenly assigned a later date for the attainment of tenure.
Upon a motion for summary judgment, the court is not to weigh evidence, but simply to determine whether, after giving effect to the undisputed facts, the appellant has no cause of action. See Benson v. Atwood, 177 So. 2d 380 (Fla. 1st DCA 1965). We, therefore, hold that the court was in error in entering a summary final judgment on count one of plaintiff’s complaint against the University.
We have reviewed the record in the light of the above stated principles applicable to summary judgment and find that the court correctly entered summary final judg ment on count two of the complaint, which claims the breach of an oral contract by Henry King Stanford, President of the University of Miami. There is uncontroverted proof that plaintiff’s right to tenure and, therefore, continued employment were fixed by the terms of his employment and the alleged oral promise of the President of the University to take specified actions upon plaintiff’s appeal to him do not constitute an individual contract. Cf. the discussion in Gendzier v. Bielecki, 97 So. 2d 604, 608 (Fla.1957), and Goff v. Indian Lake Estates, Inc., 178 So. 2d 910, 912 (Fla. 2d DCA 1965). In addition, it appears that at all times defendant Stanford was acting as an officer of the University and not in his individual capacity. Cf. Blount v. Tomlinson, 57 Fla. 35, 48 So. 751 (1909).
In addition, we have considered plaintiff’s point directed to the granting of defendant’s objection to certain interrogatories and find that no error has been demonstrated on this point, especially in light of our holding upon count two of the complaint.
Finally, because of the views expressed herein, we find that the trial judge’s order striking the plaintiff’s prayer for the remedy of reinstatement should be reversed.
Affirmed in part, reversed in part and remanded.
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Bitz v. ED Knox CLU & Assocs., P.A., 721 So. 2d 823 (Fla. 3d DCA 1998)…e of the trier of fact. See Sasson v. Rockwell Mfg. Co., 715 So. 2d 1066, 1067 (Fla. 3d DCA 1998); Cardet v. Rodriguez, 682 So. 2d 225, 225 (Fla. 3d DCA 1996); Davis v. Hathaway, 408 So. 2d 688, 689 (Fla. 2d DCA 1982); Gorman v. University of Miami, 340 So. 2d 1180, 1181 (Fla. 3d DCA 1976). We therefore reverse the summary judgment and remand for further proceedings. Reversed. . In their action below, the appellants also filed a breach of fiduciary duty count against Knox; judgment was entered in Knox's fav…
Authorities Cited
- Gendzier v. Bielecki, 97 So. 2d 604 (Fla. 1957)
- Goff v. Indian Lake Ests., Inc., 178 So. 2d 910 (Fla. 2d DCA 1965)
- Cornell Benson v. Atwood, 177 So. 2d 380 (Fla. 1st DCA 1965)
- Stringfellow v. State Farm Fire & Cas. Co., 295 So. 2d 686 (Fla. 2d DCA 1974)
- Blount v. Tomlinson, 57 Fla. 35 (Fla. 1909)
- Cent. Invs., Inc. v. OLD S. Golf Util. Corp., 197 So. 2d 17 (Fla. 4th DCA 1967)
- Laichak v. Bacon, 223 So. 2d 752 (Fla. 3d DCA 1969)