GAZIL, INC., AMERICAN FOOD SERVICES CORPORATION, JOSEPH GAZIL AND SADIE GAZIL, APPELLANTS,
v.
SUPER FOOD SERVICES, INC., APPELLEE

Fla. | 1978-03-09
Nos. 51962 and 51970
OVERTON, C. J., and BOYD and SUND-BERG, JJ., concur., HATCHETT, J., dissents.
356 So. 2d 312 Florida Supreme Court (1978) Caution
Cited by 30 cases

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Synopsis

The Florida Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of Florida's pre-judgment replevin statute, rejecting appellants' due process challenge. The court held that Section 78.068 satisfies the five-part test for minimum due process requirements established in Mitchell v. W.T. Grant Co.


Holding

Florida's pre-judgment replevin statute is constitutional as it satisfies the five-part due process test established in Mitchell v. W.T. Grant Co. The statute requires verified allegations, judicial approval, factual showing of necessity, posting of a bond, and entitles the debtor to an immediate opportunity for post-seizure hearing.


Headnotes

[1] A pre-judgment replevin statute is constitutional if it meets the five-part test for minimum due process requirements, including verified factual allegations, judicial re…

[2] Due process requires an opportunity for a prompt post-seizure hearing, not necessarily a mandatory post-seizure hearing, when there is no opportunity for a pre-seizure he…

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Key Quotes

“The statute at issue here, Section 78.068, Florida Statutes (Supp.1976), meets the five part test for minimum due process requirements articulated in Mitchell, in that: (1) the law requires plaintiffs to show facts indicating a right to the property sought to be replevied, and the allegations must be verified; (2) an application for replevin without notice must be presented to a judge, as opposed to a ministerial court official; (3) the facts alleged must show the necessity for replevin...”

Establishes the Mitchell test framework applied to uphold the replevin statute

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Facts & Procedural History

Super Food Services obtained pre-judgment writs of replevin against Gazil, Inc. and others to recover inventory secured by Gazil's debt, following pro…

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Topics

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Opinion of the Court
ENGLAND, Justice.

ENGLAND, Justice.

By direct appeal from two final judgments entered in the Fifth and Ninth Judicial Circuits of Florida, we are asked to invalidate Florida’s pre-judgment replevin statute on the ground that it fails to provide due process of law under the United States and Florida Constitutions. We hold that this statute is constitutional and affirm the judgments of the two trial courts.

Super Food Services, Inc. brought actions to obtain pre-judgment writs of replevin against Gazil, Inc. and others in order to recover certain inventory which had been secured by Gazil’s debt to Super Food. The writs were issued in accordance with the procedures set forth in Section 78.068, Florida Statutes (Supp.1976), and Gazil filed motions to dissolve them on the ground, among others, that the replevin statute is unconstitutional. Each trial court determined the question adversely to Gazil, and this appeal followed.

The due process requirements which surround a pre-judgment taking of property have been considered in great detail in recent years both by the United States Supreme Court and by this Court. It would serve no useful purpose to discuss these principles again here, in light of their ample analysis in Ray Lein Construction, Inc. v. Wain wright,

involving Florida’s former pre-judgment garnishment statute, Phillips v. Guin & Hunt, Inc.,

involving Florida’s former distress for rent statute, and Unique Caterers, Inc. v. Rudy’s Farm Co.,

involving Florida’s former pre-judgment attachment statute. Each of these cases applied the guiding principles of federal due process which have been evolved in recent years by the United States Supreme Court, and which are set forth most explicitly in Mitchell v. W. T. Grant Co., 416 U.S. 600, 94 S.Ct. 1895, 40 L.Ed.2d 406 (1974).

The statute at issue here, Section 78.068, Florida Statutes (Supp.1976), meets the five part test for minimum due process requirements articulated in Mitchell, in that:

(1) the law requires plaintiffs to show facts indicating a right to the property sought to be replevied, and the allegations must be verified;

(2) an application for replevin without notice must be presented to a judge, as opposed to a ministerial court official;

(3) the facts alleged must show the necessity for replevin, which is sufficiently shown if the debtor is in possession of the property and the applicant establishes that there is a possibility of waste, concealment or transfer of the property, or that the debtor is in default on his payments;4 (4) the plaintiff must post a bond to protect the debtor from mistaken repossession; and (5) the debtor must be entitled to an immediate hearing on the issue of possession.

Since the replevin statute complies with the Mitchell standards, it is constitutional.

In Ray Lein Construction, Phillips, and Unique Caterers we intimated that due process “requires” an immediate post-seizure hearing if there is no opportunity for a hearing before the taking. The Mitchell decision does not require such a hearing; it merely requires an opportunity for a hearing at the request of the injured party immediately after a seizure. To the extent that our previous decisions suggest that a seizure statute violates due process unless a post-seizure hearing is “required”, we recede from that position and declare that due process only requires an opportunity for a prompt post-seizure hearing.

The orders of the Fifth and Ninth Judicial Circuit Courts are affirmed.

OVERTON, C. J., and BOYD and SUND-BERG, JJ., concur. HATCHETT, J., dissents.

. 346 So. 2d 1029 (Fla.1977).

. 344 So. 2d 568 (Fla.1977).

. 338 So. 2d 1067 (Fla.1976).

. Gazil argues that the legislation impermissi-bly allows a mere default in payments as a ground for replevin. See § 78.068(2), Fla.Stat. (Supp.1976). We do not see in Mitchell or any subsequent Supreme Court decision a limitation on the state’s right to identify the circumstances which are appropriate for replevin. See North Georgia Finishing, Inc. v. Di-Chem, Inc., 419 U.S. 601, 95 S.Ct. 719, 42 L.Ed.2d 751 (1975).


Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus


Citator

Cited By (15 total)

  • Caple v. Tuttle's Design-Build, Inc., 753 So. 2d 49 (Fla. 2000)
    …strict Court agreed, that the statute violates the Due Process Clauses of the United States and Florida Constitutions and encroaches upon this Court’s rulemaking authority. Relying on this Court’s opinion in Gazil, Inc. v. Super Food Services, Inc., 356 So. 2d 312 (Fla.1978), Tuttle asserts that the statute’s failure to require a creditor’s bond violates due process and thus renders it unconstitutional. Additionally, Tuttle argues that section 702.10(2) conflicts with (1) Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.610…
  • Prestige Rent-A-Car, Inc. v. Advantage CAR Rental & Sales, 656 So. 2d 541 (Fla. 5th DCA 1995)
    …ction 78.068 and therefore its motion to dissolve the writ should have been granted. Under section 78.068, the allegations in support of the issuance of the prejudgment writ of replevin must be verified. See Gazil, Inc. v. Super Food Services, Inc., 356 So. 2d 312 (Fla.1978). Here the affidavit from Pieroni states that it was based on “information and belief,” which is admittedly insufficient. See State v. Fordham, 465 So. 2d 580 (Fla. 5th DCA 1985). However, review of an order denying a motion to dissolve a…
  • Comcoa, Inc. v. The Honorable Jack M. COE, 587 So. 2d 474 (Fla. 3d DCA 1991)
    …e heard or (b) in view of the bond requirement and the remedies provided by sections 78.068(4), 78.068(6) and 78.20, for the recovery of improperly replevined property, that 78.068 is constitutionally valid, Gazil, Inc. v. Super Food Services, Inc., 356 So. 2d 312 (Fla.1978),5 and fully enforceable in accordance with its clear terms. Transtar Corp. v. Intex Recreation Corp., 570 So. 2d 366 (Fla. 4th DCA 1990); ITT Commercial Finance Corp. v. DDD Appliance Serv. & Sales, Inc., 509 So. 2d 341 (Fla. 2d DCA 1987)…

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