W. G. C., INC., AND GUARDIAN INSURANCE COMPANY, APPELLANTS,
v.
THE MAN CO., ETC., ET AL., APPELLEES; THE MAN CO., ETC., ET AL., APPELLANTS, V. W. G. C., INC., ET AL., APPELLEES
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The court held that dismissal with prejudice was an excessive sanction for non-willful failure to comply with a pre-trial order when no prejudice resulted.
Both parties failed to timely file pre-trial catalogues as ordered by the trial court. The trial court dismissed the actions with prejudice as a sanct…
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NATHAN, Judge.
By these consolidated appeals, both plaintiff/counter-defendants, and defendant/counter-plaintiffs, urge reversal of an order of the trial court which dismissed with prejudice, actions arising from a real estate transaction between the parties. We find that dismissal with prejudice was too harsh a remedy and therefore, we reverse.
The record reveals that both sides failed to comply with an order of the trial court which required that pre-trial catalogues be filed at least ten days prior to trial date. However, such non-compliance is not shown to have been willful nor, more importantly, does either side claim prejudice as a result. Indeed, both sides seek reversal of the order of dismissal.
While it is within the discretion of the trial court to impose sanctions for noncompliance with court orders, the court abused its discretion in dismissing these causes with prejudice where no prejudice was asserted by either side. It was error to condemn the litigants to the loss of their right to access to the courts because of their attorneys’ non-willful' failure to comply with a court order. Travelers Insurance Company v. Rodriguez, 357 So. 2d 464 (Fla. 2d DCA 1978). The other point raised on appeal is deemed to be without merit and will not be discussed.
Reversed and remanded.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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Watson v. Peskoe, 407 So. 2d 954 (Fla. 3d DCA 1981)…iming oversight, failed to comply with order to furnish defendants the names of witnesses to be called against defendants). Whether to impose the sanction of dismissal is within the sound discretion of the trial court. W G. C., Inc. v. The Man Co., 360 So. 2d 1152 (Fla.3d DCA 1978). The exercise of this discretion will not be disturbed absent a clear showing of abuse. Harless v. Kuhn, 403 So. 2d 423 (Fla.1981); Hart v. Weaver, supra. Having examined the record and the briefs we find no abuse of discretion. A…
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Ferrante v. Waters, 383 So. 2d 749 (Fla. 4th DCA 1980)…n conjunction with the general principle that the decision to impose sanctions, and the severity thereof, are matters within the sound discretion of the trial court. Turner v. Anderson, 376 So. 2d 899 (Fla.2nd DCA 1979); W.G.C., Inc. v. The Man Co., 360 So. 2d 1152 (Fla.3rd DCA 1978). The exercise of this discretion will not be disturbed absent a clear showing of abuse. Hart v. Weaver, supra. The record in the case at hand portrays a six month lapse (November 7, 1977 —May 8, 1978) during which the defendant F…
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Waldemar Morales v. Edelma Perez, 445 So. 2d 393 (Fla. 3d DCA 1984)…terpret Morales’ repeated failures to comply with discovery orders as willful and intentional, justifying the severe sanction of default. Compare Johnson v. Allstate Insurance Co., 410 So. 2d 978 (Fla. 5th DCA 1982) with W.G.C., Inc. v. The Man Co., 360 So. 2d 1152 (Fla. 3d DCA 1978). We find no abuse of discretion and the default judgment is accordingly affirmed. . Counsel for appellant — the third or fourth in the case — was not involved in the discovery violations, which caused striking of the defenses.…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Travelers Ins. Co. & Peter Vassey v. Rodriguez, 357 So. 2d 464 (Fla. 2d DCA 1978)