HUGH B. C. FORRESTER, PETITIONER,
v.
CAREER SERVICE COMMISSION OF FLORIDA, AND THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND REHABILITATIVE SERVICES, RESPONDENT
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.
An employee dismissed by the Florida Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services challenged the Career Service Commission's decision on procedural grounds. The court held that while parties have a statutory right to submit proposed findings of fact, agencies need not explicitly rule on immaterial or subordinate proposals, and remanded for the Commission to provide adequate consideration of pertinent proposed findings.
Parties have a statutory right under F.S. 120.57 to submit proposed findings of fact on pertinent issues and to receive rulings on each pertinent proposed finding. However, agencies need not make explicit rulings on subordinate, cumulative, immaterial, or unnecessary proposed facts, and may reject such proposals with a simple statement of immateriality. Parties are entitled only to a reasonable period of time for such submissions, which will not be disturbed if not so short as to violate the statute's spirit or deny due process.
[1] A party to an administrative proceeding has the right to submit proposed findings of fact and receive a ruling on each pertinent proposed finding.
[2] An agency head is not required to make explicit rulings on subordinate, cumulative, immaterial, or unnecessary proposed findings of fact.
Previewing 2 of 5 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“a party has the right to raise pertinent factual issues for administrative determination, to submit proposed findings on those issues and to receive a ruling on each pertinent proposed finding”
Establishes the core statutory right under F.S. 120.57 that the Commission violated
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligencePetitioner Hugh B. C. Forrester was dismissed from employment by the Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services. The Career Service Commission u…
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 Proposed Findings Of Fact cases and more on FLexlaw
BOYER, Judge.
Petitioner seeks review of a decision of the Career Service Commission upholding his dismissal from employment by the Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services.
Petitioner raises as error the Commission’s practice of rendering a final order at the conclusion of a hearing without allowing the parties to submit proposed findings of fact and orders.
Pursuant to F.S. 120.57, a party has the right to raise pertinent factual issues for administrative determination, to submit proposed findings on those issues and to receive a ruling on each pertinent proposed finding. See Stuckey’s of Eastman, Georgia v. Department of Transportation, 340 So. 2d 119, 120 (Fla. 1st DCA 1976). However, in so holding we stress that an agency head is not required to make explic it rulings on subordinate, cumulative, immaterial or unnecessary proposed facts. Those proposed findings which fall in such a category may be rejected by a simple statement that they are immaterial or irrelevant. Nor is a party entitled to more than a reasonable period of time within which to make such submissions. If the time permitted is not so short as to violate the spirit of the statute or to deny due process under the circumstances of the particular case it will not be disturbed on review here.
The other points raised by petitioner are without merit and will not be discussed.
Therefore, without regards to the merits of petitioner’s dismissal, this court relinquishes jurisdiction for a short but reasonable period of time (but not in excess of thirty days) so that the Commission may comply with the statute and this opinion. See Perry v. Career Service Commission, 351 So. 2d 730 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977).
It is so ordered.
McCORD, C. J., and MELVIN, J., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By (11 total)
-
Agrico Chem. Co. v. State of Fla. Dep't OF Env't Reg. & Sarasota Cnty., 365 So. 2d 759 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978)…aring officer violated F.S. 120.57(l)(b)(4) nor F.S. 120.59(2) nor the principles announced in Stuckey’s of Eastman, Georgia v. Department of Transportation, 340 So. 2d 119 (Fla. 1st DCA 1976). As we stated in Forrester v. Career Service Commission, 361 So. 2d 220 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978): “Pursuant to F.S. 120.57, a party has the right to raise pertinent factual issues for administrative determination, to submit proposed findings on those issues and to receive a ruling on each pertinent proposed finding. * * * H…
-
Wong v. The Career Serv. Comm'n & the Dep't of Hwy. Safety & Motor Vehicles, 371 So. 2d 530 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979)…ct submitted to the agency by a party. McDonald v. Dept. of Banking and Finance, 346 So. 2d 569 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977). Wong’s statement of the law applicable here is correct. Furthermore, this court specified in Forrester v. Career Service Commission, 361 So. 2d 220 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978), that when a party does submit proposed findings the agency must make an explicit ruling on each proposed finding unless such finding is subordinate, cumulative, immaterial, or unnecessary. The order at issue in this case suffer…
-
Island Harbor Beach Club, Ltd. v. Dep't OF Natural Res., 476 So. 2d 1350 (Fla. 1st DCA 1985)…r should be set aside since the proposed findings have not been separately addressed by the hearing officer, citing Stuckey’s of Eastman, Georgia v. Dept. of Transportation, 340 So. 2d 119 (Fla. 1st DCA 1976); Forrester v. Career Service Commission, 361 So. 2d 220 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978); Wong v. Career Service Commission, 371 So. 2d 530 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979); Pelham v. Superintendent of School Board of Wakulla County, 436 So. 2d 951 (Fla. 1st DCA 1983); Kinast v. Dept. of Professional Regulation, 458 So. 2d 1159 (…1 / 4
Previewing 3 of 11 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Stuckey's OF Eastman v. Dep't OF Transp., 340 So. 2d 119 (Fla. 1st DCA 1976)
- Theditis Perry v. Career Serv. Comm'n of Fla. & Fla. Dep't of Health & Rehabilitative Servs., 351 So. 2d 730 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977)