Notable Florida Decisions

A transfer is fraudulent under Florida Statute section 726.106(1) when the creditor's claim arose before the transfer, the debtor was insolvent at the time or became insolvent because of it, and the debtor received no reasonably equivalent value; here, Carjavi received no reasonably equivalent value by paying lease obligations for its owner's family member.

When reviewing a motion for judgment of dismissal in a termination of parental rights case, the appellate court must view the evidence and all reasonable inferences in the light most favorable to the department as the nonmoving party, and may affirm dismissal only where no proper view of the evidence could sustain termination; here, the record supported termination grounds as to all three parents.

When reviewing a motion for judgment of dismissal in a termination of parental rights case, the appellate court must view the evidence and all reasonable inferences in the light most favorable to the department as the nonmoving party, and may affirm dismissal only where no proper view of the evidence could sustain termination. Here, the evidence supported termination grounds as to all three parents.

Bridge-the-gap alimony requires the requesting party to present evidence of legitimate identifiable short-term needs and the specific time period for which such assistance is needed, and the trial court cannot substitute case law precedent for this factual showing.

The Court amended Florida Probate Rules 5.122 and 5.905 to align with statutory changes in chapters 2026-85 and 2026-129, effective July 1, 2026, clarifying curator bond determinations and notice requirements, and adding Tatton-Brown-Rahman syndrome to the list of developmental disabilities for guardian advocate purposes.

A trial court must conduct an assessment of need under the Graham standard and articulate why appointment of postconviction appellate counsel is constitutionally mandated before appointing counsel, and failure to do so results in an unlawful expenditure of state funds prohibited by section 924.051(9), Florida Statutes.

The confession of judgment doctrine does not apply where the claims adjusting process has not broken down, the insured did not have to file suit to obtain recovery, and the insured nonetheless filed suit while appraisal was ongoing; an insurer's timely payment of an appraisal award does not constitute a confession of judgment.

A trial court commits per se reversible error when it denies a defendant's unequivocal request for self-representation in a community control violation proceeding without conducting a Faretta hearing.

A trial court may rely on hearsay evidence to determine restitution amounts when the court finds the evidence has minimal indicia of reliability under the 2021 amendment to section 775.089(7), Florida Statutes, and an appellant who fails to challenge the reliability finding on appeal waives the issue.

The Florida Supreme Court amended nine Florida Probate Rules to make conforming technical changes reflecting prior amendments to the Florida Rules of General Practice and Judicial Administration. Rules 5.696 and 5.700 were amended to update rule references to reflect the 2025 title change of Rule 2.516. Rules 5.901, 5.902, 5.903, 5.904, 5.905, 5.906, and 5.910 were amended to relocate case styles from the right-hand corner to the left-hand corner of forms to conform to Rule 2.520(a)(4) and to update certificates of service to conform to 2025 amendments to Rule 2.516(f). The amendments became e

An attorney violates Rule 4-3.4(c) by knowingly disobeying a trial court's specific sequestration order prohibiting communication between counsel and a sequestered witness, even if the attorney disagrees with the scope of the order. An attorney also violates Rule 4-3.3(a)(1) by knowingly making false statements to a tribunal regarding his conduct, particularly when the false statement is made in response to judicial questioning about potential misconduct.

The State violated Brady by withholding FDLE call logs containing analysts' conclusions that secondary DNA transfer was "highly unlikely," which constituted impeaching evidence favorable to the defense. The withheld evidence was material because it could have substantially undermined the State's secondary transfer theory, a central component of the prosecution's case, and provided a reasonable probability of a different verdict. A defendant is entitled to a new trial when a Brady violation occurs.

A competitor lacks standing to seek a declaratory judgment challenging another party's contract with a municipality based on alleged violations of general state and local laws, absent a showing of special injury different in kind and degree from that suffered by the public at large or a violation of the competitor's own contractual rights. The special injury exception recognized in Skaggs-Albertson's v. ABC Liquors applies narrowly to liquor stores challenging decisions that violate distance regulations between such stores, based on the unique regulatory regime governing liquor licenses, and d

The fugitive disentitlement doctrine applies to dismiss a custody appeal when the appellant parent has absconded with the minor child to an unknown location in violation of court orders, making enforcement of any appellate decision improbable and creating a strong nexus between the fugitive status and the challenged order.

The State's failure to disclose a substantial assistance agreement between the defendant and law enforcement until mid-trial constituted a discovery violation, and because the trial court conducted an incomplete Richardson inquiry, the appellate court could not find the violation harmless under the Schopp standard where there was a reasonable possibility the defense's trial strategy would have been materially different had the violation not occurred.

The trial court did not abuse its discretion in awarding Wife durational alimony of $1,687 per month for 7.2 years, retroactive alimony and child support, 75% of Wife's attorney's fees, and 90% of Guardian ad Litem fees, as these awards were supported by competent substantial evidence regarding Wife's need and Husband's ability to pay. The trial court did not abuse its discretion in its equitable distribution of marital assets, awarding Husband substantial retirement accounts and property while requiring him to pay Wife an equalizer payment after deducting his obligations for attorney's fees a

The trial court properly allowed amendment of the counterclaim to assert punitive damages against Peerenboom. However, the trial court erred in allowing amendment of counterclaims against Douberley and Federal because the Perlmutters' proposed counterclaim failed to allege with sufficient specificity which acts Douberley committed individually that constituted intentional misconduct, and the evidentiary proffer did not show Douberley had actual knowledge of violating DNA information rights or that he intended to improperly harm the Perlmutters. Federal's vicarious liability theory failed becau

A grand jury may not declare conduct unlawful and condemn individuals by name without indicting them, as such action lies outside the lawful ambit of grand jury authority. A presentment that declares a violation of law yet returns no indictment is unlawful under section 905.28(1). A grand jury may not condemn private persons unrelated to criminal activity or public office, and the misappropriation conclusion here was a legal error unsupported by the presentment's own facts and misapplied the statutes it invoked. A presentment improperly disclosed in violation of section 905.28(1) before affect

The Court adopted amendments to Rules 9.370 and 9.900 that clarify the word-count treatment of amicus curiae identity statements and require certificates of service in appellate forms, including a specific certificate for the attorney general in constitutional challenge cases.

Settlement offers made in one case are admissible as relevant evidence in another case, and trial courts have discretion to determine witness qualifications and control jury access to depositions.

Probate and guardianship proceedings are exempt from the initial discovery disclosure requirements in Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.280(a).

The Court adopted new Forms 8.9781 and 8.9782 to provide standardized petition forms for adjudication and permanent commitment of children to the Department of Children and Families when both parents are deceased or the last known living parent is deceased and no legal custodian has been appointed through probate or guardianship proceedings.

Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.280(a)(1)(C) is amended to eliminate the requirement that parties provide copies of documents supporting damage computations with initial disclosures; instead, parties must make such documents available for inspection and copying under rule 1.350.

The Court amended Rule 2.270 to make publication of proposed jury instruction changes in The Florida Bar News optional rather than mandatory, and amended the search warrant retention schedule to clarify that the retention period runs one year after issuance of the search warrant regardless of whether it was executed.

A trial court may not impose a downward departure sentence based on the quantity of drugs involved in the offense, the judge's personal belief that the guideline sentence is excessive, or the defendant's volunteer work while incarcerated, as these bases are inconsistent with legislative sentencing policy and do not ameliorate the defendant's culpability for the offense.

Constructive possession of contraband cannot be established by mere possession of keys to premises and a safe where the premises are not in the defendant's exclusive possession, absent independent evidence such as actual knowledge, incriminating statements, or circumstances from which knowledge and control may be inferred.

A trial court errs when it enters a Final Judgment of Dissolution that contains internal inconsistencies between the judgment and attached exhibits regarding timesharing and communication provisions, and when it permits one spouse to purchase the marital home without addressing the other spouse's mortgage liability.

A conviction for burglary of a conveyance with an assault and a battery qualifies as a prison releasee reoffender offense under Florida Statutes section 775.082(9)(a)1.o., the catch-all provision covering any felony that involves the use or threat of physical force or violence against an individual. For purposes of determining whether a PRR enhancement applies, courts must examine the offense of conviction, not the offense charged. At minimum, the conviction for burglary of a conveyance with an assault alone is sufficient to trigger the PRR statute's catch-all provision.

A trial court must include an alimony award as part of the recipient spouse's income when calculating the payor spouse's child support obligation, must make written findings addressing all statutory factors required for alimony determinations, must reconcile internal inconsistencies in income calculations, and must account for court-ordered travel expenses when determining a payor's ability to pay support.

A contingency fee multiplier may not be awarded unless the party seeking it presents competent substantial evidence that the relevant market required such a multiplier to obtain competent counsel, that counsel was unable to mitigate the risk of nonpayment, and that other Rowe factors support enhancement; here, the insureds failed to meet their burden on the first two factors.