Court awards Contingency fee multiplier of 2 x $300/hour to prevailing tenant’s attorney.

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attorneys fees, Contingency fee multiplier, expert witness fees, florida, LANDLORD, loadstar, TENANT

Landlord filed an eviction.  Tenant’s attorney filed a motion to dismiss.  Landlord filed a voluntary dismissal.  The court ruled that upon a voluntary dismissal  by landlord,  tenant is the prevailing party and thus entitled to recover reasonable attorneys fees and costs.

At the hearing on fees on costs  the court determined that the tenant’s attorney had taken on the case strictly on contingency fee, and that with a 50% probability of success was entitled to a fee multiplier of two.   The court noted that there are only a few attorneys who represent tenants, and that the only way to entice more attorneys to represent tenants is to award contingent fee multipliers, and that the tenant could not otherwise afford to hire an attorney.

The expert testified that:

a. that the relevant market (Orange, Seminole, and Osceola Counties) requires a contingency fee multiplier to ensure that tenants be able to obtain competent counsel.

b. that based on the nature of tenant defense work the defense attorney is rarely able to mitigate the risk of non-payment and the attorney was unable to do so in this case; and

c. That other factors set forth in Florida Patient’s Compensation Fund v. Rowe, 472 So. 2d 1145 (Fla. 1985) are applicable, especially, “the amount involved (in this case possession of the property), the result obtained (a dismissal), and the fee arrangement with the client (pure contingency).

Three hundred dollars per hour was deemed a reasonable hourly fee, and 5.8  hours were found to have been expended.  Further Tenant’s witness on attorneys fees charged $375/hour for two hours.    Total  fee awarded to tenant $4230.00.

BANEZ, vs. BANEZ, County Court, 9th Judicial Circuit in and for Orange County. Case No. 2012-CC-015710-O. February 13, 2013. Adam McGinnis, Judge.  20 Fla. L. Weekly Supp. 513a.

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Tax Deed upheld despite the fact that notice to mortgagee’s record address was returned as undeliverable.

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197.502(4), 197.522(1), mortgagee, notice, tax deed, undeliverable

Mortgagee sued to overturn a tax deed sale extinguishing its two mortgage liens on the subject property on the basis that the notice sent to it was returned as undeliverable. 

 Florida Statutes  §197.522(1),  provide that prior to a tax deed sale the Clerk of Court  is to issue notice of the application for a tax deed to interested parties as identified in §197.502(4). “Interested parties”  include  any mortgagee of record if the address appears on the recorded mortgage. The Clerk sent notice of the Tax deed sale to the mortgagee  at the address listed on both mortgages recorded against the subject property. The notice was returned as undeliverable.  The mortgagee admitted that it had moved its primary address and did not directly notify the Tax Collector’s office of the new address. The Clerk’s office admits that after the notice was returned it took no further action to attempt to locate a new address for Beneficial.

Eviction of a boat

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83.52, 83.56, admiralty, boat, boat slip, florida, LANDLORD, live aboard, marina, TENANT

Marina owner’s action for residential eviction against defendant who rented slip at marina, and occupied boat that remained stationary, and was used exclusively as a residence, defendant’s contention that action fell within federal admiralty jurisdiction was without merit

Factual Background

Plaintiff is the owner of a marina. Plaintiff rents a slip to Defendant, who owns and resides on the boat docked in the marina. Plaintiff filed this action for residential eviction based on a FIVE  day notice to cure   under  Fla. Stat. §83.52, failure to maintain dwelling unit.  The tenant argued that Admiralty Law controlled and the court had no jurisdiction,  and that Plaintiff’s five day notice to cure was defective.