Law Offices of Hodge and Snyder

Law Offices of Hodge and Snyder At the Law Offices of Hodge and Snyder our clients have the benefit of being given the personal time and attention that they may not receive elsewhere.

02/19/2023

Consumer law -- Debt collection -- Florida Consumer Collection Practices Act -- Conditions precedent to collection action -- Consumer collection agency failed to satisfy condition precedent to suit where agency failed to register with Office of Financial Regulation before filing debt collection action -- Deficiency was not cured by registering with OFR after suit was filed

02/14/2023

Consumer law -- Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act -- Florida Consumer Collection Practices Act -- Vehicle predelivery service charges -- Costs and profit disclosure -- Civil procedure -- Summary judgment -- Supporting affidavits -- Deposition testimony and affidavit of vehicle dealer's corporate representative regarding clerical/computer mapping error claimed to be responsible for failure to include mandatory costs and profit disclosure in vehicle lease is stricken and given no weight where representative lacks personal knowledge of alleged error -- Affidavit of dealer's finance and insurance director is also stricken where affidavit is not based on personal knowledge, fails to set forth facts that would be admissible, and was made by person not competent to testify upon matters asserted

02/05/2023

Insurance -- Personal injury protection -- Mootness -- Confession of judgment -- Medical provider's action against insurer is moot where insurer confessed judgment by tendering check for the $500 in damages alleged in medical provider's complaint plus interest -- No merit to provider's argument that controversy remains regarding correctness of insurer's calculation of interest -- Interest is category of damages that is necessarily included in provider's $500 claim -- If interest is not an element of damages, calculation of interest is a ministerial task that would not impede entry of confessed judgment -- Motion to amend complaint to allege higher amount of damages is denied -- Allowing an amendment which was sought solely to escape insurer's confession of judgment would prejudice insurer

01/31/2023

Insurance -- Personal injury protection -- Jurisdiction -- Non-residents -- Minimum contacts -- Complaint for PIP benefits fails to allege sufficient facts to bring action within ambit of Florida's long-arm statute and to demonstrate that insurer has sufficient minimum contacts with state to satisfy due process requirements where policy at issue originated in Michigan and insurer is not incorporated in Florida, does not have agents or business locations in Florida, does not transact business in Florida, and is not authorized to sell insurance in Florida -- Motion to quash service and dismiss case is granted

01/29/2023

Insurance -- Personal injury protection -- Demand letter -- Demand letters that listed total amounts billed but failed to provide exact amount for which insurer will be sued if it does not pay claims did not satisfy requirements of section 627.736(10) -- Language in letters instructing insurer that it should advise provider if total amounts due are different than that noted in demand letters does not establish waiver of condition precedent or shift to insurer the provider's statutory burden of putting insurer on notice of actual amount that provider is seeking

01/24/2023

Insurance -- Homeowners -- Coverage -- Water damage -- Exclusions -- Insured's deposition testimony that water loss to interior of home was caused by rain established that loss fell within policy exclusion for damage caused by rain, and insured failed to produce any admissible evidence proving that loss fell within exception to exclusion applicable when a covered peril first damages property and creates opening in roof that allows rain to enter home -- Report asserting that rain entered home when wind uplifted shingles is inadmissible where qualifications of person that prepared report were not established, report was not accompanied by affidavit, and opinion in report was based on inspection of roof three years after loss and two years after roof was damaged by hurricane -- Summary judgment granted in favor of insurer

01/22/2023

Criminal law -- Traffic infractions -- Operating commercial vehicle without commercial driver's license -- Deferred prosecution -- Masking convictions -- Federal regulation that prohibits masking convictions for offenses committed by “CDL holders” when charged with a criminal offense when operating a commercial motor vehicle does not prohibit state attorney from offering deferred prosecution agreement to defendant who was charged with operating commercial motor vehicle without a CDL

01/17/2023

Contracts -- Account stated -- Summary disposition is granted in favor of defendant where plaintiff's evidence shows balance of $0.00

01/15/2023

Consumer law -- Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act -- Vehicle predelivery service charges -- Costs and profit disclosure -- Affirmative defenses -- Auto dealer that included costs and profit disclosure regarding predelivery service charges on retail lease order for vehicle, but not on motor vehicle lease agreement, cannot avoid liability under FDUTPA for failing to include mandatory disclosure on all documents by asserting substantial compliance with disclosure requirement or relying on contemporaneous instrument rule -- Safe harbor provision of FDUTPA, providing that Act does not apply to act or practice required or specifically permitted by federal or state law, is not applicable -- Dealer has not proven that Florida statute authorizing dealer to charge fee for using Electronic Filing System allows dealer to charge predelivery service fees without making disclosures required by FDUTPA -- Merger clause -- Dealer cannot avoid liability based on merger clause because this would violate plain language of FDUTPA and operate as waiver of FDUTPA protections -- Estoppel defense fails where dealer cannot show any misleading conduct by plaintiff or reasonable detrimental change in its own position based on plaintiff's conduct -- Waiver defense is not supported by any evidence -- Defenses attempting to limit dealer's FDUTPA exposure based on doctrine of avoidable consequences and failure to mitigate are contrary to public policy -- Conditions precedent -- Record evidence refutes defense alleging plaintiff's failure to send the presuit demand letter required by statute -- Lack of causation is denial, not an affirmative defense -- Summary judgment is granted in favor of plaintiff as to all affirmative defenses -- Plaintiff is still required to prove causation and damages elements of claim -- On motion for reconsideration, court holds that plaintiff demonstrated per se violation of Section 501.976(18), and thereby established the first element of FDUTPA, where it was undisputed that retail order contained “costs and profit” disclosure and lease did not

01/10/2023

Consumer law -- Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act -- Florida Consumer Collection Practices Act -- Vehicle predelivery service charges -- Costs and profit disclosure -- Dealer committed per se violation of FDUTPA where mandatory cost and profit disclosure appeared on vehicle lease order but did not appear on vehicle lease -- No merit to argument that inclusion of statutory disclosure on lease without specifying precise fees to which it applies satisfies requirements of FDUTPA -- Affirmative defenses arguing substantial compliance and contemporaneous instrument rule are not legally sustainable where clear and unambiguous language of statute requires that disclosure appear on all documents -- Application of absurdity doctrine to abrogate clear and unambiguous statutory language is not permissible -- Plaintiff who paid illegal fee suffered actual damages and is not required to show actual reliance on omission of disclosure -- Fact that dealer is authorized by statute to charge electronic filing system fee does not immunize its conduct under safe harbor provision of FDUTPA where statute does not authorize dealer to charge EFS fee in unfair and deceptive manner -- Voluntary payment defense fails because plaintiff's ignorance or mistake of law in paying pre-delivery service fees is irrelevant in context of per se FDUTPA violation -- Dealer that knowingly collected illegitimate debt and asserted right it knew did not exist violated FCCPA -- Dealer has not established bona fide error defense to FCCPA claim where it had no policies and procedures in place to prevent alleged error and cannot produce evidence proving alleged programming error occurred -- No merit to claim that plaintiff has failed to join indispensable party

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Marco Island, FL
34145

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Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

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