NEWS-PRESS PUBLISHING CO., INC., D/B/A FORT MYERS NEWS-PRESS, APPELLANT,
v.
JOHN GADD, AS CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF LEE MEMORIAL HOSPITAL, APPELLEE
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.
The trial court's denial of attorney's fees under Florida's public records statute was affirmed because the court's finding that the agency's refusal to permit inspection was not unreasonable was supported by evidence, particularly given the legitimate differences of opinion reflected in prior appellate decisions on the same dispute.
A trial court's finding that an agency's refusal to permit public records inspection was not unreasonable will not be disturbed on appeal if supported by evidence.
[1] A trial court's determination that an agency's refusal to permit public records inspection was reasonable is a factual finding reviewed for evidentiary support on appeal…
Previewing 1 of 1 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceNews-Press Publishing Co. sought to inspect certain public records held by Lee Memorial Hospital; the hospital refused to permit inspection of some do…
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 Public Records cases and more on FLexlaw
PER CURIAM.
This is an appeal from an order of the trial court that denied appellant’s motion for attorney’s fees under section 119.-12(1), Florida Statutes (1981). That section provides for attorney’s fees against an agency refusing to permit public records to be inspected only if the court determines the agency refusal to have been unreasonable. That is a fact question for the trial court and will not be disturbed on appeal unless the finding by the trial court is unsupported by the evidence. Cape Coral Medical Center, Inc. v. News-Press Publishing Co., 390 So. 2d 1216 (Fla. 2d DCA 1980); Jones v. Miami Herald Publishing Co., 416 So. 2d 480 (Fla. 3d DCA 1982). In this case, there is evidence to support the finding of the trial court. The merits of this case have twice before been before this court. See Gadd v. News-Press Publishing Co., 412 So. 2d 894 (Fla. 2d DCA 1982), and News-Press Publishing Co. v. Gadd, 388 So. 2d 276 (Fla. 2d DCA 1980). In the first instance, News-Press Publishing Co. v. Gadd, we granted certiorari and quashed the order of the trial court. In the second case, Gadd v. News-Press Publishing Co., we reversed the trial court in regard to News-Press’s cross-appeal there. Obviously, there were such legitimate differences of opinion as to the lawfulness of the refusal of appellee to allow inspection of some of the documents sought so as to support the trial court in its refusal to find that appellee acted unreasonably.
AFFIRMED.
HOBSON, A.C.J., and BOARDMAN and CAMPBELL, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
Woodfaulk v. State, 935 So. 2d 1225 (Fla. 5th DCA 2006)…s unreasonable so as to justify an award of attorney’s fees against the agency is a fact question for the trial court and will not be disturbed on appeal unless the trial court’s finding is unsupported by the evidence. News-Press Publ’g Co. v. Gadd, 432 So. 2d 689, 689 (Fla. 2d DCA 1983). Only a hearing will permit the trial court to make this determination. Accordingly, we reverse and remand with instructions that the trial court schedule a hearing on Woodfaulk’s petition to order an accelerated hearing and…
Authorities Cited
- News-Press Publ'g Co., Inc. v. Gadd, 388 So. 2d 276 (Fla. 2d DCA 1980)
- Gadd v. News-Press Publ'g Co., Inc., 412 So. 2d 894 (Fla. 2d DCA 1982)
- Cape Coral Med. Ctr., Inc. v. News-Press Publ'g Co., Inc., 390 So. 2d 1216 (Fla. 2d DCA 1980)
- Lang v. Lang, 416 So. 2d 480 (Fla. 4th DCA 1982)