CITY OF HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA, APPELLANT,
v.
JOEL MILLER, FOR HIMSELF AND ON BEHALF OF ALL PERSONS SIMILARLY SITUATED, APPELLEE
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The City of Hollywood appealed a class action summary judgment awarding parking ticket payers over $548,000 in damages for alleged lack of due process notice. The court reversed, finding that the parking citation provided adequate notice of a hearing opportunity through a phone number alternative to paying the fine, and that restitution of a paid fine is not an appropriate remedy for a due process violation.
The court held that the parking citation provided adequate notice of a hearing alternative through the instruction to call a specific phone number, thereby protecting due process rights. The court also held that even if a due process violation occurred, restitution of a paid fine is not the legally cognizable remedy—the proper remedy would be the hearing itself. Additionally, the court found that Miller would be precluded from recovery under established precedent.
[1] A parking citation that provides a phone number to contact the relevant bureau is sufficient to provide notice of an alternative to paying the fine, thereby satisfying du…
[2] The remedy for a due process violation concerning a parking ticket is a hearing, not the return of a fine already paid.
Previewing 2 of 4 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“The citation tells the recipient to pay or call a specific phone number. Calling the telephone number indicated is a clear and obvious alternative to paying the fine.”
Establishes that the citation provided adequate notice of a hearing opportunity despite not explicitly mentioning a right to a hearing.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceJoel Miller paid a $2.00 parking fine and approximately two weeks later filed a class action suit seeking restitution plus interest, court costs, and …
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
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BARKETT, Judge.
We reverse a final summary judgment entered in a class action suit in favor of appellee, Joel Miller, and “all persons similarly situated” (plaintiffs below).
This case arises from the payment of a $2.00 fine for a parking ticket by Miller. Approximately two weeks after paying the parking ticket, Miller filed suit against appellant City of Hollywood, seeking restitution of the $2.00 fine, plus interest, court costs, and attorney’s fees. Miller also sought to recover all monies paid by similarly situated individuals from the issuance and payment of similar parking tickets since 1974. The gravamen of Miller’s claim is that he and the other class members were “deprived of property without the procedural due process requirement of notice of the right to a hearing.” He contends that the language on the parking citation is insufficient to apprise a recipient that he has a right to a hearing. The parking citation at issue provides:
To clear the citation please submit the fines as scheduled, using the attached envelope. The Bureau must be contact ed (921-3434) or the fine paid within 48 hours, or a warrant will be issued for the owner of this vehicle. [Emphasis added.]
In his complaint, Miller alleges that his payment was made “under protest” and “under compulsion and fear that the failure to pay could result in an increased fine, arrest and/or adverse notice to the Florida Division of Drivers’ Licenses.” There is no allegation, however, that the other members of the class paid under protest and compulsion.
The trial court granted Miller’s motion for summary judgment, awarding plaintiffs $548,809.56 in damages and interest, which included $56.00 in costs and $175,000.00 in attorney’s fees to Miller’s law firm, Miller and Squire, Chartered.
Initially, we note that we cannot find, nor has counsel cited, any case that stands for the proposition that the appropriate remedy for the alleged wrong is the return of the fine which has been paid. Miller complained that his due process rights were violated by the failure to advise him of his right to a hearing. Even if this were true, and we do not agree that it is, the appropriate remedy would be the hearing to which Miller would have been entitled, and not the return of monies which might in fact be due should he be found guilty of the parking violation. It is, however, not necessary to reach the issue of whether restitution of the paid fine is a legally cognizable remedy under these facts because we find that the citation in question provides adequate notice of an alternative to the payment of the fine. The citation tells the recipient to pay or call a specific phone number. Calling the telephone number indicated is a clear and obvious alternative to paying the fine.
Miller’s reliance on Wilson v. Health and Hospital Corporation of Marion County, 620 F. 2d 1201 (7th Cir.1980), and Memphis Light, Gas and Water Division v. Craft, 436 U.S. 1, 98 S.Ct. 1554, 56 L.Ed.2d 30 (1978), is misplaced. We find those cases inapplicable to these facts. To the contrary, as the seventh circuit notes in Wilson, “[t]he elements required to be included in the notice are to be tailored to the circumstances of the case and depend upon an appropriate accommodation of the competing private and governmental interests involved.” 620 F. 2d at 1214. See also Mullane v. Central Hanover Bank & Trust Co., 339 U.S. 306, 70 S.Ct. 652, 94 L.Ed. 685 (1950).
In this case, Miller simply could not have been deprived of any property interest without a hearing before the county court. The alternative to paying the fine is calling the traffic bureau. This is not unreasonable, onerous, or burdensome and is sufficient under these circumstances to protect the due process rights of parking ticket recipients.
Lastly, we note that even if Miller had been deprived of due process, under City of Miami v. Keton, 115 So. 2d 547 (Fla.1959), he would be precluded on these facts from any recovery.
Accordingly, the summary judgment is reversed and this cause is remanded with directions to the trial court to enter a final judgment for the appellant.
HURLEY, J., and WESSEL, JOHN D., Associate Judge, concur.
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Easter v. City OF Orlando, 249 So. 3d 723 (Fla. 5th DCA 2018)…ver their previously paid fines. Id. at 551. In applying the voluntary payment defense to bar the class claims, the court noted that there had been no showing that any of the payments "were made under protest." Id.2 In City of Hollywood v. Miller , 471 So. 2d 655 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985), our sister court referenced Keton in reversing a final summary judgment entered in a class action in favor of an individual challenging the procedural due process elements of a city parking ordinance. After concluding that the c…
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Easter v. City of Orlando (Fla. 5th DCA 2018)
Authorities Cited
- Mullane v. Cent. Hanover Bank & Tr. Co., 339 U.S. 306 (U.S. 1950)
- Memphis Light v. Craft, 436 U.S. 1 (U.S. 1978)
- City OF Miami v. Oise Keton, 115 So. 2d 547 (Fla. 1959)
- Wilson v. The Health & Hosp. Corp. OF Marion Cnty., 620 F.2d 1201 (7th Cir. 1980)