ADRIENNE CHIRON, APPELLANT,
v.
ISRAM WHOLESALE TOURS AND TRAVEL LTD., APPELLEE
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Chiron appealed the dismissal of her breach of contract and fraud claims against a travel company, while the trial court properly dismissed her equitable accounting claim. The Third District Court of Appeal reversed the dismissals of the contract and fraud counts, finding them legally sufficient, but affirmed dismissal of the accounting count as lacking the requisite complexity.
The court held that Counts I and II state valid causes of action and should not have been dismissed, but Count III was properly dismissed because the facts alleged do not demonstrate the complexity or inadequacy of legal remedies necessary to justify an equitable accounting claim.
[1] A motion to dismiss for failure to state a cause of action requires the court to examine the complaint's allegations within its four corners to determine if they are suff…
[2] The failure to serve one or more named defendants is not, by itself, a sufficient basis for dismissing a complaint.
Previewing 2 of 6 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 only determination a court undertakes in considering a motion to dismiss for failure to state a cause of action is whether, upon examination of the four corners of the complaint, the allegations are sufficient to sustain a claim for relief.”
Establishes the legal standard for evaluating motions to dismiss—a narrow review of the complaint's face.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceChiron filed a complaint against Isram Wholesale Tours and Travel Ltd. alleging breach of an oral employment contract, fraud, and seeking an equitable…
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PER CURIAM.
This appeal is from an order dismissing a complaint with prejudice. No error is demonstrated in the trial court’s dismissal of count III of Chiron’s complaint seeking an accounting based on an oral contract for employment. The trial court’s dismissal of counts I and II is reversed.
“The only determination a court undertakes in considering a motion to dismiss for failure to state a cause of action is whether, upon examination of the four corners of the complaint, the allegations are sufficient to sustain a claim for relief.” Green v. Harry Savin, P.A., 455 So. 2d 494, 495 (Fla. 3d DCA 1984).
Count I states a cause of action for breach of contract. The fact that one or more of the other named defendants has not been served is, alone, no basis for dismissal. Count II of the complaint alleges all of the elements essential to a cause of action for fraud. See Lance v. Wade, 457 So. 2d 1008, 1011 (Fla.1984).
In count III of the complaint, however, Chiron attempts to state a cause of action for an equitable accounting on grounds that “[t]he nature of the business of the Defendants and the commissions owed Plaintiff are of such complexity as to compel an accounting” and that “there exists no adequate remedy at law.” Although there can be grounds for an equitable accounting “where the contract demands between litigants involve extensive or complicated accounts and it is not clear that the remedy at law is as full, adequate and expeditious as it is in equity,” F.A. Chastain Constr. Inc. v. Pratt, 146 So. 2d 910, 913 (Fla.3d DCA 1962), the evidentiary facts alleged by Chiron in her complaint show neither complexity nor inadequacy of a legal remedy.
On review of an order dismissing a complaint for an equitable accounting, where it is contended that legal remedies are inadequate, the test is whether there has been an abuse of discretion by the trial court. See Clifford Ragsdale, Inc. v. Morganti, Inc., 356 So. 2d 1321, 1323 (Fla. 4th DCA) (“In the absence of an abuse of discretion, the trial court’s dismissal with prejudice will not be disturbed.”), cert. denied, 362 So. 2d 1051 (Fla.1978); Smith v. Jacksonville Terminal Employees Fed. Credit Union, 193 So. 2d 436, 436-37 (Fla.1st DCA 1967) (dismissal of third amended complaint seeking accounting upheld where “[n]o justiciable issues between plaintiff and defendants are sufficiently alleged, and it affirmatively appears that plaintiff’s cause of action, if any, is at law_”). No such abuse is shown here as count I of the complaint alleges an uncomplicated oral agreement for short term employment, the terms for compensation, and a breach of the agreement. Those same facts do not warrant an action for an accounting.
Affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded for further proceedings.
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Bankers Tr. Realty, Inc. v. Kluger, 672 So. 2d 897 (Fla. 3d DCA 1996)…ts alleged in the complaint show neither complexity nor the inadequacy of a legal remedy. The relationship between the parties lasted at most thirteen months and involves a dispute of at most $14,000. Chiron v. Isram Wholesale Tours and Travel Ltd., 519 So. 2d 1102, 1103 (Fla. 3d DCA 1988) (holding that a complaint, alleging an “uncomplicated oral agreement for short term employment, the terms for compensation, and a breach of the agreement[,] ... [does] not warrant an action for an accounting”). Therefore, as…
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KEE v. Nat'l Reserve Life Ins. Co., 918 F.2d 1538 (11th Cir. 1990)…c. v. Tartamella, 492 So. 2d 815, 816 (Fla.Dist.Ct.App.1986). The district court was therefore correct in granting summary judgment in favor of National in the absence of a showing of these elements. Chiron v. Isram Wholesale Tours and Travel, Ltd., 519 So. 2d 1102, 1103 (Fla.Dist.Ct.App.1988) (dismissing complaint requesting accounting where evidentiary facts did not show inadequacy of legal remedy). (2) Conversion Under Florida law, conversion is “ ‘an act of dominion wrongfully asserted over another’s pro…
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Managed Care Solutions, Inc. v. Essent Healthcare, Inc., 694 F. Supp. 2d 1275 (S.D. Fla. 2010)…leged in a complaint show neither complexity nor inadequacy of a legal remedy. See, e.g., Florida Software Sys. Inc. v. Receivable Dynamics Inc., 46 F.Supp.2d 1276, 1285-86 (M.D.Fla.1999); Chiron v. Isram Wholesale Tours and Travel Ltd., 519 So.2d 1102, 1103 (Fla. DCA 3rd 1988) (dismissing action for equitable accounting under Florida law and similarly requiring allegations of complexity and inadequate legal remedy). 4 Here, MCS requests an equitable accounting to have access to the receiva…
Previewing 3 of 5 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Ne. Int'l Airways, Inc. v. Dep't OF Revenue, 457 So. 2d 1008 (Fla. 1984)
- F. A. Chastain Constr., Inc. v. Pratt, 146 So. 2d 910 (Fla. 3d DCA 1962)
- Clifford Ragsdale, Inc. v. Morganti, Inc., 356 So. 2d 1321 (Fla. 4th DCA 1978)
- Karl W. Green, M.D. & Karl W. Green, M.D., P.A. v. Harry Savin, P.A., 455 So. 2d 494 (Fla. 3d DCA 1984)
- Smith v. Jacksonville Terminal Emps. Fed. Credit Union, 193 So. 2d 436 (Fla. 1st DCA 1967)
- Landrum v. State, 193 So. 2d 436 (Fla. 1st DCA 1967)