CLAUDETTE PELLETIER AND PAMELA CAPUTO, APPELLANTS,
v.
PAUL CUTLER, APPELLEE
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In this follow-up appeal from a conversion case, the Florida Fourth District Court of Appeal affirmed the trial court's denial of treble damages and punitive damages to tenants who claimed their landlord converted their property. The court held that the civil theft statute requires a finding of criminal intent, which was lacking under the facts presented.
The court affirmed the trial court's denial of treble damages, holding that under the facts of the case there was insufficient evidence to support an award of punitive damages or statutory treble damages under Florida's civil theft statute, which requires a finding of criminal intent.
[1] A prior appellate decision remanding for a jury trial on the issue of conversion does not preclude a subsequent denial of statutory treble damages if the evidence is insu…
[2] Statutory treble damages under Florida's civil theft statute require a finding of criminal intent.
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“we found that the trial court erred in directing a verdict for Pelletier and Caputo because there was a jury question as to what specific property was converted”
Establishes that the trial court's initial directed verdict was improper, requiring a jury determination on conversion.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceCutler, a purported landlord, directed his agent to pack and store Pelletier and Caputo's belongings as collateral for alleged unpaid utility bills. T…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
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PER CURIAM.
This cause first came before this court in 1987, when appellee, the purported landlord, appealed a final judgment awarding treble compensatory damages in addition to punitive damages to appellants, the purported tenants, in an action against appel-lee for civil theft, wrongful eviction and conversion.
In Cutler v. Pelletier, 507 So. 2d 676 (Fla. 4th DCA 1987), we affirmed the trial court’s finding that Cutler’s agent, in packing and storing Pelletier and Caputo’s belongings, as collateral for alleged unpaid utility bills, converted the property under the direction of Cutler. However, we found that the trial court erred in directing a verdict for Pelletier and Caputo because there was a jury question as to what specific property was converted. We also held that the compensatory damages awarded were based on an improper measure of damages and that the trial court erred in awarding both punitive and treble damages under the amended version of the civil theft statute, section 812.035(7), Florida Statutes (Supp.1984). The award amounted to a double recovery and an excessive penalty.
This court reversed the punitive damages awarded and remanded for a jury trial on the issue of conversion. We footnoted our opinion with the statement that there was insufficient evidence to support an award of punitive damages on either of the other two theories of law presented by Pelletier and Caputo: negligent hiring and the acts being malicious, wanton and willful (common law civil theft).
After the trial on remand, the trial court denied appellants’ motion for treble damages. It found that this court’s prior opinion required it to deny any relief for treble damages or attorney’s fees under the civil theft statute. Appellants now seek review of the denial of that motion.
We find the trial court correctly interpreted our 1987 opinion, that under the facts of the case there was insufficient evidence to support an award of punitive damages or statutory treble damages under Florida’s civil theft statute which requires a finding of criminal intent. City of Cars, Inc. v. Simms, 526 So. 2d 119 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988). We therefore affirm the trial court’s order denying appellants’ motion for treble damages.
DOWNEY, DELL and POLEN, JJ., concur.
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Citator
Cited By
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Snyder v. Bell, 746 So. 2d 1096 (Fla. 2d DCA 1999)…clear from the application of the statute that the statement “[i]n no event shall punitive damages be awarded under this section” purports to preclude a double recovery of damages which are punitive in [*1100] nature. See, e.g., Pelletier v. Cutler, 543 So. 2d 406, 407 (Fla. 4th DCA 1989) (affirming the trial court’s order denying treble damages where punitive damages had already been awarded because “[t]he award amounted to a double recovery and an excessive penalty”). As such, the inclusion of the word “pun…
Authorities Cited
- Eastman v. State, 507 So. 2d 676 (Fla. 3d DCA 1987)
- City OF Cars, Inc. v. Simms, 526 So. 2d 119 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988)