CHABAD HOUSE-LUBAVITCH OF PALM BEACH COUNTY, INC., APPELLANT,
v.
VANNOY BANKS AND CHRISTIAN BANKS, ET UX., APPELLEES
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The court held that a jury verdict containing fundamental inconsistencies and the submission of equitable issues to a jury require reversal and remand for a new trial.
[1] A jury verdict is fundamentally inconsistent and requires reversal when its findings on different questions are irreconcilable, preventing a determination of the jury's i…
[2] Equitable issues, such as contract rescission based on mistake, are traditionally within the province of the equity court and should not be submitted to a jury.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceBuyer and Seller contracted for real property, with an addendum requiring Seller to fill a pond to specific standards. Seller filled the pond with con…
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WALDEN, JAMES H., Senior Judge:
Appellant Chabad House (Buyer) and appellees Banks (Seller) entered into a contract for the purchase of real property located in West Palm Beach, Florida. The property contained approximately two acres, including a home and a lake, or pond, which measured four-tenths of an acre in size. The primary focus of this litigation was paragraph 4 of the of the addendum to the contract, which provided as follows:
Seller shall, at least three (3) days prior to closing, fill in and compact the filléd soil of the area now acting as a pond. Such work shall be in accordance with any applicable standard for filling the area. The soil compaction shall be suitable to support a structure having a load bearing of 2,500 pounds per square foot and may be certified at Buyer’s cost.
Subsequent to the signing of the contract, appellees proceeded to have the lake filled.
The fill used by appellees is the lightning rod of this litigation. Appellees filled the lake with construction debris, and they claim that they obtained an appropriate permit to fill the lake in such manner. According to appellees, appellant’s sole reason for wanting the lake filled was because it was a hazard to children. Appellees also allege that the parties interpreted the term “structure” in paragraph 4 of the addendum to mean an open area, such as a playground area or a parking lot, not a one or two-story building as alleged by appellant. After a series of correspondence between the parties regarding the method of filling the lake, this litigation ensued.
The jury returned a verdict in favor of appellees, finding that the parties had entered into a valid contract and that there was either a unilateral mistake or a mutual mistake established so as to cancel or revoke the contract. The verdict further found that appellant breached a material term of the contract, and it awarded appel-lees damages in the amount of $17,000. The trial court, after denying various post-trial motions, entered final judgment in favor of appellees in accordance with the verdict. Appellant appeals this final judgment. Appellant’s first two points on appeal merit discussion, and we reverse and remand for a new trial as to these points.
Appellant first argues that the jury verdict and final judgment entered thereon should be set aside due to a fundamental inconsistency in the verdict. We agree. The verdict form returned by the jury provided:
1. Did the Chabad House and the Banks enter into a valid contract for the pur chase and sale of the real property involved in this case?
YES X NO_
If YES, go to question 2; if NO, you should go no further except to date and sign your verdict.
2. Was there a mistake established (either mutual or unilateral), such as to cancel or revoke the contract?
YES X NO_
Please answer Questions 3 and 4.
3. Did the Banks breach any material term of the contract with the Chabad House, which material term had not been waived by the Chabad House?
YES_ NO X
Total Damages, if any, to Chabad House $_ 0_
4. Did the Chabad House breach any material term of the contract with the Banks, which material term had not been waived by the Banks?
YES X NO_
Total Damages, if any, to the Banks $_17,000.00_
This verdict is inconsistent, and “the intent of the jury cannot be determined” from such verdict. Spitz v. Prudential-Bache Securities, Inc., 549 So. 2d 777 (Fla. 4th DCA 1989); see also Mike Henry, Inc. v. Donaldson, 558 So. 2d 1093 (Fla. 5th DCA 1990); Cloutier v. Cloutier, 418 So. 2d 1233 (Fla. 5th DCA 1982). We also note Lindquist v. Covert, 279 So. 2d 44 (Fla. 4th DCA 1973), a case in which this court held that, where an inconsistency in the verdict was not called to the trial court’s attention until motions for new trial were filed, any error of the trial court relating to the receipt of inconsistent verdicts is not preserved for review. This case is not dispositive of the instant issue in light of the fact that (1) appellant indicated its concern regarding the potential for an inconsistent verdict during the charge conference, and (2) the trial court initially recognized that the verdict was improper. We also reverse based upon the trial court’s error in submitting equitable issues to the jury. The instant case presented both legal and equitable claims, including breach of contract, damages, specific performance, and rescission. Appellant requested a jury trial on the issue of damages, whereas appellees demanded no jury trial on any of their claims. The record indicates that appellant was concerned about equitable issues being determined by the jury. The record further indicates that the jury did, in fact, decide an equitable issue, i.e., whether the contract was can-celled due to mistake, which is “traditionally within the province of the equity court to determine.” Cooley v. Cody, 377 So. 2d 796 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979).
We briefly note appellant’s other points on appeal only so as to inform the parties not to repeat, on remand, the errors set forth in these points. The trial court erred in admitting into evidence the site plan because it was a direct product of mediation between the parties, and appellant objected to its introduction. Section 44.102(3), Fla.Stat. (Supp.1990). Furthermore, the amount awarded to appellees as damages was erroneous in that the evidence from which said award was based was “sketchy, vague, and inconclusive,” and not legally sufficient to support a damages award of $17,000. George Hunt, Inc. v. Dorsey Young Construction, Inc., 385 So. 2d 732 (Fla. 4th DCA 1980). We also find that the trial court erred in admitting the testimony of a Mr. Peters regarding the county’s approval of the lake fill. Said testimony was inadmissible hearsay, which appellant initially objected to and which was not properly received elsewhere, and we find it to have been harmful in light of the fact that the applicable standard for filling the lake was a material condition of addendum paragraph 4 at issue in this case.
REVERSED AND REMANDED with directions.
LETTS, J., and JAMES E. ALDERMAN, Senior Justice, concur.
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Liggett Grp. Inc. v. Howard A. Engle, M.D., 853 So. 2d 434 (Fla. 3d DCA 2003)…med plaintiffs. The inconsistency in the verdict alone, fundamentally undermines the verdicts underlying basis and requires reversal. See Garriga v. Guerra, 753 So. 2d 146 (Fla. 3d DCA 2000); Chabad House-Lubavitch of Palm Beach Cty., Inc. v. Banks, 602 So. 2d 670 (Fla. 4th DCA 1992); Wharfside Two, Ltd. v. W.W. Gay Mechanical Contractor, Inc., 523 So. 2d 193 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988). . The jury awarded $790 million dollars in punitive damages against the Liggett defendants. This amount is twenty-three times Lig-…
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Grossman v. Greenberg, 619 So. 2d 406 (Fla. 3d DCA 1993)…Grossman and Males as to liability. We remand for a new trial on the damages because we find the jury verdict inconsistent and the jury’s intent cannot be determined from the verdict. See Chabad House-Lubavitch of Palm Beach County, Inc. v. Banks, 602 So. 2d 670 (Fla. 4th DCA 1992); Spitz v. Prudential-Bache Securities, Inc., 549 So. 2d 777 (Fla. 4th DCA 1989). For example, the jury awarded $228,334 as the total amount of “compensation” received by Grossman from Rubin or Real-Way Realty. The evidence indica…
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Espino v. Oswaldo Anez, 665 So. 2d 1080 (Fla. 3d DCA 1995)…matter of law, the trial court erred in allowing the jury to determine the equitable issue of the percentage of property on which to impose an equitable trust in favor of Oswaldo Anez. See Chabad House-Lubavitch of Palm Beach County, Inc. v. Banks, 602 So. 2d 670, 672 (Fla. 4th DCA 1992) (trial court erred in submitting equitable issue of law — whether contract was cancelled due to mistake — to jury to determine). The jury’s calculation of the percentage of the property to which Oswaldo Anez was entitled als…
Previewing 3 of 6 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Lindquist v. Emy Lou Covert and Allyn Richard Myers, 279 So. 2d 44 (Fla. 4th DCA 1973)
- George Hunt, Inc. v. Dorsey Young Constr., Inc., 385 So. 2d 732 (Fla. 4th DCA 1980)
- Spitz v. Prudential-Bache Sec., Inc., 549 So. 2d 777 (Fla. 4th DCA 1989)
- Cloutier v. Cent. Contracting, Inc., 418 So. 2d 1233 (Fla. 5th DCA 1982)
- Cooley v. Cody, 377 So. 2d 796 (Fla. 1st DCA 1979)
- Mike Henry, Inc. v. Donaldson, 558 So. 2d 1093 (Fla. 5th DCA 1990)