HARRIS TRUST COMPANY OF FLORIDA, AS PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE OF THE ESTATE OF SARAH V. DAVIS, AND JAMES A. DAVIS, II, INDIVIDUALLY AND AS TRUSTEE, APPELLANTS/CROSS-APPELLEES,
v.
DIANE A. DAVIS A/K/A DIANA SUTHERLIN, APPELLEE/CROSS-APPELLANT
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.
Harris Trust Company and James A. Davis II appealed a judgment awarding the estate beneficiary Diane A. Davis $70,180.10 in damages plus interest for alleged breaches of fiduciary duty by the trustees. The court reversed, finding that the beneficiary's claims regarding disclosed matters were barred by the six-month statute of limitations in Florida Statutes Section 737.307, and that any damages awarded were offset by undisputed trust disbursements the beneficiary lost the right to challenge.
The beneficiary's claims regarding matters fully disclosed in the June 1989 amended accounting were barred because she did not commence her proceeding within six months of receiving that accounting. Although undisputed allegations of other breaches of fiduciary duty were not time-barred, the damages awarded ($70,180.10) were more than offset by the asserted disbursements ($100,000+) that the beneficiary had lost the right to challenge.
[1] An action against a trustee for breach of trust is barred if the beneficiary received a final, annual, or periodic account fully disclosing the matter and failed to comme…
[2] A beneficiary's claims against a trustee regarding matters fully disclosed in an accounting are barred by statute if not challenged within the statutory period.
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“Unless previously barred by adjudication, consent, or limitations, an action against a trustee for breach of trust is barred for any beneficiary who has received a final, annual, or periodic account or other statement fully disclosing the matter unless a proceeding to assert the claim is commenced within 6 months after receipt of the final, annual, or periodic account or statement.”
Establishes the statutory six-month limitation period for challenging matters disclosed in trustee accountings under Section 737.307, Florida Statutes.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceThe trustees of a trust established for Diane A. Davis's benefit provided her with an amended accounting dated June 1989 that disclosed certain paymen…
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 Breach Of Trust cases and more on FLexlaw
PER CURIAM.
The final judgment being appealed and cross-appealed awarded appellee the sum of $70,180.10, plus prejudgment interest of $29,-908.19, or a total of $100,088.29, plus post-judgment interest on the entire sum. We reverse.
The jury agreed with appellee that the trustees of the trust established for her benefit had not distributed to her all of the assets to which she was entitled. However, as to those matters, disputed by appellee, which the trustees fully disclosed to her, at the latest, in their amended accounting dated June 1989, appellee delayed too long in bringing her action. Section 737.307, Florida Statutes (1989), which limits proceedings against trustees after the beneficiary receives an accounting, provides, in pertinent part, as follows: Unless previously barred by adjudication, consent, or limitations, an action against a trustee for breach of trust is barred for any beneficiary who has received a final, annual, or periodic account or other statement fully disclosing the matter unless a proceeding to assert the claim is commenced within 6 months after receipt of the final, annual, or periodic account or statement.
The June 1989 amended accounting reflected the trustees’ position that certain payments by one of the trustees to appellee or for her benefit actually were disbursements from the trust. Appellee did not file her complaint disputing that position until April 5, 1991, by which time she was barred from doing so by section 737.307.
Although appellee’s complaint made other allegations of breach of fiduciary duty, as to which the jury found damages, which were not barred by the statute because never disclosed by way of accounting, the $70,-180.10 sum of damages found was more than offset by the total of the asserted disbursements, over $100,000, which appellee had lost her right to challenge and as to which we determine the trial court erred in failing to grant appellants a directed verdict. Therefore, we remand and direct the trial court to enter judgment for appellants.
Our decision renders moot appellants’ issue attacking the postjudgment interest that was awarded on the $29,908.19 in prejudgment interest included in appellee’s judgment below. However, we note that this district is bound by its own precedent that postjudgment interest may be awarded solely on the damages exclusive of prejudgment interest, as we recently held in Cadillac Fairview Corp. v. Resort at Indian Spring Ltd., 664 So. 2d 1041 (Fla. 4th DCA 1995), in which we certified conflict with Peavy v. Dyer, 605 So. 2d 1330 (Fla. 5th DCA 1992).
The remittitur issue also is moot. Were it not moot, we would have required a remitti-tur in the amount of $5,100, the difference between the purchase price of appellee’s residence paid from the trust and the amount credited in appellee’s request for damages.
Although we agree with appellee/cross-ap-pellant’s argument on cross-appeal, involving the respective dates that prejudgment interest should commence, see Hughes v. Irons, 370 So. 2d 76 (Fla. 2d DCA 1979), that issue too is rendered moot by our decision in the main appeal.
We see no error as to the other matters raised.
GUNTHER, C.J. and GLICKSTEIN and PARIENTE, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
-
First Union Nat'l Bank v. Turney, 824 So. 2d 172 (Fla. 1st DCA 2001)…m is commenced within 6 months after receipt of the final, annual, or periodic account or statement.” (Emphasis supplied.) The bank never disclosed the breaches of fiduciary duty upon which Ms. Turney ultimately sued. See Harris Trust Co. v. Davis, 668 So. 2d 689, 689-90 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996). The jury found Ms. Turney was reasonably unaware of the bank's breaches of fiduciary duty for some time. Her causes of action did not accrue until she became aware of facts that would have put a reasonable person on [*19…
-
GEM Broad., Inc. v. Minker, 763 So. 2d 1149 (Fla. 4th DCA 2000)…that he conferred a benefit on Gem in order to recover a judgment. On the remaining point on appeal, we do not read the final judgment as awarding interest on pre-judgment interest, so there is no conflict with Harris Trust Co. of Florida v. Davis, 668 So. 2d 689 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996), or Cadillac Fairview Corp. v. Resort at Indian Spring Ltd., 664 So. 2d 1041 (Fla. 4th DCA 1995). AFFIRMED. STEVENSON, J., and BAILEY, JENNIFER D., Associate Judge, concur.…
-
Mead v. Barnett Bank, N.A., 732 So. 2d 1214 (Fla. 3d DCA 1999)…PER CURIAM. Affirmed. See § 737.307, Fla. Stat. (1997); § 737.303(4)(b), Fla. Stat. (1997); Anderson v. Dimick, 77 So. 2d 867 (Fla. 1955); Harris Trust Co. of Florida v. Davis, 668 So. 2d 689 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996); Smith v. Bank of Clearwater, 479 So. 2d 755 (Fla. 2d DCA 1985); Everdell v. Preston, 717 F.Supp. 1498 (M.D.Fla.1989).…
Authorities Cited
- Peavy v. Dyer, 605 So. 2d 1330 (Fla. 5th DCA 1992)
- Hughes v. Irons, 370 So. 2d 76 (Fla. 2d DCA 1979)
- The Cadillac Fairview Corp. Ltd. v. The Resort AT Indian Spring Ltd., 664 So. 2d 1041 (Fla. 4th DCA 1995)