ALEXANDER J. MILANICK AND JOHN C. MILANICK, APPELLANTS,
v.
TOWN OF BEVERLY BEACH, ET AL., APPELLEES

Fla. 5th DCA | 2001-10-19
No. 5D00-3171
PETERSON and ORFINGER, R. B., JJ., concur.
820 So. 2d 317 Florida District Court of Appeal, Fifth District (2001) Positive Treatment
Cited by 12 cases

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.

Synopsis

The appellants sought a writ of mandamus to compel the Town of Beverly Beach to properly record an annexation ordinance of their property that contained scrivener's errors and was never recorded despite council approval. The court reversed the trial court's dismissal of the mandamus count, finding the complaint stated a prima facie case for mandamus relief, while affirming dismissal of civil rights claims.


Holding

The court reversed the dismissal of the mandamus count, holding that: (1) the 30-day filing deadline in Rule 1.630(c) applies to certiorari, not mandamus, and does not logically apply when the relief sought is rendition of a promised order; (2) the appellants presented a prima facie case for mandamus relief by showing the Town had a clear legal duty to perform the ministerial act of recording the ordinance; and (3) the trial court should have issued an alternative writ.


Headnotes

[1] A petition for a writ of mandamus is facially sufficient if it alleges facts demonstrating a clear legal right to the performance of a clear legal duty by a public office…

[2] A writ of mandamus may only be used to enforce a clear and certain right, not to establish one.

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Key Quotes

“One seeking a writ of mandamus must show that he has a clear legal right to the performance of a clear legal duty by a public officer, and that he has no other available legal remedies.”

Establishes the three-part test for obtaining mandamus relief

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Facts & Procedural History

In 1995, Beverly Beach Town Council passed an ordinance to annex the Milanicks' property, but the ordinance contained a scrivener's error naming the C…

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Opinion of the Court
PLEUS, J.

PLEUS, J.

This case involves the failure of a town to properly record its ordinance annexing two parcels of land. Ultimately, the appellants filed a three count complaint in the circuit court alleging their civil rights were violated by the town and its mayor and seeking a writ of mandamus compelling the town to take the steps necessary to properly complete the annexation. The circuit court dismissed all three counts with prejudice. While we affirm the dismissal of the two counts alleging civil rights violations, we reverse the dismissal of the count seeking mandamus relief. The appellants presented a facially sufficient petition for a writ of mandamus, and the trial court should have issued an alternative writ.

The case began in 1995, when the'Beverly Beach Town Council passed an ordinance to annex the properties of the appellants, Alexander and John Milanick, into the town of Beverly Beach. The ordinance, as actually written, contained an unusual scrivener’s error of stating that the entity annexing the property was the City of Bunnell. The Council, in November of that year, voted to have the ordinance amended but the ordinance as amended was signed neither by two of the five commissioners, nor the then-mayor, Donald McGraw. In addition, the ordinance was never recorded in the public records of Flagler County as required by law.

Eventually the omissions were discovered and in August, 1999,' as noted in the trial court’s dismissal order:

The Town adopted a resolution to complete annexation by signing the ordinance and recording it. Mayor Charles Osborne vetoed that resolution. The Council then passed a resolution overriding the Mayor’s veto and directed the Town complete annexation by recording the ordinance with the Clerk of the Circuit Court. The appellants alleged in their complaint filed in March of 2000, that the recording never took place because Mayor Osborne conferred with the Clerk of the Court to block recording of the ordinance. The trial court ruled that the complaint containing the petition for writ of mandamus was untimely because it was filed more than 30 days after the Town voted to complete the annexation in August, 1999.

Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.630 provides in pertinent part:

(a) Applicability. This rule applies to actions for the issuance of writs of mandamus, prohibition, quo warranto, certiorari, and habeas corpus. (b) Initial Pleading. The initial pleading shall be a complaint. It shall contain: (1) the facts on which the plaintiff relies for relief; (2) a request for the relief sought; and (3) if desired, argument in support of the petition with citations of authority. The caption shall show the action filed in the name of the plaintiff in all cases and not on the relation of the state. When the complaint seeks a writ directed to a lower court or to a governmental or administrative agency, a copy of as much of the record as is necessary to support the plaintiffs complaint shall be attached. (c) Time. A complaint shall be filed within the time provided by law, except that a complaint for common law certiorari shall be filed within 30 days of rendition of the matter sought to be reviewed. (d) Process. If the complaint shows a prima facie case for relief, the court shall issue: (1) a summons in certiorari; (2) an order nisi in prohibition; (3) an alternative writ in mandamus that may incorporate the complaint by reference only; (4) a writ of quo warranto; or (5) a writ of habeas corpus. (Emphasis added).

The standard for reviewing a trial court’s decision to grant or not grant a writ of mandamus is essentially the same standard as a reviewing court’s standard of a matter in which certiorari review is requested. Plymel v. Moore, 770 So. 2d -242, 246 (Fla. 1st DCA 2000) (“The standard of review for certiorari in the district court is limited to whether the circuit court afforded procedural due process and whether the circuit court applied the correct law”). An action for a writ of mandamus, however, is separate and apart from an action for prohibition, quo warranto, certiorari, or habe-as corpus. Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.630(a). In petitioning for common law certiorari review, a complaint must be filed “within 30 days of rendition of the matter sought to be reviewed.” Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.630(c). Because the appellants, however, proceeded in mandamus, and “the. proceeding below was not in substance a petition for certiorari, the date of rendition of [any] order is academic.” Board of Trustees— City Supplemental Pension Fund for Firemen and Policemen in City of Miami v. Mendelson, 601 So. 2d 594, 596 n. 1 (Fla. 3d DCA 1992).

In mandamus, the relief sought may very well be rendition of a promised order. One cannot logically begin running a 30 day toll pursuant to rule 1.630(c) on a matter in which rendition of an order is the action being sought. In the instant case, the recording of the ordinance order indicating appellants’ properties have been annexed, consistent with the Town’s acts of August 1999, was sought.

In speaking on the issue of mandamus relief, the court in Plymel also noted:

One seeking a writ of mandamus must show that he has a clear legal right to the performance of a clear legal duty by a public officer, and that he has no other available legal remedies. See Flatten v. State, 561 So. 2d 562, 563 (Fla.1990); Holcomb v. Department of Corrections, 609 So. 2d 751, 753 (Fla. 1st DCA 1992); Adams v. State, 560 So. 2d 321, 322 (Fla. 1st DCA 1990). Mandamus may be used only to enforce a clear and certain right; it may not be used to establish such a right, but only to enforce a right already clearly and certainly established in the law. See Florida League of Cities v. Smith, 607 So. 2d 397, 400-401 (Fla.1992). “Mandamus may be granted only if there is a clear legal obligation to perform a duty in a prescribed manner.” See Adams, 560 So. 2d at 323; Holland v. Wainwright, 499 So. 2d 21, 22 (Fla. 1st DCA 1986) (“The writ may be used to compel the performance of a ministerial duty imposed by law where it has not been performed as the law requires.”). See also Lewis v. State, 764 So. 2d 636 (Fla. 1st DCA 2000).

Plymel at 246-247.

The question for the trial court was whether the petitioner demonstrated a pri-ma facie case for mandamus relief; to wit: did the Town, acting through its council, have a clear legal duty to perform a ministerial act? We find that the Town did and that the trial court, accordingly, should have granted the writ.

We affirm the trial court’s dismissal of the two counts alleging civil rights violations, reverse that portion of the complaint seeking mandamus relief, and remand with directions to grant the petition for mandamus relief.

REVERSED IN PART; REMANDED.

PETERSON and ORFINGER, R. B., JJ., concur.


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Citator

Cited By

  • Austin v. Crosby, 866 So. 2d 742 (Fla. 5th DCA 2004)
    …indisputably ministerial duty required by law. See Adams v. State, 560 So. 2d 321, 322 (Fla. 1st DCA 1990). It may only be granted if there is a clear legal obligation to perform a duty in a prescribed manner. See Milanick v. Town of Beverly Beach, 820 So. 2d 317, 320 (Fla. 5th DCA 2001). A duty or act is ministerial when there is no room for the exercise of discretion, and the performance being required is directed by law. See Shea v. Cochran, 680 So. 2d 628, 629 (Fla. 4th DCA 1996); PCA Life Ins. Co. v. Me…
  • Bryon D. Park v. City OF W. Melbourne, 927 So. 2d 5 (Fla. 5th DCA 2006)
    …damus proceeding. “[M]andamus may be used only to enforce a clear and certain right; it may not be used to establish such a right, but only to enforce a right already clearly and certainly established in the law.” Milanick v. Town of Beverly Beach, 820 So. 2d 317, 320 (Fla. 5th DCA 2001) (citing Fla. League of Cities v. Smith, 607 So. 2d 397, 400-01 (Fla.1992)). In denying Park’s petition for writ of mandamus, the trial court merely concluded that Park “did not establish a clear legal right to reinstatement…
  • Chapman v. State, 910 So. 2d 940 (Fla. 5th DCA 2005)
    …to the requested relief, the respondent must have an indisputable legal duty to perform the requested action, and the. petitioner must have no other adequate remedy. Huffman v. State, 813 So. 2d 10, 11 (Fla.2000); Milanick v. Town of Beverly Beach, 820 So. 2d 317, 318 (Fla. 5th DCA 2001). Chapman contends that respondent has a duty to execute the arrest warrant against him based on section 948.06(1), Florida Statutes, which states that any magistrate may issue a warrant for the arrest of a probationer “retur…

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