JOHN CISKO, AS PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE OF THE ESTATE OF FREDERICK ANTHONY CISKO, AND JOHN DOE, APPELLANTS,
v.
DIOCESE OF STEUBENVILLE, APPELLEE

Fla. 3d DCA | 2013-09-04
No. 3D12-1496
Before SUAREZ, ROTHENBERG and SALTER, JJ.
123 So. 3d 83 Florida District Court of Appeal, Third District (2013) Caution
Cited by 11 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, representatives of an estate and a Jane Doe, sued the Diocese of Steubenville for negligence arising from alleged sexual abuse by priests in 1966-1967. The trial court granted summary judgment based on Florida's four-year statute of limitations, and the appellate court affirmed, holding that the delayed discovery doctrine established in Hearndon v. Graham applies only to intentional tort actions, not negligence claims.


Holding

The delayed discovery doctrine does not apply to negligence actions. The doctrine is limited to intentional tort actions against the perpetrator of childhood sexual abuse, as indicated by the specific historical and procedural facts of Hearndon and the Florida Supreme Court's subsequent clarification in Davis v. Monahan.


Headnotes

[1] The delayed discovery doctrine, as applied in Hearndon v. …

[2] A negligence claim based on alleged childhood sexual abuse is barred by the statute of limitations if the delayed discovery doctrine is not applicable.

Previewing 2 of 5 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

Key Quotes

“A plain reading of Heamdon makes clear the holding is limited to its specific historical and procedural facts.”

Establishes the court's interpretive approach that Hearndon's holding is narrowly confined and not broadly applicable to all childhood sexual abuse cases.

Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

Facts & Procedural History

The appellants alleged they suffered physical and sexual abuse between 1966 and 1967 by two priests under the Diocese's supervision. They claimed the …

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.


Opinion of the Court
SUAREZ, J.

SUAREZ, J.

John Cisko, as personal representative of the Estate of Frederick Anthony Cisko, and John Doe appeal the entry of final summary judgment based on the determination that the statute of limitations bars their negligence claim against the Diocese of Steubenville. We affirm.

In May 2009, the appellants sued the Diocese for negligence related to physical and sexual abuse they allegedly suffered between 1966 and 1967 by two priests under the Diocese’s supervision. The complaint alleges the events produced traumatic amnesia that blocked their memory of the abuse until May 2005. The Diocese moved for summary judgment, claiming the four-year statute of limitations barred the action. See § 95.11(3)(a), Fla. Stat. (2006). The appellants argued the action was permissible under the delayed discovery doctrine as applied in Hearndon v. Graham, 767 So.2d 1179 (Fla.2000). The trial court concluded Heam-don did not apply to a negligence action and entered summary judgment. It reasoned the Supreme Court intended to limit Heamdon to intentional tort actions against the perpetrator of childhood sexual abuse. We agree and affirm.

A plain reading of Heamdon makes clear the holding is limited to its specific historical and procedural facts. The plaintiff in Heamdon brought an intentional tort action against her stepfather for sexual abuse she suffered by him as a child. Id. at 1181. She alleged the trauma caused her to suppress her memory of the events for many years, only recalling them later as an adult. Id. The trial court and the district court of appeal determined the statute of limitations barred her action. Id. at 1181-82. The Florida Supreme Court, however, allowed the action to stand under the delayed discovery doctrine based on the plaintiffs allegations of traumatic amnesia. Id. at 1186. The opinion strongly suggests the holding hinges not only on these specific allegations but also on the specific cause of action: a suit for intentional tort against the perpetrator. See id. at 1186 (“We therefore hold that the delayed discovery doctrine applies to the accrual of the instant came of action based on a claim of childhood sexual abuse accompanied by traumatic amnesia .... ” (emphasis added)).

This reading finds further support in the Court’s statements in Davis v. Monahan, 832 So.2d 708 (Fla.2002). There, the Court explained the narrow application of Heamdon and stated it was limited to its specific facts. It described Heamdon as “where we applied the delayed discovery doctrine to intentional torts arising from childhood sexual abuse of the plaintiff.” Id. at 709. The Court further explained its considerations in reaching that holding:

*85While we applied the delayed discovery doctrine to causes of action1 arising out of childhood sexual abuse and repressed memory in Heamdon, we did so only after considering the unique and sinister nature of childhood sexual abuse.... We also considered the Legislature’s endorsement in amending section 95.11(7), Florida Statutes (1999), to include intentional torts based on abuse....

Davis, 832 So.2d at 712.

Here, as in Davis, there is no statutory endorsement. In fact, in more than ten years since enacting section 95.11(7), the legislature has not extended the limitations period to causes of action other than intentional torts. Our holding today also accords with the Fourth District Court of Appeal’s interpretation of section 95.11(7) and Heamdon. See Doe v. Sinrod, 90 So.3d 852, 854 (Fla. 4th DCA 2012) (declining to apply tolling provisions under section 95.11(7), Fla. Stat. (2011), to negligence action against school board based on alleged sexual abuse by school board employee). Although the appellants make compelling arguments, we conclude the requested relief is a matter for legislative consideration.

Affirmed.


Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus


Citator

Cited By

  • D.H. and L.H. v. Adept Cmty. Servs., Inc., 217 So. 3d 1072 (Fla. 2d DCA 2017)
    ….D. v. Archdiocese of Miami, Inc., 197 So. 3d 584, 587-88 (Fla. 4th DCA 2016) (holding that the delayed discovery doctrine does not apply to a claim for negligence against a third party based on child sexual abuse); Cisko v. Diocese of Steubenville, 123 So. 3d 83, 84-85 (Fla. 3d DCA 2013) (same); Krawchenko v. Raymond James Fin. Servs., No. 2:11-cv-409-FtM-29DNF, 2013 WL 489088, at *3 (M.D. Fla. Feb. 8, 2013) (“[T]he ’delayed discovery5 doctrine is not available because there is no statutory basis to apply t…
  • R.R. v. New Life Cmty. Church of CMA, Inc., 303 So. 3d 916 (Fla. 2020)
  • W.D. v. Archdiocese OF Miami, Inc., 197 So. 3d 584 (Fla. 4th DCA 2016)
    …ndon was due to the “unique and sinister nature of childhood sexual abuse, as well as the fact that the doctrine is applicable to similar cases where the tor-tious acts cause the delay in discovery.” Id. at 712. In Cisko v. Diocese of Steubenville, 123 So. 3d 83 (Fla. 3d DCA 2013), the Third District recognized the limited application of Heamdon’s delayed discoyery doctrine.Id. at 84. “The [supreme court’s] opinion strongly suggests the holding hinges not only on these specific allegations but also on the s…

Previewing 3 of 6 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

Authorities Cited

Full citator, related cases, and AI research tools

Open in FLexlaw