WHITNEY NATIONAL BANK, APPELLANT,

v.

GOLF STRATEGIES, LLC, A FLORIDA LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY; JOHN C. GREER, AN INDIVIDUAL; TRACY J. HARRIS, JR., AN INDIVIDUAL; HENRY C. HARDIN, III, AN INDIVIDUAL; JACOB H. HARDIN, AN INDIVIDUAL; JOHN E. HARDIN, AN INDIVIDUAL; BING CHARLES W. KEARNEY, JR., AN INDIVIDUAL; DONALD E. PHILLIPS, AN INDIVIDUAL; TODD R. TAYLOR, AN INDIVIDUAL; AND W. DOUGLAS WHITE, AN INDIVIDUAL, APPELLEES

Fla. 2d DCA | 2013-06-21

No. 2D12-2951

Altenbernd, J., LaRose, J., Gallen, Thomas M., Associate Senior Judge

125 So. 3d 985 Florida District Court of Appeal, Second District (2013) Caution

Cited by 4 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

Florida appellate court affirmed judgment against guarantors but struck language estopping bank from foreclosure because the bank had already taken possession in bankruptcy proceedings, making foreclosure unnecessary.

Holding

The trial court's judgment against the guarantors is affirmed, but the court must strike the language estopping the bank from foreclosing because the bank had already taken possession of the property in bankruptcy proceedings.

Headnotes

[1] Language estopping a creditor from foreclosing should be struck from a judgment when the creditor has already taken possession of the property in bankruptcy proceedings,…

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Facts & Procedural History

Whitney National Bank sued various guarantors of a promissory note secured by a mortgage. The borrower, The Golf Club at Bridgewater, LLC, was not a p…

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Topics

Judicial Jurisdiction Guarantor Liability Breach Of Promissory Note Mortgage

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Opinion of the Court

ALTENBERND, Judge.

Whitney National Bank appeals an amended final judgment entered in an action brought against various guarantors of a promissory note that was secured by a mortgage. The borrower, The Golf Club at Bridgewater, LLC, is not a party to this action and has a proceeding pending in the bankruptcy court of the Middle District of Florida. Whitney does not argue that the trial court erred in the “ordered and adjudged” section of the final judgment.

Whitney correctly observes that the trial court lacked jurisdiction over the property owned by The Golf Club at Bridgewater, LLC, and that the case did not involve a foreclosure against the property. Nevertheless, a portion of the final judgment discussing an affirmative defense of unclean hands, which was raised by some of the guarantors, concludes with the following two sentences: “As such, the Court finds the unclean hands doctrine applicable. Whitney is estopped from foreclosing on an accelerated basis.”

If we correctly understand the proceedings in the bankruptcy court, Whitney has already taken possession of the land and a foreclosure will be unnecessary. Nevertheless, to avoid any possible confusion, on remand we order the trial court to strike from the amended final judgment the sentence: “Whitney is estopped from foreclosing on an accelerated basis.”

Affirmed with instructions.

LAROSE, J., and GALLEN, THOMAS M., Associate Senior Judge, Concur.

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Citator

Cited By

Orton v. State, 212 So. 3d 377 (Fla. 4th DCA 2017)

…013) (“[A]n objection on relevance grounds only will not preserve an argument of unfair prejudice on appeal.”). Appellant’s claim that a speculation objection and a relevancy objection are identical is without merit. He relies on Martinez v. State, 125 So. 3d 985 (Fla. 4th DCA 2013), to support this proposition, but that case involved an objection on relevancy and a separate objection (later withdrawn) that raised both grounds. Id. at 988. Nowhere in the opinion does this Court suggest that an objection to s…
Lenz v. State, 183 So. 3d 1239 (Fla. 4th DCA 2016)

…retaining counsel to represent him in the criminal matter. See Johnston v. State, 863 So. 2d 271, 278 (Fla.2003) (“A trial judge’s ruling on the admissibility of evidence will not be disturbed absent an abuse of discretion.”). In Martinez v. State, 125 So. 3d 985, 989-90 (Fla. 4th DCA 2013), this Court referred to the unyielding foundation the framers of our Constitution laid protecting the selection of legal counsel in criminal proceedings. The exchanges between Appellant and his wife concerning their poten…
Medina v. State, 254 So. 3d 1148 (Fla. 4th DCA 2018)

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