Abuse Of Discretion (Standard Of Review)

12,337 Florida cases classified under this topic, plus 1,658 listed through its narrower topics · sorted by citation count · see the citation graph · browse and sort

• Yaris v. Hartley
  128 So. 3d 825· Fla. 4th DCA· 2013-11-13 ·cited 2×·via Abuse Of Discretion Standard For Continuance
  A former husband appealed the denial of his motion for continuance of a final hearing in a modification of alimony case. Despite the high deference afforded to trial courts on continuance decisions, the Fourth District reversed because the former husband suffered injustice from h
• Wadsworth v. JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A.
  123 So. 3d 688· Fla. 4th DCA· 2013-10-23 ·cited 2×
  In a mortgage foreclosure case, the trial court improperly entered a default judgment and granted summary judgment against Wadsworth after he had filed an answer and raised a valid defense regarding the lender's failure to comply with notice requirements in the mortgage's acceler
• Voda v. Voda
  122 So. 3d 936· Fla. 2d DCA· 2013-10-09 ·cited 2×
  The court held that the trial court erred by failing to determine the husband's ability to pay alimony, requiring reversal on that issue.
• Geovany Ortiz Zuniga v. State
  121 So. 3d 640· Fla. 4th DCA· 2013-09-11 ·cited 2×
  Geovany Ortiz Zuniga was convicted of first-degree murder and other charges arising from a convenience store robbery in which an innocent bystander was killed. The Fourth District Court of Appeal reversed his conviction because the trial court erred in admitting his confession st
• Ledea v. State
  121 So. 3d 88· Fla. 3d DCA· 2013-09-04 ·cited 2×
  Anthony Ledea appeals his convictions for possession of cocaine, aggravated fleeing, and assault. The court affirmed the convictions but reversed and remanded the sentence for possession of cocaine because the trial court illegally imposed a habitual offender enhancement for a dr
• Constant v. State
  120 So. 3d 122· Fla. 4th DCA· 2013-08-14 ·cited 2×
  Kevin Constant was convicted of armed robbery based largely on victim identification evidence. The Fourth District Court of Appeal reversed because the trial court admitted inadmissible hearsay—a police officer's testimony about the co-victim's out-of-court identification—when th
• Johnson v. State
  117 So. 3d 1238· Fla. 3d DCA· 2013-07-10 ·cited 2×·via Abuse Of Discretion Standard For Evidence Admission
  Johnson appeals convictions for sexual battery with a deadly weapon, kidnapping, and lewd and lascivious molestation of a child, challenging the admission of DNA evidence and a rape treatment report when the examining physician did not testify. The court upheld the admission of t
• Virgo v. Nat'l City Mortg. Co.
  115 So. 3d 1072· Fla. 4th DCA· 2013-06-19 ·cited 2×
  The court held that res judicata barred the appellant's second motion to vacate because the grounds raised could have been presented in her first motion.
• Ford Motor Co. v. Stimpson
  115 So. 3d 401· Fla. 5th DCA· 2013-04-19 ·cited 2×
  Ford Motor Company appeals a trial court's post-judgment grant of relief from a jury verdict in a products liability case involving alleged sudden acceleration in a 1991 Ford Aerostar van. The appellate court reverses, holding that the trial court abused its discretion in finding
• State v. D.V.
  111 So. 3d 234· Fla. 4th DCA· 2013-04-10 ·cited 2×
  Florida appeals a trial court's adjudication of incompetency for a juvenile delinquent, D.V. The court erred by basing its competency determination on only one court-appointed expert and one DCF-appointed expert, violating section 985.19(1)(b) which requires at least two court-ap
• Carroll Goodman v. Goodman
  126 So. 3d 310· Fla. 3d DCA· 2013-03-27 ·cited 2×
  The Third District Court of Appeal reversed the trial court's denial of motions to intervene and set aside an adult adoption judgment. The court held that the trial court erred in failing to vacate the adoption of a 42-year-old woman by a defendant imprisoned for DUI manslaughter
• Kengi Narada Merritt v. State
  109 So. 3d 306· Fla. 4th DCA· 2013-03-06 ·cited 2×
  The trial court properly excluded the victim's testimony regarding an alleged past sexual experience because the victim lacked personal knowledge of the incident, having learned about it only through hearsay from older cousins.
• Elexis Kim Garcia v. State
  125 So. 3d 260· Fla. 4th DCA· 2013-03-06 ·cited 2×
  The Fourth District Court of Appeal reversed Garcia's conviction for dealing in stolen property because the prosecutor improperly assured the jury during closing argument that Garcia's taped confession to police was freely and voluntarily made, thereby usurping the jury's role to
• Hosea Mack v. State
  106 So. 3d 1011· Fla. 3d DCA· 2013-02-20 ·cited 2×·via Abuse Of Discretion Standard For Evidentiary Rulings
  Hosea Mack appealed his conviction, challenging the admission of latent fingerprint evidence from a crime scene lifted two years prior without direct testimony from the detective who collected the prints. The Florida District Court of Appeal affirmed the conviction, holding that
• Gaynor Hill Enters., Inc. v. Allan Enters., LLC
  113 So. 3d 933· Fla. 5th DCA· 2013-01-25 ·cited 2×
  Gaynor Hill Enterprises appealed a trial court's order granting Kevin and Donna Allan's motion for relief from a default judgment entered through substitute service on the Secretary of State. The Fifth District Court of Appeal reversed, holding that substitute service was proper
• Jordan v. State
  104 So. 3d 1291· Fla. 4th DCA· 2013-01-23 ·cited 2×
  Robert Jordan appealed his convictions for cocaine possession and driving with a suspended license. The court reversed both convictions—the cocaine conviction because the trial court improperly admitted prejudicial evidence about the arrest location being a known drug area, and t
• Giorlando v. Giorlando
  103 So. 3d 247· Fla. 4th DCA· 2012-12-19 ·cited 2×
  In a marital modification proceeding, the former husband challenged the trial court's award of temporary attorney's fees to the former wife, arguing the court failed to consider the $40,000 annual imputed income agreed upon in their Marital Settlement Agreement. The appellate cou
• Gen. Mech. Corp. v. Williams
  103 So. 3d 974· Fla. 1st DCA· 2012-12-17 ·cited 2×
  The court held that the trial court abused its discretion in denying attorney's fees and costs because the nominal offer of judgment was made in good faith, supported by the undisputed record showing no exposure to liability due to the statute of frauds.
• Miller v. State
  127 So. 3d 580· Fla. 4th DCA· 2012-12-05 ·cited 2×
  Jesse Lee Miller appeals his conviction for robbery, burglary, kidnapping, and murder. The Fourth District Court of Appeal reverses and remands for a new trial, finding that the trial court improperly allowed handwriting experts to bolster their testimony by describing peer revie
• Ritz v. State
  101 So. 3d 939· Fla. 4th DCA· 2012-12-05 ·cited 2×
  Anthony Ritz was convicted of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and sentenced to ten years in prison. The Fourth District Court of Appeal reversed the conviction, finding that the trial court erroneously admitted evidence of Ritz's prior threat involving an ax, which was ne
• In the Interest of J.B. v. Dep't of Child. & Fam. Servs. & Guardian Ad Litem Program
  101 So. 3d 407· Fla. 2d DCA· 2012-11-28 ·cited 2×
  The City of Plant City appealed an order denying its motion to inspect confidential dependency court records for a child whose mother died in circumstances giving rise to a wrongful death suit against the City. The court held that the City demonstrated a proper interest in the re
• Latroy Coleman v. State
  126 So. 3d 1199· Fla. 4th DCA· 2012-10-17 ·cited 2×
  Coleman appealed his convictions for lewd and lascivious battery on a 14-year-old victim, challenging the admission of similar-fact evidence from another victim and prosecutorial statements in closing argument. The Fourth District Court of Appeal affirmed the convictions, finding
• City OF Deland v. Landolfi
  97 So. 3d 869· Fla. 1st DCA· 2012-08-17 ·cited 2×
  The City of DeLand appeals PERC's award of attorney's fees and costs to Landolfi in a veterans' preference hiring complaint, while Landolfi cross-appeals the dismissal of his underlying complaint. The court affirms the dismissal of Landolfi's complaint but reverses the attorney's
• Tullier v. Damien Tullier
  98 So. 3d 84· Fla. 4th DCA· 2012-07-11 ·cited 2×
  In this family law appeal, the Fourth District Court of Appeal affirmed a trial court's modification of a father's visitation rights from supervised to unsupervised, holding that the father's testimony and expert evidence of successful addiction treatment and participation in the
• Pierre v. State
  90 So. 3d 892· Fla. 4th DCA· 2012-06-13 ·cited 2×
• Martin v. State
  85 So. 3d 537· Fla. 4th DCA· 2012-04-11 ·cited 2×
  Derek Martin was convicted of first-degree felony murder, but the Florida Fourth District Court of Appeal reversed because the trial court erroneously admitted redacted portions of Martin's police interrogation in which a detective implied that co-defendants and other witnesses h
• Strohm v. State
  84 So. 3d 1181· Fla. 4th DCA· 2012-04-04 ·cited 2×
  Scott Strohm appeals his conviction for capital sexual battery against a minor following a second trial ordered due to evidentiary errors in his first trial. The court affirms the conviction, rejecting challenges to jury selection, hearsay testimony, expert witness testimony, pro
• Nino Chet Tartarini v. State
  84 So. 3d 1185· Fla. 1st DCA· 2012-04-04 ·cited 2×
  Nino Chet Tartarini appealed consolidated convictions in two sexual misconduct cases involving separate underage victims. The Florida District Court of Appeal, First District reversed, holding that the trial court abused its discretion in consolidating the cases because the offen
• Pedro v. Baber
  83 So. 3d 912· Fla. 2d DCA· 2012-03-07 ·cited 2×·via Abuse Of Discretion Standard For Jury Instructions
  The Pedros appealed a judgment in favor of Baber in a personal injury case arising from a rear-end collision. The trial court gave a Stuart instruction holding the Pedros liable for injuries caused by arguably unnecessary back surgery performed by Baber's treating physician, and
• Swergold v. Swergold
  82 So. 3d 1148· Fla. 4th DCA· 2012-03-07 ·cited 2×
  Former Husband appealed a final judgment of dissolution of marriage, challenging the trial court's allocation of the marital home and credits for expenses. The Fourth District Court of Appeal affirmed most of the judgment but reversed and remanded on the issue of credits for mari
• Tillman Christopher Moore v. State
  78 So. 3d 46· Fla. 4th DCA· 2012-01-11 ·cited 2×·via Abuse Of Discretion Standard For Evidence Admission
  Tillman Moore appeals his convictions for first-degree murder and aggravated child abuse of his three-month-old son, arguing that the charges merged under Brooks v. State and that evidence of prior burn injuries was improperly admitted. The Fourth District affirmed, holding that
• Walker v. State
  82 So. 3d 115· Fla. 4th DCA· 2011-12-07 ·cited 2×
  Eric Walker was convicted of armed robbery and burglary and sentenced to consecutive life sentences. On appeal, Walker challenged the trial court's use of a .38 caliber revolver as a demonstrative aid at trial, arguing it was not identical to the weapon used in the crimes. The ap
• Quillen v. State
  73 So. 3d 890· Fla. 4th DCA· 2011-11-16 ·cited 2×
  Brad Quillen appeals the trial court's denial of his motion to withdraw a no contest plea after the judge imposed a 20-year prison sentence far exceeding the 10 years probation stipulated in the negotiated plea agreement. The court held that when a judge decides to impose a sente
• United Funding, LLC v. Brandao
  77 So. 3d 710· Fla. 3d DCA· 2011-11-16 ·cited 2×
  United Funding appeals the trial court's denial of its motion to vacate final judgments for attorney fees and costs under Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.540, arguing it did not receive proper notice of the judgments. The appellate court reverses, finding that the trial court a
• State v. Brown
  77 So. 3d 693· Fla. 3d DCA· 2011-11-09 ·cited 2×
  The State appealed a trial court's grant of a motion for new trial in a violent robbery and murder case. The appellate court reversed, holding that the trial court improperly relied on inadmissible polygraph evidence and erred in finding the jury's guilty verdict contrary to the
• State Farm Fire & Cas. Ins. Co., Inc. v. Best Therapy Ctr.
  69 So. 3d 1059· Fla. 3d DCA· 2011-09-21 ·cited 2×·via Abuse Of Discretion Standard For Evidentiary Rulings
  State Farm seeks second-tier certiorari review of a circuit court appellate decision upholding the trial court's striking of State Farm's fraud affirmative defense and prohibiting the jury from hearing testimony that the insured never received treatment from Best Therapy. The Dis
• Smith v. State
  68 So. 3d 968· Fla. 1st DCA· 2011-08-31 ·cited 2×
• Rudge v. The City OF Stuart
  65 So. 3d 645· Fla. 4th DCA· 2011-07-27 ·cited 2×
  William Rudge appeals a trial court order modifying a temporary injunction that allowed the City of Stuart to enter his property to abate code enforcement violations and clean up a public nuisance. The Fourth District affirms the injunction, holding that the city has a clear lega
• Cerny v. State
  65 So. 3d 609· Fla. 2d DCA· 2011-07-22 ·cited 2×
  John Alan Cerny appeals the revocation of his probation based on an alleged new law violation of aggravated battery. The Florida Second District Court of Appeal reversed, holding that the State failed to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that Cerny committed aggravated bat
• Hahn v. Hahn
  66 So. 3d 345· Fla. 4th DCA· 2011-07-06 ·cited 2×
  Robert Hahn appealed a trial court order reducing his permanent alimony obligation from $1,000 to $450 per month based on his changed circumstances (retirement due to age and health). The Fourth District Court of Appeal reversed, finding the reduction was unsupported by the finan
• Bush v. Bush
  65 So. 3d 1101· Fla. 2d DCA· 2011-06-27 ·cited 2×
  Shirley Bush appealed a final judgment of divorce, challenging the trial court's awards of alimony and equitable distribution. The appellate court affirmed the alimony award but reversed the equitable distribution portion because the trial court improperly included a depleted mar
• Bishop v. State
  62 So. 3d 1226· Fla. 5th DCA· 2011-06-10 ·cited 2×
  Bishop appeals the revocation of his probation and resentencing for attempted lewd or lascivious exhibition, challenging the trial court's finding that he violated the condition to complete a sex offender treatment program. The appellate court affirms the revocation but remands f
• Ernie Haire Ford, Inc. v. Atkinson
  64 So. 3d 131· Fla. 2d DCA· 2011-06-03 ·cited 2×
  The appellate court affirmed the denial of motions for juror interview and new trial but reversed the denial of a motion for remittitur on compensatory damages, finding the noneconomic damages award excessive.
• Shelden v. Shelden
  63 So. 3d 78· Fla. 2d DCA· 2011-05-20 ·cited 2×
  Eric Shelden appeals the trial court's denial of his motion to modify alimony payments to his ex-wife Kim Mutschler, arguing a substantial change in circumstances due to job loss and income reduction. The appellate court reverses and remands, finding that the trial court's order
• A.T.N. v. Fla. Dep't of Child. & Fam. Servs.
  70 So. 3d 634· Fla. 1st DCA· 2011-05-18 ·cited 2×
  A.T.N. appeals an order adjudicating her child E.B. dependent based on alleged violation of a stipulated case plan. The appellate court reverses because a general magistrate, without authority under Florida law, presided over the adjudicatory hearing, and because DCFS presented o
• Hendricks v. State
  59 So. 3d 368· Fla. 4th DCA· 2011-05-04 ·cited 2×
  Alfred Hendricks appealed his revocation of community control, arguing the State presented only inadmissible hearsay evidence at his violation hearing. The Fourth District Court of Appeal agreed and reversed the revocation, holding that hearsay evidence alone cannot sustain a pro
• Linzy v. Rayburn
  58 So. 3d 424· Fla. 1st DCA· 2011-04-15 ·cited 2×
  Defendants Linzy and Erosion Stopper appealed a trial court's grant of a new trial motion, arguing that defense counsel's closing argument statements were not improper. The court affirmed, finding that despite a pretrial order prohibiting statements about the defendants' ability
• Washington v. State
  82 So. 3d 828· Fla. 4th DCA· 2011-04-06 ·cited 2×
  The defendant violated probation and requested reinstatement, but the trial court conditioned reinstatement on grounds for a downward departure sentence. The appellate court held that reinstatement of probation does not require a valid reason for downward departure and reversed f
• Hernandez v. Palmetto Gen. Hosp.
  60 So. 3d 1084· Fla. 1st DCA· 2011-03-31 ·cited 2×
  In this workers' compensation appeal, the court reversed a Judge of Compensation Claims' (JCC) order dismissing all pending petitions for benefits with prejudice, finding that the claimant's failure to attend a hearing was not willful or flagrant enough to justify the most severe
• Rodriguez v. State
  57 So. 3d 961· Fla. 4th DCA· 2011-03-30 ·cited 2×
  The court held that the trial court did not err in admitting the co-defendant's prior consistent statement to rebut an implied charge of recent fabrication or improper motive.