Public Duty Doctrine

37 Florida cases classified under this topic · sorted by citation count · see the citation graph · browse and sort

• Clay Elec. Coop., Inc. v. Johnson
  873 So. 2d 1182· Fla.· 2003-12-18 ·cited 207×
  The Florida Supreme Court held that Clay Electric Cooperative owed a legally recognized duty of reasonable care to maintain streetlights it had contracted to maintain, even to third parties not in privity with the company. The court reversed summary judgment and applied the under
• Wong v. City OF Miami
  237 So. 2d 132· Fla.· 1970-06-17 ·cited 102×
  Property owners and merchants sued Miami and Dade County for damages to their stores during civil unrest in August 1968, claiming the removal of police officers stationed at their request constituted negligence. The Florida Supreme Court affirmed dismissal of the complaint, holdi
• Seguine v. Seguine
  627 So. 2d 14· Fla. 3d DCA· 1993-10-12 ·cited 34×
  A Florida appellate court affirmed summary judgment for police officers and the City of Miami in a wrongful death action, holding that police decisions regarding how to arrest a mentally disturbed or suicidal suspect are protected by sovereign immunity under both the discretionar
• Mugge v. The Tampa Water Works Co.
  52 Fla. 371· Fla.· 1906-06-01 ·cited 29×
  The Florida Supreme Court held that a water company providing water service under a contract with a municipality owes a tort duty to individual property owners to supply water for fire extinguishing purposes, despite the absence of privity of contract. The court rejected the majo
• Louie v. United States
  776 F.2d 819· 9th Cir.· 1985-11-13 ·cited 23×
  The Army should be held liable for negligence under the FTCA because a special relationship was created when it accepted custody of an intoxicated soldier, giving rise to a duty of care.
• Andrea Jordan for the Estate of Charles E. Jordan v. Nienhuis
  203 So. 3d 974· Fla. 5th DCA· 2016-11-04 ·cited 22×
  In a wrongful death action arising from a 911 operator's handling of a medical emergency call, the Florida District Court of Appeal affirmed the dismissal of the complaint, holding that the sheriff's 911 service constitutes a Category II governmental function (law enforcement/pub
• State v. Kowalski
  617 So. 2d 1099· Fla. 5th DCA· 1993-04-23 ·cited 20×
  Florida appellate court reversed judgment against State Attorney's Office, holding that prosecutors owe no duty of care to citizens injured by negligent criminal investigations and are immune from suit for investigative decisions.
• Carol A. Gelley for the Heirs of Richard Lawrence Gelley v. Astra Pharm. Prods. Inc.
  610 F.2d 558· 8th Cir.· 1979-12-18 ·cited 20×
  The court held that the complaint failed to state a cause of action cognizable under Minnesota law, and thus the Federal Tort Claims Act did not waive sovereign immunity for the United States.
• Miami-Dade Cnty. v. Fente
  949 So. 2d 1101· Fla. 3d DCA· 2007-02-07 ·cited 17×
  Miami-Dade County sought certiorari review of an order denying its motion to dismiss a negligence action filed by homeowners whose house was burglarized after a police officer's inadequate response to an alarm call. The Florida appellate court held that the county was immune from
• Nelson v. Mo. Div. OF Fam. Servs.
  706 F.2d 276· 8th Cir.· 1983-05-16 ·cited 14×
  The court held that state officials operating a child abuse hotline are not liable for failing to adequately investigate reports, as the relevant statute does not create a specific duty to individual children but rather a duty to the general public.
• Ragsdale v. Mount Sinai Med. Ctr. OF Miami
  770 So. 2d 167· Fla. 3d DCA· 2000-08-02 ·cited 13×
  Emma Ragsdale, a police officer terminated after Mount Sinai reported a positive drug test result, appealed summary judgment dismissing her negligence claim. The court reversed the summary judgment on the negligence count, finding Mount Sinai owed a duty of ordinary care to Ragsd
• Lawyer v. Jefferson D. Kernodle & Upsher Labs., Inc.
  721 F.2d 632· 8th Cir.· 1983-11-16 ·cited 12×
  The court held that the pathologist and laboratory owed no duty to the plaintiff for the negligent diagnosis of the cause of death, and that the pathologist was entitled to qualified immunity under 42 U.S.C. § 1983.
• Schindler v. United States
  661 F.2d 552· 6th Cir.· 1981-10-09 ·cited 11×
  The court held that the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) does not incorporate state law distinctions regarding municipal liability, and thus the United States cannot claim immunity based on a state's public-private duty distinction when sued under the FTCA. The court reversed the d
• United States v. Parish OF ST. Bernard
  756 F.2d 1116· 5th Cir.· 1985-04-08 ·cited 10×
  A conditional grant program, like the federal flood insurance program, can create a contract between the government and the recipient entity, and recipients can be held liable for consequential damages arising from breach of contract.
• The City OF Jacksonville v. Fla. First Nat'l Bank OF Jacksonville
  339 So. 2d 632· Fla.· 1976-11-12 ·cited 8×
• Aurora Hernandez v. City OF Miami
  305 So. 2d 277· Fla. 3d DCA· 1974-12-31 ·cited 8×
  Aurora Hernandez, as administratrix of her deceased husband's estate, appealed the dismissal of her negligence action against the City of Miami arising from a fatal motorcycle collision. The court affirmed the dismissal, holding that the City's decision not to station a traffic p
• People OF State OF Ill. v. Md. Cas. Co.
  132 F.2d 850· 7th Cir.· 1942-12-09 ·cited 8×
  State officers are not liable for failing to furnish safe drinking water because their duty was public, not individual, and the third-party defendants' actions destroyed diversity jurisdiction.
• Wells v. City OF ST. Petersburg
  958 So. 2d 1076· Fla. 2d DCA· 2007-06-15 ·cited 4×
  Wells and Kelley sued the City of St. Petersburg for injuries sustained when a fleeing motorist collided with their vehicle after police attempted to stop him. The circuit court granted summary judgment for the City, finding the officers conducted only an unsuccessful traffic sto
• Smith v. City of Plantation
  19 F. Supp. 2d 1323· S.D. Fla.· 1998-08-11 ·cited 4×
  The court held that the plaintiff failed to establish a constitutional violation under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and that Florida's Public Duty Doctrine and sovereign immunity barred the state law tort claims.
• Turbe v. Gov't OF THE Virgin Islands
  938 F.2d 427· 3d Cir.· 1991-07-11 ·cited 4×
  The court held that a public utility's failure to repair street lights does not create a legal duty to protect individuals from criminal attack, absent a special relationship or circumstances where the failure increased the risk of harm or caused detrimental reliance.
• Rudolf J. Gerneth and Henrica J. C. Gerneth v. The City OF Detroit
  465 F.2d 784· 6th Cir.· 1972-08-17 ·cited 4×
  A municipality's negligent performance of a licensing or investigatory duty does not create liability to an individual injured by a licensed party, absent a specific statutory intent to benefit individuals.
• MC Kinley v. Gualtieri
  338 So. 3d 429· Fla. 2d DCA· 2022-05-04 ·cited 3×
  The appellate court reversed the dismissal of a negligence claim against a sheriff's department. The court held that the plaintiff's complaint adequately stated a cause of action for common law negligence, and that sovereign immunity did not bar the suit because the operational a
• Miami-Dade Cnty. v. Miller
  19 So. 3d 1037· Fla. 3d DCA· 2009-09-30 ·cited 3×
  Miami-Dade County sought certiorari review of a trial court's denial of its summary judgment motion in a negligence action brought by Timothy Miller for injuries sustained in a third-party attack at a public bus stop near a Metrorail station. The appellate court held that the Cou
• Pritchett v. City OF Homestead
  855 So. 2d 1164· Fla. 3d DCA· 2003-10-01 ·cited 3×
  This case concerns a police officer's lawsuit against his city for negligent supervision of an internal investigation. The court affirmed the lower court's decision, holding that police investigations do not create a specific duty of care to the subject of the investigation, thus
• Farabee v. Rider
  995 F. Supp. 1398· M.D. Fla.· 1998-02-13 ·cited 2×
  The court held that a sheriff can be liable for negligence in supervising deputies if the failure to train or supervise creates a foreseeable zone of risk, as such acts are operational, not discretionary, and thus not barred by sovereign immunity.
• Murray v. Leyshock
  915 F.2d 1196· 8th Cir.· 1990-10-03 ·cited 2×
  The dissenting judge argues that the magistrate and the majority opinion improperly engaged in fact-finding, usurping the jury's role. The dissent contends that the jury had ample evidence to find that the officer negligently performed a ministerial duty by discharging his weapon
• Perez v. Gov't OF THE Virgin Islands. Appeal of Jose Luis Perez, Jr.
  847 F.2d 104· 3d Cir.· 1988-05-25 ·cited 2×
  The court held that the Government of the Virgin Islands owed no duty to individual policyholders to guarantee the solvency of an insurance company, and thus could not be held liable for negligence in its regulation of the insurer.
• Texaus Inv. Corp., N.V. v. Haendiges
  761 F.2d 252· 6th Cir.· 1985-04-26 ·cited 2×
  A municipality is not liable for negligent failure to enforce building ordinances absent a special relationship creating a specific duty to an individual.
• Jolly v. Ins. Co. OF N. Am.
  331 So. 2d 368· Fla. 3d DCA· 1976-04-27 ·cited 2×
  Plaintiffs appealed from summary judgment dismissing their claims against the City of Key West and the Florida Keys Aqueduct Authority arising from a house fire where the fire department could not obtain water from hydrants due to alleged water system failures. The court affirmed
• Lewis v. City of St. Petersburg
  98 F. Supp. 2d 1344· M.D. Fla.· 2000-05-03 ·cited 1×
  The court held that claims for negligent use of excessive force and negligent decision to use a firearm are dismissed because such actions are intentional torts or discretionary functions protected by immunity, and that the claim for negligent training is also dismissed due to th
• JOY v. Bell Helicopter Textron, Inc.
  999 F.2d 549· D.C. Cir.· 1993-07-27 ·cited 1×
  The court held that evidence of other SAG failures was admissible and jury instructions on product liability were proper, but reversed a damages award for loss of consortium and certified a question regarding the District of Columbia's liability for the rescue effort.
• Crider v. United States
  885 F.2d 294· 5th Cir.· 1989-10-10 ·cited 1×
  The court held that Texas law does not impose a duty on law enforcement officers or private citizens to restrain an intoxicated driver, thus the United States cannot be held liable under the FTCA for the park rangers' actions.
• Irving v. St. John
  M.D. Fla.· 2022-08-09
  The court held that law enforcement officers generally owe no specific duty of care to individual citizens for the enforcement of police power functions, and the alleged facts did not establish a special duty or place the plaintiff within a zone of risk.
• Jones v. United States
  S.D. Fla.· 2020-09-01
  The court granted in part and denied in part the motion to dismiss, dismissing negligence, assault, and battery claims against the United States, but allowing the false imprisonment claim to proceed. The court also dismissed duplicative claims against the agents and denied qualif
• Chakirra Wonnum v. [Unknown]
  Del. Super. Ct.· 2017-07-25
  The court held that claims against DOC Supervisory Defendants could proceed because they arose from an alleged non-discretionary failure to act in violation of a mandatory policy, thus overcoming qualified immunity under the State Tort Claims Act and the public duty doctrine. How
• State v. Pollack
  745 So. 2d 446· Fla. 3d DCA· 1999-11-10
  The Florida Department of Highway Patrol appeals a jury verdict finding it 50% negligent in a wrongful death action stemming from a collision with an unlit stalled tractor-trailer. The court reversed, holding that FHP owed no special duty to the decedents and that violation of in