Health insurance policies are contracts which spell out the rights and obligations of the parties. These policies are designed to pay for medical expenses as provided for under the policy, however, policies also contain exclusions which can limit the scope of coverage. Sometimes health insurers improperly deny coverage for an otherwise covered medical claim, […]
Read MoreIn a recent decision, the Fourth District Court of Appeal addressed whether a homeowner failed to provide his insurance company with proper notice when reporting a claim for damage to his home. See Himmel v. Avatar Property & Casualty Ins. Co., No. 4D17-2724 2018 WL 5044352 (Fla. 4th DCA Oct. 17, 2018). In Himmel, a […]
Read MoreFlorida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.220(a) contains four (4) threshold requirements in order to obtain class certification: (1) Members of the class are so numerous that separate joinder of each member is impracticable (“numerosity”); (2) The claim or defense of the representative party raises questions of law or fact common to the questions of law […]
Read MoreSometimes plaintiffs sue for all the wrong reasons. If a party sues an individual without a proper basis to bring suit, the party being sued may have a claim for malicious prosecution against the party who wrongfully filed suit. Florida has long recognized malicious prosecution claims. Long ago (1932) the Florida Supreme court in Duval […]
Read MoreHome loans insured by the Federal Housing Authority (“FHA”) often contain language providing that the note which is secured by a mortgage “does not authorize acceleration when not permitted by HUD regulations …” In the context of foreclosure actions, two regulations are of particular importance. Under 24 C.F.R. § 203.604(b), “[t]he mortgagee (i.e. the lender) […]
Read MoreA reverse mortgage allows older homeowners to receive monthly payments from a lender based on the homeowners’ equity in their home. In a typical scenario, a lender makes monthly payments to the homeowner and the homeowner’s obligation to repay the lender comes due only when the homeowner dies or moves from the home. See Smith […]
Read MoreIn a recent opinion, the Florida Supreme Court reversed a Fourth DCA decision and instead reinstated a jury verdict awarding a GEICO insured $9.2 million due to GEICO’s bad faith handling of a wrongful death claim. See Harvey v. GEICO, No. SC17-85, 2018 WL 4496566 (Fla. Sept. 20, 2018). The Harvey decision is worth review […]
Read MoreMany “trial lawyers” crow about how much money they make for themselves and their clients. We’re not of that ilk. Every case is important to the client, and for us. Let me tell you about a recent case of ours that I’m just tickled about. We represent a wonderful woman who has been a public […]
Read MoreLet me begin by apologizing for the very long delay in blog posts…..I’m a busy, practicing Trial Lawyer, who occasionally blogs, and not a professional blogger who ghosts writes a blog….. Still I’ll try to post more often. Yesterday, the New York Times published a story related to Wells Fargo, and its conduct of force […]
Read MoreI posted about Reverse Mortgages two weeks ago. We received some excellent and helpful e-mails in response, as well as several comments here on the Legal Examiner. One of those comments suggests that our information is old and outdated. Actually that is simply not true….. Further, I am certainly not alone in my concerns. I […]
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