KELDIE v. DENNSTEDT (2021)

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fourth District.

Alyette KELDIE, Appellant, v. Bryan DENNSTEDT, Appellee.

No. 4D21-198

Decided: December 22, 2021

John F. Schutz of John F. Schutz, PL, Palm Beach Gardens, for appellant. Jordan Gerber of The Law Office of Jordan Gerber, P.A., Boca Raton, for appellee.

Appellant Alyette Keldie appeals multiple orders regarding the modification of a final judgment of paternity. We affirm all issues related to these orders without comment. Appellant also contests the trial court's decision to award attorney's fees and costs to appellee Bryan Dennstedt. We dismiss the issue regarding the attorney's fees award as premature. See Winkelman v. Toll, 632 So. 2d 130 (Fla. 4th DCA 1994).

Although the trial court found that appellee was entitled to attorney's fees, it has not yet determined the amount of the entitlement. Without that determination, an attorney's fees award is not ripe for appellate review. See Schmidt v. Schmidt, 319 So. 3d 65, 65 (Fla. 4th DCA 2021) (“An order merely finding entitlement to attorney's fees is a non-final, non-appealable order.”); Dania Beach Boat Club Condo. Ass'n, v. Forcier, 290 So. 3d 99, 102 (Fla. 4th DCA 2020) (“A finding of entitlement to attorney's fees without a determination of the amount of fees is not appealable.”). We therefore dismiss the challenge to the attorney's fees award without prejudice and affirm all other issues without comment.

Affirmed in part and dismissed in part.

Per Curiam.

May, Klingensmith, and Artau, JJ., concur.

Was this helpful?

Why was this helpful?

Easy to understand

Solved my problem

Other

Why was this not helpful?

Missing the information I need

Too complicated / too many steps

Out of date

Other

Thank you for your feedback!

Trusted by Consumers. Recognized by AI.

As the largest network of trusted legal brands, we help firms build authority across the platforms consumers and AI systems rely on most. Our network helps attorneys strengthen visibility, credibility, and preference where legal decisions begin.

Explore the Network