Supreme Court of Florida - September 2002 Opinion Summaries

JOHNSON v. NATIONWIDE MUT. INS. CO.

Civil Procedure, Insurance Law
Causation is an insurance coverage question for the court when an insurer wholly denies that there is a covered loss, and an amount-of-loss question...

SMITH v. COALITION TO REDUCE CLASS SIZE

Constitutional Law, Elections
The requirement that a fiscal impact statement accompany all proposed revisions or amendments to the state constitution, under Laws of Florida Chapter...

MAZOUREK v. WAL-MART STORES, INC.

Commercial Law, Property Law & Real Estate, Tax Law
In an assessment of tangible personal property within stores, an appraiser may include sales tax in the original cost paid on the property, where the...

MCLIN v. STATE OF FLORIDA

Civil Procedure, Criminal Law & Procedure
Denial of a motion for post-conviction relief based on newly-discovered evidence, without an evidentiary hearing, was improper where the record did...

ALTERRA HEALTHCARE CORP. V. ESTATE OF SHELLEY

Civil Procedure, Labor & Employment Law
A private employer does not have standing to challenge a discovery request based exclusively on the privacy interest of its employees in their...

SHEPPARD & WHITE, P.A. v. CITY OF JACKSONVILLE

Attorney's Fees, Criminal Law & Procedure
The fixed rate of $50 per hour for appellate attorneys' fees in a capital case requiring 550 hours of attorney time was not confiscatory, and an...

MARKOWITZ v. HELEN HOMES OF KENDALL CORP.

Injury & Tort Law, Property Law & Real Estate
A tort claim was actionable where fact issues existed whether a nursing home's mode of operation created a foreseeable risk of food spillage, and...

DUFRESNE v. STATE OF FLORIDA

Constitutional Law, Criminal Law & Procedure
The term "mental injury" in section 827.03(1)(b), Florida Statutes, is not unconstitutionally vague.