Supreme Court of Florida - December 2006 Opinion Summaries

Pizzo v. State of Florida

Criminal Law & Procedure, Sentencing
In a review of conflicting decisions involving the proper analysis to employ when determining which offense is the lesser offense in the double...

Schmidt v. McDonough

Criminal Law & Procedure, Sentencing
The filing of a mandamus petition raising a gain time claim is not free of costs, and although such petitions are exempt from the prepayment and lien...

Engle v. Liggett Group, Inc.

Civil Procedure, Class Actions, Contracts, Health Law, Injury & Tort Law, Product Liability, Remedies
In class action litigation against major domestic cigarette companies brought by a group of smokers and their survivors for alleged smoking-related...

Dadeland Depot, Inc. v. St. Paul Fire & Marine Ins. Co.

Civil Procedure, Construction, Contracts, Dispute Resolution & Arbitration, Evidence, Insurance Law
In an insurance bad faith case involving the obligee of a surety contract and its ability to sue a surety for bad faith refusal to settle claims...

Bush v. State of Florida

Criminal Law & Procedure, Sentencing
The proper remedy for a prisoner to pursue in challenging a sentence-reducing credit determination by the Department of Corrections, where the...

Tobin v. Michigan Mut. Ins. Co.

Contracts, Injury & Tort Law, Insurance Law
In a suit brought by plaintiffs injured or killed in accidents with uninsured drivers while operating or occupying vehicles leased from Ford seeking...

Swafford v. State of Florida

Criminal Law & Procedure, Evidence
In an appeal brought by an inmate convicted of first-degree murder and sexual battery and sentenced to death, the court finds that a circuit had...

Golphin v. State of Florida

Criminal Law & Procedure, Evidence
Denial of a motion to suppress drug evidence discovered on defendant's person during the course of a search incident to an arrest on an outstanding...

Hildwin v. State of Florida

Criminal Law & Procedure, Evidence
Denial of defendant's motion to vacate a murder conviction and death sentence is affirmed over claims of error regarding: 1) denial of a new trial and...

State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Roach

Civil Procedure, Contracts, Injury & Tort Law, Insurance Law
Where residents of another state who reside in Florida for several months of the year execute an insurance contract in that state, they may not invoke...