sunEthics

Plaintiffs who chose not to pursue case when foreign arbitration was ordered must pay prevailing party fees to defendants

    Plaintiffs sued Defendant in connection with a real estate deal.  Defendant moved to compel arbitration based on a provision in the contract requiring arbitration in Costa Rica.  Plaintiffs not chose to pursue the arbitration.  The trial court granted Defendant's motion to dismiss the suit and awarded prevailing party attorneys' fees to Defendant under Fla.Stat. sec. 517.211(6) (2007).

    Plaintiffs appealed, arguing "that [Defendant] was not the prevailing party for purposes of a fee award.  They assert that they merely made a financial decision not to pursue arbitration in Costa Rica and, in essence, abandoned their claims before either party was determined to have prevailed.  The [defendant] asserts that he was entitled to fees because he prevailed when he obtained the dismissal."  The Fourth DCA affirmed on the basis of Alhambra Homeowners Ass’n v. Asad, 943 So.2d 316 (Fla. 4th DCA 2006).  Frazier v. Dreyfuss, __ So.3d ___ (Fla. 4th DCA, No. 4D08-1619, 6/17/2009).

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