State v. Franklin Assoc

Full title: STATE OF FLORIDA, DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE, et al., Appellants, v. BARRY S…

Court: District Court of Appeal of Florida, Third District

Date published: Apr 2, 2003

841 So. 2d 608 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2003)

Opinion

Case No. 3D01-3481.

Opinion filed April 2, 2003.

An Appeal from the Circuit Court for Miami-Dade County, Joel H. Brown, Judge. Lower Tribunal No. 75-33057.

Charles J. Crist, Jr., Attorney General, and William H. Branch, Assistant Attorney General, for appellants.

Franklin Criscuolo, and Barry S. Franklin, North Miami Beach, for appellee.

Before GODERICH, GREEN, and FLETCHER, JJ.

PER CURIAM.

The findings of fact do not support an award of attorney's fees pursuant to the inequitable conduct doctrine. See Diaz v. Diaz, 826 So.2d 229 (Fla. 2002); Moakley v. Smallwood, 826 So.2d 221, 227 (Fla. 2002) (holding that attorney's fees pursuant to the inequitable conduct doctrine "must be based upon an express finding of bad faith conduct and must be supported by detailed factual findings describing the specific acts of bad faith conduct that resulted in the unnecessary incurrence of attorneys' fees"); Bitterman v. Bitterman, 714 So.2d 356, 365 (Fla. 1998) (holding that inequitable conduct doctrine is rarely applicable), cert. denied, 525 U.S. 1187 (1999). As such, we reverse the award of attorney's fees in favor of the appellee.

Based on the disposition of the above issue, we do not reach the remaining arguments raised by the appellants.

Reversed.