Article Courtesy of The Florida
Record
By Sara McCleary
Published May 22, 2017
Florida’s 2nd District Court of Appeal has reversed a lower court’s decision to
grant summary judgment in favor of a homeowners’ association.
The appeals court ruling follows a July 2016 decision by the 12th Judicial
Circuit Court. The circuit court granted the Southfield Subdivision Maintenance
and Property Owners’ Association’s motion for summary judgment against homeowner
Toni Sexton, also awarding it reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs.
The homeowners’ association had filed its complaint against Sexton in June 2014,
alleging she was in violation of the association’s bylaws because “shrubbery on
the property is overgrown, the trees need to be trimmed, a piece of the facia
needs to be painted and there are cars parked on the lawn and the curb,” the
complaint said.
The plaintiff sought an order requiring Sexton to perform the necessary repairs
and maintenance to make her property comply with the association’s rules, along
with its court costs and attorney’s fees.
In an opinion filed April 19, however, the appeals court reversed the judgment
and remanded the case.
“At the time of the summary judgment motion’s hearing, the court had before it
affidavits from both the association and Ms. Sexton… Although succinct in their
respective renderings of the facts, these conflicting affidavits clearly evinced
disputed issues about the condition of Ms. Sexton’s property and her compliance
with the association’s recorded restrictions," the court wrote.
In its motion for summary judgment, the association had argued that although
Sexton had addressed most of the violations of which she was accused, since the
plaintiff had filed its lawsuit, “such violations are capable of repetition,
(so) the Association is entitled to the entry of an injunction, requiring that
Sexton continue to comply with the Governing Documents as to the issues raised
in the Complaint.”
With its motion, the association included affidavits claiming that since
cleaning up her property after the initial complaint filling, she had “again
allowed the property to fall into a state of violation of the Governing
Documents.”
Sexton, meanwhile, provided a separate affidavit certifying that all of the
alleged violations had been resolved “and are maintained on a consistent basis.”
In its opinion, the appeals court quoted the decision from Dade County School
Board v. Radio Station WQBA, noting that “It is a well-settled principle of
Florida jurisprudence that summary judgment should not be granted unless the
facts are so clear and undisputed that only questions of law remain.”
The decision cites several other cases that found that conflicting affidavits
are enough reason to deny a motion for summary judgment, therefore the court
concluded “Ms. Sexton’s argument that the circuit court improvidently entered
summary judgment against her is well taken.”
Click Here To Read the Actual
Ruling of the 2.DCA |