Norwest Mortgage, Inc. v. King
Norwest Mortgage, Inc. v. King
Opinion of the Court
Norwest Mortgage Inc. (Petitioner) seeks review of a non-final order of the Broward County circuit court which required it to issue a satisfaction of mortgage before receiving full payment of the total amount due. We grant the petition and quash the order on review.
In March 2000, King moved for “expedited final hearing and shorten discovery period and time to request for production,” in which she accused Petitioner’s counsel of intentionally delaying the case by failing to provide the requested details and asked the court to toll the interest on Petitioner’s loan, costs and attorney’s fees from the time of her loan closing, which had already taken place, until the matter was resolved. During two motion calendar hearings, Petitioner argued that the December 20 payoff letter was outdated and additional funds were now due under the mortgage; that it did not promptly provide the requested documentation because, due to the passage of so much time caused by King’s delay, some of the records were difficult to obtain; and that an evidentiary hearing was needed to adjudicate the merits of the foreclosure action.
In an order dated May 25, 2000, the trial court granted the relief that King requested, requiring King to place in the court registry only $23,396.47, the amount specified in the December 20 letter, whereupon the portion which King did not dispute, $11,228.34, would be distributed to Petitioner, and the disputed balance, $12,168.13, would remain in the court registry pending a determination of the appropriate expenses. Within ten days of receipt of the $11,228.34 by Petitioner’s counsel, the order required Petitioner to issue a satisfaction of mortgage. Norwest maintains that this amount does not adequately cover the amount due.
We find this order presents the prospect of irreparable harm necessary to the exercise of our certiorari jurisdiction. If Petitioner issues a satisfaction of mortgage before it receives full payment of the total amount it claims is due under its mortgage and later is determined to be entitled to more, its remedy on appeal will be inadequate in that it will no longer have the right to foreclose on the property to collect the difference. See generally Hallmark Mfg. Inc. v. Lujack Constr. Co., 372 So.2d 520 (Fla. 4th DCA 1979); Atkins v. Rybovich Boat Works, Inc., 561 So.2d 594 (Fla. 4th DCA 1990), quashed on other grounds, 585 So.2d 270 (Fla. 1991); State-Wide Constr., Inc. v. Dowda, 424 So.2d 198, 198-99 (Fla. 5th DCA 1983).
Without an evidentiary hearing, the trial court was unable to determine that Petitioner was not entitled to receive proceeds in satisfaction of its mortgage in excess of the payoff figure it identified would be good only until January 14, 2000.
Section 701.04(1), Florida Statutes, requires a mortgagee to execute and record a satisfaction of the mortgage within sixty days after receipt of full payment. What is full payment is disputed in this case. Under the terms of the mortgage in question, the mortgagor’s default would entitle Petitioner to recover costs, attorney’s fees, and expenses involved in the foreclosure
In effect, the trial court required Petitioner to settle its foreclosure action on Kings’ terms, with or without an evidentia-ry hearing. This was a departure from the essential requirements of law. Accordingly, we quash the order under review and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.