Alexis v. Florida Insurance Guaranty Ass'n
Alexis v. Florida Insurance Guaranty Ass'n
Opinion of the Court
Appellants appeal the trial court’s order dismissing their case with prejudice. We hold that the dismissal order entered after a status conference was improper, and we reverse.
Appellants filed a claim for benefits with appellee after their insurer was declared insolvent. When several months passed without payment, appellants sued appellee, claiming breach of the insurance contract. Appellee responded by filing a motion to compel appraisal; the trial court granted the motion and the parties appraised the loss. Through the appraisal process, appellants were awarded $47,616.79. Appel-lee issued a check for the full amount and filed a notice that it could assert “no coverage defenses.”
Thereafter, the trial court held a status conference to consider appellants’ motion to add claims for additional living expenses and to adjudicate their claims for attorney’s fees. The trial court held that appellants had not alleged an entitlement to attorney’s fees, and the court dismissed the case “based upon the parties having been directed to appraisal, the appraisal having been completed and the award having been made.”
We conclude that the trial court erred in dismissing the case with preju
Accordingly, we reverse the order of dismissal and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. Because we find the dismissal order to be disposi-tive of this appeal, we do not consider the merits of appellants’ claims for trial attorney’s fees.
Reversed and remanded.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.