Courtelis v. Lewis
Courtelis v. Lewis
Opinion of the Court
The Petition for Writ of Certiorari reflected probable jurisdiction in this Court. We issued the Writ and have heard argument of the parties. After hearing argument and upon further consideration of the matter, we have determined that the Court is without jurisdiction. Therefore, the Writ must be and is hereby discharged and the Petition for Writ of Certiorari is dismissed.
It is so ordered.
Concurring Opinion
concurring.
I agree with the Court’s decision to discharge the writ of certiorari in this case as having been improvidently granted, but I deem it important to express my reasons more fully.
Petitioner had alleged direct conflict between the decision of the First District Court of Appeal below and this Court’s opinion in Lewis v. Judges of District Court, 322 So.2d 16 (Fla. 1975). The alleged conflict stems from a factual background in this proceeding said to be identical to the facts in Lewis.
In 1973 Courtelis and others applied to the Comptroller of Florida, acting as Commissioner of Banking, for a bank charter. A conditional approval order was granted in late 1974 but rescinded in early 1975.
Courtelis’ group filed a petition with the First District Court of Appeal seeking a review of the Commissioner’s action. The Commissioner responded with a motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction, which the district court granted in an order which recites in relevant part:
“It is ordered that the motion is granted. (See Lewis vs. Judges, [322 So.2d 16 (Fla. 1975).])”
A request for rehearing was denied and review was sought here.
The basis upon which the district court ruled, judging from its reference to Lewis, appears to be that the bank application of Courtelis’ group was “an administrative adjudicative proceeding” under the old Administrative Procedure Act since the proceeding had begun before the effective date of the new Act.
OVERTON, C. J., and SUNDBERG, J., concur.
. Apparently the Courtelis group’s bank application was one of the 33 pending in the office of the Commissioner when the present Commissioner took office in January 1975. See Lewis v. Judges of District Court, 322 So.2d 16, 18 at n. 2 (Fla. 1975).
. The record on review here does not contain the Commissioner’s motion.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Alex P. COURTELIS, as and constituting the Directors and Subscribers of, and on behalf of, the Gold Coast State Bank of Miami Beach v. Honorable Gerald A. LEWIS, Comptroller and Banking Commissioner, as Head of the State of Florida Department of Banking and Finance
- Status
- Published