Florida Law Weekly – October 23, 2020

Tallahassee Housing Authority v. Prather – 1st DCA

In this case, the Trial Court, over the objections of Plaintiff’s counsel, limited voir dire examinations of potential jurors to 1 hour per side. After the jury returned a defense verdict, Plaintiff moved for a new trial arguing, in part, the trial court erroneously limited him to one hour of voir dire time. The Trial Court ultimately granted this motion. The 1st District Court of Appeal reversed the Trial Court’s decision to grant a new trial because Plaintiff failed to demonstrate that he was prejudiced by the limitation.

Vital Pharmaceuticals, Inc. v. Ohel – 4th DCA

In this case, the 4th District Court of Appeal held that the Trial Court departed from the essential requirements of law when it refused to consider whether an actual factual basis for punitive damages existed before deciding whether to limit, delay, or deny financial worth discovery. Defendant objected to the Plaintiff’s request for production of documents concerning financial worth on the basis that there had been no determination that a reasonable evidentiary basis for the recovery of punitive damages existed.