A Florida jury has awarded a total of more than $1.5 million in damages to a law firm that was a tenant in a building damaged when an adjacent building collapsed and to the landlord of the law firm's building.
Facts and Allegations
William W. Price P.A., a law firm, was conducting business at a one-story building in West Palm Beach, Florida, owned by Five Solas LLC when a wall of the adjacent building collapsed and some bricks fell through the roof of the law firm's building. The city of West Palm Beach declared the law firm's building unsafe, and the firm was evacuated.
The law firm and Five Solas sued the owner of the other building, Sodix Fern, and the company that operated Sodix Fern, Ram Realty Services, LLC. The plaintiffs alleged that the fallen bricks constituted a trespass of their real property.
The defendants admitted that the fallen bricks constituted a trespass. The trial solely addressed the amount of damages.
Five Solas sought $1 million from the defendants to pay for repairs to the building as well as damages for the alleged permanent diminution of the property's value, emergency repair costs, and lost rent from the law firm.
The law firm sought approximately $350,000 in damages for lost revenue, emergency expenses, moving and storage, lost rent, and property damage.
Result
The jury awarded Five Solas $1,264,940.79, and it awarded the law firm $270,395.
The case is Five Solas, LLC v. Ram Realty Services, LLC, No. 50-2016-CA-004267-XXXX-MB (Fla. Palm Beach Co. Cir.Ct. June 25, 2018). Attorneys involved include: Gregory S. Weiss; Mrachek, Fitzgerald, Rose, Konopka, Thomas & Weiss, P.A.;for Five Solas LLC , William W. Price P.A. Daniel A. Thomas; Mrachek, Fitzgerald, Rose, Konopka, Thomas & Weiss, P.A.; for Five Solas LLC , William W. Price P.A. Todd R. Ehrenreich; Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP; Coral Gables, FL for Ram Realty Services LLC, Sodix Fern LLC. Seth Alhadeff; Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP; Coral Gables, FL for Ram Realty Services LLC, Sodix Fern LLC.
FC&S Legal Comment
This report is based on information that was provided by plaintiffs' and defense counsel. Additional information was gleaned from court documents.
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Steven A. Meyerowitz
Steven A. Meyerowitz, a Harvard Law School graduate, is the founder and president of Meyerowitz Communications Inc., a law firm marketing communications consulting company. He may be contacted at [email protected].