insPecTorliaBiliTyunder § 553.84 , f . s .? noTsofasT …
Construction law Section
continuedfrompage22
courts hinged on what it means to “ commit ” a violation of the Florida Building Code or the Florida Building Codes Act , with the courts ultimately relying on Casa Clara Condo . Ass ’ n , Inc . v . Charley Toppino & Sons , Inc . 5 to conclude that a plaintiff must allege that a defendant performed construction in order to state a cause of action under section 553.84 , and that an inspector that is alleged only to have inspected the work of others is not subject to liability under section 553.84 .
While the Summer Key , Stonehaven at Aberdeen , and Heritage Run cases all directly address claims against building code inspectors and provide some clarity regarding the potential liability of building code inspectors , they are not binding precedent , and the uncertainty surrounding building code inspector liability under section 553.84 will remain until Florida ’ s appellate courts have an opportunity to weigh in on this issue . In the meantime , these cases will nonetheless hold persuasive value , and plaintiffs and defendants alike will benefit from paying close attention to further developments in Florida ’ s trial courts when bringing or defending causes of action related to building code inspectors . n
1
See § 553.791 ( 2 )( a ), Fla . Stat .
2
See Trianon Park Condo . Ass ' n , Inc . v . City of Hialeah , 468 So . 2d 912 ( Fla . 1985 ); § 768.28 ( 9 )( a ), Fla . Stat .
3
§ 553.84 , Fla . Stat .
4
See Summer Key Condo . Assoc ., Inc . v . D . R . Horton , Inc . -Jacksonville , et al ., no . 16-2020-CA-000652 ( Fla . 4th Cir . Mar . 17 , 2021 , J . gary Wilkinson ); Stonehaven at Aberdeen Homeowners Ass ’ n v . D . R . Horton , Inc . -Jacksonville , et al ., no . 2020-CA-000662 ( Fla . 7th Cir . Mar . 29 , 2022 , J . Howard Maltz ); Heritage Run Townhome Ass ’ n , Inc . v . Royal Oak Homes , LLC , et al ., no . 2021-CA-002757 ( Fla . 9th Cir . Apr . 18 , 2022 , J . robert Egan ).
5
Casa Clara Condo . Ass ’ n , Inc . v .
Charley Toppino & Sons , Inc ., 588 So . 2d 631 ( Fla . 3d dCA 1991 ), approved , 620 So . 2d 1244 ( Fla . 1993 ).
Author : Andrew E . Holway – Hill Ward Henderson , P . A .
N O V - D E C 2 0 2 2 | H C B A L A W Y E R
2 3