Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Florida

A case was ordered transferred from the State Circuit Court to the County Court because the dollar amount in jeopardy was ruled to be only $100 (as a matter of law, not fact) rather than the $15K that Circuit Court requires. The Plaintiff failed to pay the transfer fee to County Court, which caused the case to be dismissed without prejudice. Now the Plaintiff claims that since the case was dismissed for a procedural reason without prejudice, that the order determining damages were up to $100 does not survive dismissal and they can refile the same lawsuit in the Circuit Court all over again, hoping for a more favorable judge. Is this true? If they're wrong, how can I prove it?

Asked on 7/23/13, 5:58 am

2 Answers from Attorneys

Barry Stein De Cardenas, Freixas, Stein & Zachary

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If they can allege facts that support jurisdiction in the Circuit Court they can refile there. If the fail to support those facts, then they get kicked back to the County Court. Be armed with all the prior rulings should they refile it in the Circuit Court. By the way, they cannot forum shop, so if they get a different Circuit Court Judge, you should file a Motion to Transfer back to the original Judge.

Answered on 7/23/13, 6:02 am

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