Fla Supreme Court Amends PFS Rule To Exclude Nonmonetary Terms

On May 26, 2022, the Florida Supreme Court amended Rule 1.442 “to exclude nonmonetary terms from a proposal for settlement, with the exceptions of a voluntary dismissal of all claims with prejudice and any other nonmonetary terms permitted by statute.” The Court acknowledged that Florida’s proposal for settlement statute, Section 768.79, includes no provisions for nonmonetary terms in a proposal for settlement; thus, the Court explained the reason for precluding nonmonetary terms in Rule 1.442 was “intended to align rule 1.442 with the substantive elements of” Section 768.69, Fla. Stat. The Court further supported its reasoning with the following quote from a concurring opinion in the Second DCA decision of Diecidue v. Lewis, 223 So. 3d 1015, 1022 (Fla. 2d DCA 2017): “Where the legislature sought a straightforward proposal based upon the acceptance or rejection of a monetary amount, the allowance of nonmonetary conditions . . . alters the dynamics envisioned by the legislature.” The amended Rule 1.442 is effective as of July 1, 2022. Here is a link to the ruling: https://www.floridasupremecourt.org/content/download/838804/opinion/sc21-277.pdf