Schultz v. Time Warner Entertainment Co‪.‬

Ron Schultz, as Citrus County Property Appraiser (""Schultz""), appeals post-trial orders awarding Time Warner Entertainment Company, L.P. (""Time Warner"") attorney's fees and costs. Time Warner cross-appeals, contending that the trial court erred when it granted Schultz's motion for relief from the initial cost judgment and entering an amended cost judgment after the time to appeal the initial judgment had expired. We affirm. Time Warner challenged property taxes for the years 1994 through 1999 on the ground that Schultz failed to apply the proper methodology in arriving at the assessments. Schultz utilized the ""unit method"" to make the assessment, and Time Warner alleged that this method was unconstitutional. The proceedings were informally abated from 1997 until 1999 while a case concerning unit method valuation was pending before the Florida Supreme Court. Attorneys for the parties indicated that the supreme court's decision in the case would be dispositive of the issues pending before the court. Subsequently, the supreme court held in Havill v. Scripps Howard Cable Co., 742 So. 2d 210, 214 (Fla. 1998), that the unit method valuation was unconstitutional method for use with cable television companies. During the case management conferences, Schultz's attorney represented to the court that the matter would proceed to trial on the valuation of Time Warner's property using the cost method approved in Scripps Howard.