Quiller D. Ragans v. City Jacksonville

1. On or about September 14, 1959, Pan American Surety Company recovered a judgment in its favor and against Gwendolyn Barnett in the sum of $3,780.00, in the Civil Court of Record in and for Dade County, Florida, being Case No. 59-3355. The suit was originally brought against her by Dade County, Florida, by reason of a subdivision agreement and bond on which she had defaulted. The bonding company, Pan American Surety Company, Pan American Surety Company, paid the County of Dade and took judgment against Gwendolyn Barnett.
This action was brought by the appellee Dixie Sightseeing Tours, Inc., and one George Berger for damages in the circuit court in Dade County. The complaint presented a tort claim for wrongful attachment as well as a cause of action for damages on the attachment bonds. The tort action was in the nature of malicious prosecution and was dependent upon an allegation of maliciousness. However, at the trial the charge of maliciousness was withdrawn, and the case proceeded on the remaining cause of action on the bonds. The trial before a jury resulted in a verdict and judgment in favor of the plaintiff Dixie Sightseeing Tours, Inc., for $20,536 against the appellants Florida Transportation Co. and Continental Casualty Co., principal and surety on the bonds. The judgment against the surety was reduced by the trial court to $3,658, which was the total of the two bonds. The defendants separately appealed, and contend (1) that the verdict was not supported by sufficient or proper evidence of loss or damages, (2) that the charges on damages were improper and resulted in recovery for loss of profits which were uncertain and speculative, and (3) that recovery could not exceed the amount of the bonds. Those contentions have merit, and require reversal.
The appellant was the respondent below and the appellees were the petitioners. They will be referred to in this opinion as the appellant and the appellees.
In this appeal, the appellant-defendant seeks review of a final decree of specific performance and urges many points for consideration.
This is an appeal by Home Indemnity Company (which was the Workmens Compensation Carrier for the employer of George McAdams) from an order determining the Carriers pro rata recovery out of a judgment against third party tortfeasors. In his order the trial judge set forth the history as follows:
Pan American Surety Co., a Florida corporation authorized to do a surety business in the State, hereinafter referred to as Surety", filed its complaint for declaratory decree against the defendants Lake Sarasota, Inc., a Florida corporation, hereinafter referred to as "Sarasota", and Manatee County, a political subdivision of the State of Florida, hereinafter referred to as "County", and James H. Pierce, F. L. Rousselle, Mark J. Emden, Leland E. Smith, Harold Mumma and Fred B. Atherton, as surviving directors and statutory trustees of Azalea Homes, Inc., a dissolved Florida corporation, hereinafter referred to as the "Trustees", and the corporation is hereinafter referred to as "Azalea", and against Leonard W. Tanner, hereinafter referred to as "Tanner", and against Manatee National Bank, a national banking corporation, as trustee for the shareholders of Azalea, hereinafter referred to as "Bank," and against James H. Pierce and Mark J. Emden, hereinafter referred to as "Pierce and Emden."