Greenspoon Marder Secures Reversal of $7.3 Million Judgement Against Client Lexon

Dec 6, 2017

MEDIA CONTACT
Michelle Martinez Reyes, Chief Marketing Officer
954.333.4357 | [email protected]

GREENSPOON MARDER SECURES REVERSAL OF $7.3 MILLION JUDGMENT AGAINST CLIENT LEXON

Fort Lauderdale, FL – December 6, 2017 – A Greenspoon Marder team secured the reversal of a final judgment entered in favor of Coco of Cape Coral, LLC against Lexon Insurance Company in Coco’s lawsuit for breach of $7.7 million surety bond contracts related to the development of the Village at Entrada subdivision in Cape Coral, Florida.

In 2005, a developer began work on a residential subdivision. Lexon issued two subdivision bonds totaling over $7.7 million in June 2006 “to complete all required site improvement, as determined by the City” in the event the developer defaulted in doing so. The City stopped completing inspections on the project in late 2006 and the general contractor stopped work on the project in March 2007, both due to nonpayment by the developer.

In October 2010, the City of Cape Coral contacted Lexon stating that the City “would like to place a claim to have the outstanding work on this project completed.” However, the City did not move forward with the claim because of potential interest from other buyers of the project. In March 2012, Coco purchased the project for $6.2 million.

On October 23, 2012, the City filed a lawsuit against Lexon for breach of contract and for declaratory relief. The City then assigned its claims to Coco. After a bench trial in November 2015, the court entered judgment on the bonds for Coco and against Lexon on March 1, 2016.

On appeal, the Greenspoon Marder team argued that Coco’s claims are barred by the five-year statute of limitations which began in 2007 when the developer abandoned the project. On November 29, 2017, the Second District Court of Appeal of Florida reversed the trial court’s judgment against Lexon and remanded for entry of judgment in Lexon’s favor, stating, “The City’s action filed in October 2012 was filed beyond the five-year statute of limitations and was therefore time-barred.” As a result, the firm successfully reversed a $7.3 million compensatory damages judgment. This ruling will also result in the reversal of a companion judgment awarding Coco over $1.2 million in prejudgment interest, and avoids liability for attorneys’ fees and other potential statutory claims.

The Greenspoon Marder team representing Lexon consisted of Shareholders John H. Pelzer and Victor Kline, with the assistance of Bruce L. Maas of Harris Beach, PLLC, Pittsford, NY.

About Greenspoon Marder

Greenspoon Marder LLP is a full-service law firm with over 225 attorneys and more than 20 office locations across the United States. With operations from Miami to New York and from Denver to Los Angeles, our firm attracts some of the nation’s top talent in key markets and innovation hubs. Our core practice areas include Real Estate, Litigation, and Transactional Services, complemented by the capabilities of a full-service firm. Greenspoon Marder has maintained a spot on The American Lawyer’s Am Law 200 as one of the top law firms in the U.S. since 2015, and our goal is to provide exceptional client service by developing a thorough understanding of each client’s business needs and objectives in order to provide strategic, cost-effective solutions.

MEDIA CONTACT

Natalie Villanueva, Director of Marketing
954.333.4308 | [email protected]

This Greenspoon Marder LLP Client Alert is issued for informational purposes only and is not intended to be construed or used as general legal advice nor a solicitation of any type. Please contact the author(s) or your Greenspoon Marder LLP contact if you have any questions regarding the currency of this information. The hiring of a lawyer is an important decision. Before you decide, ask for written information about the lawyer’s legal qualifications and experience.

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Greenspoon Marder Secures Reversal of $7.3 Million Judgement Against Client Lexon

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