Senate Bill sb2354

    Florida Senate - 2003                                  SB 2354

    By Senator Wise





    5-909A-03                                               See HB

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to awards of damages; limiting

  3         noneconomic damages in tort cases to $250,000;

  4         providing for annual adjustment; providing

  5         construction; requiring court supervision of

  6         damages paid to claimants; authorizing courts

  7         to restrict payment of contingent attorney's

  8         fees based upon the amount of damages awarded;

  9         specifying limits for such contingent

10         attorney's fees in health care lawsuits;

11         providing applicability; authorizing courts to

12         further limit fees in certain cases; providing

13         an effective date.

14  

15  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

16  

17         Section 1.  Cap on noneconomic

18  damages.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law,

19  noneconomic damages in tort cases shall be limited to

20  $250,000, which amount may be adjusted on an annual basis to

21  reflect inflation. The provisions of this section shall not be

22  deemed a denial of access to courts as set forth in Section

23  21, Article I of the State Constitution.

24         Section 2.  Court supervision of damage payments.--

25         (1)  COURT SUPERVISION OF SHARE OF DAMAGES ACTUALLY

26  PAID TO CLAIMANTS; CONTINGENT ATTORNEY'S FEES; HEALTH CARE

27  LAWSUIT LIMITS.--

28         (a)  In any lawsuit, the court shall supervise the

29  arrangements for payment of damages to protect against

30  conflicts of interest that may have the effect of reducing the

31  

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2003                                  SB 2354
    5-909A-03                                               See HB




 1  amount of awarded damages which are actually paid to a

 2  claimant.

 3         (b)1.  In any lawsuit in which an attorney for a party

 4  claims a financial stake in the outcome by virtue of a

 5  contingent fee based on the amount of damages awarded, the

 6  court shall have the power to restrict the payment of a

 7  claimant's damage recovery to such attorney and to redirect

 8  payment of amounts of such damages to the claimant based upon

 9  the interests of justice and the principles of equity.

10         2.  In no event shall the total of all contingent fees,

11  based upon the amount of damages awarded, for representing all

12  claimants in a health care lawsuit exceed the following

13  limits:

14         a.  Forty percent of the first $50,000 in damages

15  awarded to the claimants.

16         b.  Thirty-three and one-third percent of the next

17  $50,000 in damages awarded to the claimants.

18         c.  Twenty-five percent of the next $500,000 in damages

19  awarded to the claimants.

20         d.  Fifteen percent of any amount by which the award of

21  damages to the claimants exceeds $600,000.

22         (2)  APPLICABILITY.--The limitations in this section

23  shall apply whether the recovery is by judgment, settlement,

24  mediation, arbitration, or any other form of alternative

25  dispute resolution. In a lawsuit involving a minor or an

26  incompetent person, a court retains the authority to authorize

27  or approve a fee that is less than the maximum permitted under

28  this section.

29         Section 3.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

30  law.

31  

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.