Florida Senate - 2016                                     SB 670
       
       
        
       By Senator Gaetz
       
       
       
       
       
       1-00826-16                                             2016670__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to child protection teams; amending s.
    3         768.28, F.S.; revising the definition of the term
    4         “officer, employee, or agent,” as it applies to
    5         immunity from personal liability in certain actions,
    6         to include any member of a child protection team, in
    7         certain circumstances; providing an effective date.
    8          
    9  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   10  
   11         Section 1. Paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection (9) of
   12  section 768.28, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
   13         768.28 Waiver of sovereign immunity in tort actions;
   14  recovery limits; limitation on attorney fees; statute of
   15  limitations; exclusions; indemnification; risk management
   16  programs.—
   17         (9)(a) An No officer, employee, or agent of the state or of
   18  any of its subdivisions may not shall be held personally liable
   19  in tort or named as a party defendant in any action for any
   20  injury or damage suffered as a result of any act, event, or
   21  omission of action in the scope of her or his employment or
   22  function, unless such officer, employee, or agent acted in bad
   23  faith or with malicious purpose or in a manner exhibiting wanton
   24  and willful disregard of human rights, safety, or property.
   25  However, such officer, employee, or agent shall be considered an
   26  adverse witness in a tort action for any injury or damage
   27  suffered as a result of any act, event, or omission of action in
   28  the scope of her or his employment or function. The exclusive
   29  remedy for injury or damage suffered as a result of an act,
   30  event, or omission of an officer, employee, or agent of the
   31  state or any of its subdivisions or constitutional officers is
   32  shall be by action against the governmental entity, or the head
   33  of such entity in her or his official capacity, or the
   34  constitutional officer of which the officer, employee, or agent
   35  is an employee, unless such act or omission was committed in bad
   36  faith or with malicious purpose or in a manner exhibiting wanton
   37  and willful disregard of human rights, safety, or property. The
   38  state or its subdivisions are shall not be liable in tort for
   39  the acts or omissions of an officer, employee, or agent
   40  committed while acting outside the course and scope of her or
   41  his employment or committed in bad faith or with malicious
   42  purpose or in a manner exhibiting wanton and willful disregard
   43  of human rights, safety, or property.
   44         (b) As used in this subsection, the term:
   45         1. “Employee” includes any volunteer firefighter.
   46         2. “Officer, employee, or agent” includes, but is not
   47  limited to, any health care provider when providing services
   48  pursuant to s. 766.1115; any nonprofit independent college or
   49  university located and chartered in this state which owns or
   50  operates an accredited medical school, and its employees or
   51  agents, when providing patient services pursuant to paragraph
   52  (10)(f); and any public defender or her or his employee or
   53  agent, including, among others, an assistant public defender or
   54  and an investigator; and any member of a child protection team,
   55  as defined in s. 39.01, when carrying out her or his duties as a
   56  team member.
   57         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2016.