Florida/Georgia Personal Injury & Workers Compensation

...Section 111.06, Florida Statutes (1977), authorizes the defense of any warden, sheriff, and deputy sheriff "in any civil suit arising out of the performance of his duties," and enables the state "to indemnify such person" if a judgment is rendered. Lastly, *704 section 111.065, Florida Statutes (1977), permits the payment of all defense costs and reasonable attorney's fees in any criminal and civil cases against a law enforcement officer when the officer wins the action or it is dismissed....

...Ocean Reef Club, Inc., 476 So.2d 1327, 1330 (Fla.2d DCA 1985) (the legislature has not created a statutory action for wrongful discharge in general and no common law cause of action for retaliatory or wrongful discharge exists in Florida). [4] Also note that under section 111.065, Florida Statutes (1985), a deputy sheriff is defined as a "law enforcement officer" even though section 112.531, et seq....

...On July 7, 2004, Sweetwater police officers Allen B. St. Germain and George Ignacio Alvarez were charged with felony battery and official misconduct. Following a jury trial, St. Germain and Alvarez were found not guilty on all charges. Pursuant to section 111.065(4) of the Florida Statutes, St. Germain and Alvarez applied to the City for payment of the fees and costs that they had incurred in their defense. ß 111.065(4)(b)1, Fla....

...n one of these occasions the Mayor commented that the attorneys had done an "outstanding job" and "deserve[d] to get paid," the applications were denied. Alvarez and St. Germain then submitted their applications to the circuit court as authorized by section 111.065: If the officer and the employing agency do not reach an agreement or if payment is not provided within the specified time, the officer requesting payment of attorney's fees and costs may submit the *260 application to the court havin...

...action, failure to reach an agreement, or failure to pay the fees or costs, whichever is later. The court shall retain jurisdiction of the matter in order to determine entitlement to payment and the amount of reasonable attorney's fees and costs. ß 111.065(4)(b)(3), Fla....

...gainst him, and counsel for St. Germain. St. Germain mailed copies of his application to the City attorney, the attorney who prosecuted the criminal case against him, and counsel for Alvarez. Rather than responding to the applications as provided by section 111.065(4)(b)(4), the City filed a Rule 1.140 motion claiming that the trial court lacked in personam jurisdiction because the City had not been served with process as purportedly required by the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure and Chapter 48 of the Florida Statutes. The trial court correctly denied this motion. The "Law Enforcement Fair Defense Act," section 111.065 of the Florida Statutes, revised existing law governing the provision and payment of law enforcement officers' attorneys' fees and costs in criminal and civil actions....

...ent death or bodily harm; or while in fresh pursuit, apprehending, or attempting to apprehend a suspect reasonably believed to have perpetrated, or attempted to perpetrate, a forcible felony as defined in section 776.08, or the offense of escape. ß 111.065(3), Fla....

...ovide an attorney or when the officer does not use an agency attorney. See Criminal Justice Committee, SB226: Senate Staff Analysis and Economic Impact Statement (Fla. January 28, 2004). That process, which is clearly and unambiguously delineated in section 111.065(4)(b), requires only that the officer submit a fee and cost application to the employing agency and if the agency and the officer cannot agree, to submit the application to the court with jurisdiction over the criminal action in which...

...action, failure to reach an agreement, or failure to pay the fees or costs, whichever is later. The court shall retain jurisdiction of the matter in order to determine entitlement to payment and the amount of reasonable attorney's fees and costs. ß 111.065(4)(b)1-3, Fla....

...Prevailing market rates in the appropriate market area for defense of similar actions, as well as other relevant factors. (c) A lodestar or fee multiplier provision may not be used in any criminal prosecution defended under this subsection and the attorney's fees and costs awarded may not exceed $100,000. ß 111.065(4)(b)(4) and (4)(c), Fla....

...ssion, or department not a body corporate . . . shall be served on the public officer being sued or the chief executive officer of the agency, board, commission, or department." Sun-Sentinel, Inc., 865 So.2d at 1285. None of this remotely applies to section 111.065 which neither mandates filing of a complaint, petition or any other initial pleading nor contemplates institution of an independent civil action for an officer to secure fees and costs....

...er under review is affirmed. NOTES [1] The district court did not reach the merits of the service of process/personal jurisdiction issue because it held that DCF waived its objection by seeking a transfer of venue. [2] Unlike the express language of section 111.065, which authorizes an officer requesting the payment of fees and costs to submit his application to the court having jurisdiction over his criminal action, the Florida Supreme Count in Sun-Sentinel specifically noted that a section 119...

GROSS, C.J. Al LambertiAl Lamberti, the Sheriff of Broward County, appeals a final order awarding Lazaro Mesa, a former deputy sheriff, attorney’s fees and costs under section 111.065, Florida Statutes (2006)....

...In December 2006, after the Sheriff brought the case for review to the state attorney’s office, the state charged Deputy Mesa with 5 crimes stemming from a bar fight. 1 A jury found Mesa not guilty on all counts. After the trial, Mesa’s trial attorney, Alberto Milian, sent a demand to the Sheriff pursuant to section 111.065. Milian re *448 quested $100,000 in attorney’s fees and $4,135 as costs. The Sheriff declined to pay. Milian filed an application for payment with the circuit court that had jurisdiction over the criminal case. See § 111.065(4)(b)3, Fla....

...2 He said that in a high profile case like Mesa’s, with three felony and two misdemeanor charges, he would typically charge “in the vicinity of $150,000 to $200,000.” He sought an award of only $100,000 because that was the maximum allowed under section 111.065....

...The judge also noted that the Sheriff had not offered evidence of a process “in place ... to evaluate claims for fees at the onset of prosecution.” The trial judge erroneously disregarded the statutory condition precedent that an officer seeking reimbursement under section 111.065 must first request representation from the officer’s employing agency....

...A court’s interpretation of a statute “is a question of law subject to de novo *449 review.” Daniels v. Fla. Dep’t of Health, 898 So.2d 61, 64 (Fla.2005). The goal of statutory interpretation is “to give effect to the Legislature’s intent.” Id. Subsection 111.065(8) describes the situation where an employing agency must pay an officer’s reasonable attorney’s fees and costs: The employing agency shall provide an attorney and pay the reasonable attorney’s fees and costs for any officer in...

...cy’s written policies and procedures, or generally recognized criminal justice standards if no written policies or procedures exist. If the employing agency determines that an officer has not met the conditions for mandatory reimbursement under subsection 111.065(3), or if the officer decides not to use the agency’s designated attorney, then the officer has the options provided in subsection 111.065(4)(a): If legal representation is requested under subsection (3) and the employing agency determines that the conditions set forth in subsection (3) have not been satisfied or the officer does not choose to use the employing agency’s designated attorney, the officer may: 1....

...est from the agency legal representation under subsection (3). This is the effect of the language that begins subsection (4)(a) — “If legal representation is requested under subsection (3)....” A request for legal representation pursuant to subsection 111.065(3) is a statutory condition precedent to recovery of fees under subsection 111.065(4). The third district came to the same interpretation of section 111.065 in City of Sweetwater v....

...rs in this state must afford the governmental entity the opportunity to provide legal representation before seeking reimbursement of attorney fees and costs under the statute.” Id. The trial court did not apply the statutory condition precedent of section 111.065 because it would have been “disingenuous to expect” the Sheriff to pay attorney’s fees in this case....

...We understand the trial court to have meant that, because the Sheriff presented the case to the state attorney for prosecution, it would have been futile for Mesa to have requested the Sheriff to provide an attorney and pay reasonable attorney’s fees and costs under subsection 111.065(3)....

...additional compensation, the legislature has authorized reimbursement of attorney fees incurred by law enforcement officers in successfully defending civil or criminal actions against them for conduct arising out of the performance of their duties. Section 111.065, Florida Statutes (Supp.1976)....

...as been recognized by the legislature in other contexts. Section 112.44, Florida Statutes (1975) authorizes the Senate to provide for payment of reasonable attorney fees and costs of an officer suspended by the Governor and reinstated by the Senate. Section 111.065, Florida Statutes (Supp.1976) makes similar provision for law enforcement officers who successfully defend criminal and civil prosecutions for conduct arising out of their official duties....

...Petitioner brings this writ of certiorari from an order of the circuit court for Palm Beach County contending that the trial court departed from the essential requirements of law by determining that an assistant state attorney is not a “law enforcement officer as defined under F.S. 111.065(1)” and thus any information that the assistant state attorney obtained from petitioner insurance company during the arson prosecution was not privileged or confidential under section 633.175, Florida Statutes (1993). We grant the petition. Section 633.175 requires that an insurance company under an insurance policy with respect to fire loss release available information to a law enforcement officer, as defined under section 111.065(1), Florida Statutes (1993). Section 111.065(1) defines a law enforcement officer as: [A]ny person employed full time .by any municipality or the state or any political subdivision thereof or any deputy sheriff whose primary responsibility is the prevention and detection of crime or the enforcement of the penal, traffic, or highway laws of this state, § 111.065(1), Fla.Stat....

...denied, 618 So.2d 212 (Fla.1993); Holly v. Auld, 450 So.2d 217 (Fla.1984). Here, the statute includes in its definition of law enforcement officer any person employed full time by the state “whose primary responsibility is the ... enforcement of the penal ... laws of this state.” § 111.065(1)....

...a court must consider the plain language of the statute, give effect to all statutory provisions, and construe related provisions in harmony with one another."). Insofar as pertinent here, the statute we are called upon to construe reads as follows: 111.065....

...s giving rise to the charge did not result in the entry of a plea of guilty or nolo contendere or in a finding of guilt by a court or jury to any offense charged or any lesser or included offense that is substantially related to the offense charged. § 111.065, Fla. Stat. (2004) (emphasis added). IV. Analysis At the time of the incident involving Mr. Daniels, section 111.065 of the Florida Statutes gave a law enforcement agency or municipality "the option to pay reasonable attorney's fees and costs for any law enforcement officer in any civil or criminal action commenced against such officer in any court when the action arose out of the performance of the officer's duties" and such matter resulted in a voluntary dismissal, judgment of no liability, or verdict of acquittal. § 111.065(2)(a), (b), Fla. Stat. (2003) (emphasis added). Effective May 14, 2004, subsequent to the incident but prior to the charging of appellees by information, section 111.065 was amended to state that an employing agency "shall provide an attorney and pay the reasonable attorney's fees and costs for any officer in a criminal action commenced against the officer in any court if the employing agency determines that the officer's actions that gave rise to the charges" met one of the conditions described in subsections 3(a), (b) or (c) of the revised statute. § 111.065(3), Fla....

...On the other hand, the statute does not provide unfettered access to the public fisc. Interpreting the statute holistically, as we must, it is clear a fee applicant must first request the employing agency to "designate[]" an attorney to represent the officer. § 111.065(4)(a), Fla. Stat. (2004). If the law enforcement officer is unsatisfied with the employer's choice, then he may either "1. Select from a list of attorneys provided by the employing agency; or 2. Choose his or her own attorney." § 111.065(4)(a)1, 2, Fla. Stat. (2004). This reading of the statute is consistent with section 111.065(3)'s admonition that "[t]he employing agency shall provide an attorney and pay the reasonable attorney's fees and costs for any officer in a criminal action commenced against the officer in any court." § 111.065(3)....

Appellant seeks that here. The statute here is section 111.065: Law enforcement officers, civil or criminal

office's lawful authority. Question One (C) Section 111.065(2), F.S., provides, as follows: The employing