Hertz Corp. v. David Klein Mfg., Inc.
| Decision Date | 03 May 1994 |
| Docket Number | No. 93-971,93-971 |
| Citation | 636 So.2d 189 |
| Parties | 19 Fla. L. Weekly D985 The HERTZ CORPORATION, Appellant/Cross-Appellee, v. DAVID KLEIN MANUFACTURING, INC., Appellee/Cross-Appellant. |
| Court | Florida District Court of Appeals |
Roland Gomez, Miami Lakes, and Doreen E. Lasch, Miami, for appellant.
Marc A. Kuperman, Joel Hirschhorn and Robert M. Einhorn, Coral Gables, for appellee.
Before SCHWARTZ, C.J., and BASKIN and LEVY, JJ.
The Hertz Corporation appeals a final judgment awarding plaintiff, David Klein Manufacturing, Inc., damages in its action to recover the value of stolen property. Plaintiff cross-appeals an order denying its motion for additur. We affirm on appeal and cross-appeal.
David Klein, the principal of David Klein Manufacturing, Inc. [collectively "Klein"], is a jewelry salesman. While Klein was on Hertz's premises in Miami, one of his two jewelry sample cases was stolen. Klein sued Hertz to recover the value of the jewelry, asserting that Hertz breached its rental agreement, was negligent in the security it provided, and negligent in failing to take proper action once the loss occurred. Hertz answered and asserted as an affirmative defense that Klein's suit was barred by an exculpatory clause in the rental agreement. 1 The trial court disagreed and denied Hertz's motion for directed verdict.
The jury found Klein 51% negligent and Hertz 49% negligent; it awarded Klein $200,000. The trial court entered final judgment in Klein's favor for $98,000.00. Hertz appeals. Klein cross-appeals the denial of the motion for additur.
We affirm the final judgment and hold that the exculpatory clause in the rental agreement does not bar Klein's action. Exculpatory clauses Southworth & McGill, P.A. v. Southern Bell Tel. & Tel. Co., 580 So.2d 628, 634 (Fla. 1st DCA 1991) (footnote and citations omitted).
The clause in this case fails because it does not clearly express the precise acts for which Hertz seeks to avoid liability. Further, the clause does not "clearly and unequivocally state that it releases [Hertz] from liability for its own negligence." MMH Venture v. Masterpiece Prod., Inc., 559 So.2d 314, 316 (Fla. 3d DCA 1990). Thus, we can find no error in the trial court's refusal to direct a verdict in Hertz's favor.
As to the cross-appeal, we decline to reverse the order denying Klein's motion for additur. The record does not demonstrate that the jury "misconceived the merits of the case relating to the amounts of damages recoverable;" that the award does not bear a "reasonable relation to the amount of damages...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Sun Trust Bank v. Sun International Hotels, Ltd.
...while the reasoning of plaintiff's cases from other jurisdictions might be persuasive, this Court is bound to apply Florida law. And based on Hertz's reliance on Limardo, the Court can only conclude that there is no connexity under Florida law in this case. The same deficiency exists with r......
-
Hertz Corp. v. Ng, 93-2063
...and Linda Ann Wells, Miami, for appellee. Before BASKIN, JORGENSON and GERSTEN, JJ. PER CURIAM. Affirmed. Hertz v. David Klein Mfg., Inc., 636 So.2d 189 (Fla. 3d DCA 1994). See McCain v. Florida Power Corp., 593 So.2d 500 (Fla.1992); Baptist Memorial Hosp., Inc. v. Bell, 384 So.2d 145 (Fla.......
-
Sunny Isles Marina, Inc. v. Adulami
...that such clauses be strictly construed against the party claiming to be relieved of liability. See Hertz Corp. v. David Klein Mfg., Inc., 636 So.2d 189, 191 (Fla. 3d DCA 1994); Southworth & McGill v. Southern Bell Tel. & Tel. Co., 580 So.2d 628, 634 (Fla. 1st DCA 1991); Ivey Plants, Inc. v......
-
Airstar, Inc. v. Gubbins, 94-3429
...age-related degeneration, other preexisting conditions or factors unrelated to the 1991 accident. See Hertz Corp. v. David Klein Mfg., Inc., 636 So.2d 189 (Fla. 3d DCA 1994). For the trial court to have granted the additur, it would have had to determine the opposite, in other words that th......