Weatherby Associates, Inc. v. Ballack

• Decision Date: 28 March 2001
• Docket Number: No. 4D00-3358.,4D00-3358.
• Citation: 783 So.2d 1138
• Parties: WEATHERBY ASSOCIATES, INC., d/b/a Weatherby Health Care, a Connecticut corporation, and Jackson Lewis Schnitzler & Krupman, Appellants, v. Mary Kay BALLACK, Capital Health Resources, Inc., a Florida corporation, and Capital Finance Resources, Inc., a Florida corporation, Appellees.
• Court: Florida District Court of Appeals

783 So.2d 1138

WEATHERBY ASSOCIATES, INC., d/b/a Weatherby Health Care, a Connecticut corporation, and Jackson Lewis Schnitzler & Krupman, Appellants, v. Mary Kay BALLACK, Capital Health Resources, Inc., a Florida corporation, and Capital Finance Resources, Inc., a Florida corporation, Appellees.

No. 4D00-3358.

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fourth District.

March 28, 2001.

Rehearing Denied May 16, 2001.

Christine L. Wilson and Patrick G. De-Blasio, III of Jackson Lewis Schnitzler & Krupman and Herman J. Russomanno of Russomanno & Borrello, P.A., Miami, for appellants.

Kimberly Hall Doyle and Mark B. Milrot of Atkinson, Diner, Stone, Mankuta & Ploucha, P.A., Hollywood, for appellees.

HAZOURI, J.

Weatherby Associates, Inc., d/b/a Weatherby Health Care (Weatherby) and its attorneys, Jackson Lewis Schnitzler & Krupman (Jackson Lewis) appeal from final orders awarding attorney's fees under section 57.105(1), Florida Statutes (1999), to Capital Health Resources, Inc. (Capital Health), Capital Finance Resources, Inc. (Capital Finance) and Mary Kay Ballack (Ballack).

This case stems from a suit filed by Weatherby against Ballack, Capital Health and Capital Finance for breach of an employment agreement and tortious interference with business relationships. Weatherby, a Connecticut corporation authorized to do business in Ft. Lauderdale, is in the business of recruiting physicians and health care executives on behalf of clients seeking to hire them. Ballack was formerly employed by Weatherby as a physician recruiter. Capital Health also recruits physicians and health care executives and is a direct competitor of Weatherby. Capital Finance recruits and places accountants. Capital Health and Capital Finance are owned and operated by Mark Murrin and Gary Penichet, who are also former employees of Weatherby.

On June 21, 1993, as a condition of her employment with Weatherby, Ballack signed an employment agreement. During her employment, Ballack had access to search databases that included information on candidates seeking new positions and clients seeking to hire these candidates. The employment agreement includes a covenant of non-disclosure of such confidential information and a covenant of non-competition. The covenant of non-competition provides that the employee will not become engaged in physician recruitment or health care executive search or placement in any capacity with any company or business dealing with physician recruitment or health care executive search for a period of one year after termination of the agreement. The agreement further provides that it is to be "construed and interpreted in accordance with Connecticut law."

On Monday, October 25, 1999, Ballack resigned. After she resigned, a CD ROM disk was discovered missing and she was seen entering Capital Health's office one morning. Weatherby's attorney contacted Capital Health's attorney, who said that Ballack was working for Capital Finance not Capital Health. Weatherby's attorney did research on Capital Finance and did not find its articles of incorporation. On that date, the articles of incorporation had not been filed.

On November 5, 1999, Weatherby filed suit against Ballack and Capital Health. The six count complaint alleged that Ballack breached the employment agreement by working for Capital Health and giving Capital Health confidential information, in violation of the non-competition and non-disclosure provisions. The complaint also sought damages against Ballack and Capital Health for tortious interference with business relations and unjust enrichment. On that date, Weatherby also filed an emergency motion for a temporary injunction. The motion sought to enforce the non-disclosure and non-competition provisions in the employment agreement.

The depositions of Ballack and Murrin were conducted on November 29, 1999. Ballack testified that after resigning from Weatherby, she contacted Murrin at Capital Finance about a position and began to work for Capital Finance in November of 1999, recruiting accountants. Murrin confirmed that Ballack was working for Capital Finance.

Lawrence Stewart, Weatherby's corporate representative, was deposed on November 30, 1999. He testified that he had no evidence that Ballack had used confidential information, that she removed confidential information, that she is currently engaged in health care executive search or physician recruitment or that she is not in fact working for Capital Finance as an accountant recruiter.

He explained that Weatherby decided to file the suit based on information that Ballack was seen entering Capital Health's office and that she conducted various database searches the weekend before she left Weatherby. However, Weatherby did not find out that Ballack had conducted the searches until after it had filed suit. He indicated he did not know if Ballack removed the missing CD ROM disk and Weatherby was not accusing her of taking it. Stewart also explained that Weatherby filed suit against Capital Health because Weatherby believes that Capital Health employed Ballack.

A hearing on Weatherby's motion for a temporary injunction was held on December 16, 1999. Weatherby's counsel argued that Capital Finance was incorporated as a sham corporation and that although Ballack claims she is employed by Capital Finance, she is actually employed by Capital Health. The trial court asked Weatherby's counsel if he had any witnesses or evidence to support his argument. Weatherby's counsel replied that he did not. The trial court denied the motion.

On December 22, 1999, Weatherby filed an amended complaint, adding Capital Finance as a defendant. On January 7, 2000, Capital Health and Capital Finance filed a motion for summary judgment and for an award of attorney's fees pursuant to section 57.105, Florida Statutes (1999), the frivolous litigation statute. They argued that Weatherby filed a frivolous lawsuit and that its claims were not capable of being supported by material facts. Ballack joined the motion. On January 21, 2000, Weatherby filed a voluntary dismissal.

The trial court held a hearing on the motion for attorney's fees on March 9, 2000. As to Ballack, the court found as follows:

1. At the time that this action was instituted by the Plaintiff against Defendant, Mary Kay Ballack, Plaintiff had no evidence to support the Plaintiff's claims. After substantial discovery the Plaintiff still had no evidence to support the Plaintiff's claims. The Plaintiff pursued this matter through a hearing on a Motion for Temporary Injunction and the hearing on this motion admitted to this court that the Plaintiff had no evidence to support its claims. The Plaintiff served a Voluntary Dismissal on January 21, 2000. The Court finds that pursuant to Florida Statutes § 57.105(1) the Plaintiff and the Plaintiff's counsel knew or should have known that the claims were not supported by material facts necessary to establish the claims. The court find [sic] that at the time this action was filed, there was a complete absence of a justiciable issue regarding whether Defendant Mary Kay Ballack violated the Employment Agreement, or committed any of the acts alleged in the Complaint. The court finds that Plaintiff's counsel did not act in good faith in filing this action. The court finds that due to the fact that there was not one shred of evidence in the form of testimony or otherwise which supports the Plaintiff's claim, the Defendant, Mary Kay Ballack is entitled to an award of reasonable attorney's fees under Florida Statutes § 57.105(1).

The trial court held that Ballack's attorney's fees were to be paid by Weatherby and Weatherby's attorneys, in equal parts. The court further held that Ballack was entitled to recover costs pursuant to Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.420(d) and section 57.041, Florida Statutes.

As to Capital Health and Capital Finance, the trial court's findings were similar. However, the trial court did not assess attorney's fees against Weatherby's attorneys.

Weatherby filed a motion to vacate the orders. At the hearing on the motion, the trial court indicated that it believed the suit was filed in bad faith, as there was no evidence to support the allegations and denied the motion.

On August 23, 2000, the trial court entered a final judgment against Weatherby and in favor of Capital Health and Capital Finance in the amount of $20,000, which includes $18,500 for attorney's fees and $1,500 in taxable costs. The trial court also entered a final judgment against both Weatherby and its attorneys, Jackson Lewis Schnitzler & Krupman and in favor of Ballack for attorneys fees incurred in the amount of $18,500. Additionally, judgment was entered against Weatherby for costs in the amount of $1,500.

Weatherby raises four arguments on appeal. First, Weatherby argues that when it filed its lawsuit there was a threat that Weatherby's proprietary information and trade secrets had been taken and might be disclosed by Ballack. Additionally, Weatherby contends that it had sufficient evidence to raise an inference that Ballack was competing with Weatherby. Therefore, Weatherby argues that the trial court erred when it awarded appellees attorney's fees under section 57.105(1).

Attorney's fees are awarded under...