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Fifth District Reverses Award of Attorney’s Fees Following Reversal of Final Judgment

After securing a reversal of the final judgment in GEICO Gen’l Ins. Co. v. Tsao, No. 5D2023-0645 (Fla. 5th DCA Dec. 6, 2024), Caryn L. Bellus and Barbara Fox of our Miami Office obtained a reversal in a second appeal, challenging the trial court’s order awarding attorney’s fees and costs to the Plaintiff under section 768.79, Fla. Stat., in GEICO Gen. Ins. Co. v. Tsao, No. 5D2023-3413 (Fla. 5th DCA Mar. 28, 2025). In this second appeal, the Fifth District reversed the trial court’s attorney’s fee and cost award, holding that when an appellate court reverses a trial court’s final judgment, it must also reverse on appeal any award of attorney’s fees and costs that is based on the now-reversed judgment. This opinion is significant because it underscores the principle that when an attorney’s fee award is contingent upon a trial-level judgment that is subsequently reversed, the appellate court must reverse the associated fee award as well. View the opinion here.

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