Caryn Bellus and Angela Flowers obtained an affirmance of an attorney fee and cost award after a defense proposal for settlement.

This is the second of two winning appellate decisions in Pelecki v. Federated National Insurance Company, 5D19-3702 (Fla. 5th DCA May 14, 2021).

In the first, the homeowner, Andrea Pelecki, appealed a $0 final judgment in favor of her insurer, which arose from a jury verdict in her favor for $15,000 less a setoff of $30,000 for insurer’s prior settlement with plaintiff’s husband.

In this second appeal, Andrea challenged a judgment of $126,047.14 for the insurer’s trial attorney’s fees and costs based on her rejection of the insurer’s $5,000 proposal for settlement to her.  The Fifth District affirmed the award of fees and costs, except for a small award of costs for an expert who did not testify at trial.