Case Name: FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF LAKE PARK, Appellant/Cross-Appellee, v. Luella GAY, as Trustee of the Charles L. Gay and Luella Gay Trust, Appellee/Cross-Appellant
Court: Florida District Court of Appeal
Jurisdiction: Florida
Decision Date: 1997-05-07
Citations: 694 So. 2d 784
Docket Number: No. 95-1231
Parties: FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF LAKE PARK, Appellant/Cross-Appellee, v. Luella GAY, as Trustee of the Charles L. Gay and Luella Gay Trust, Appellee/Cross-Appellant.
Judges: GUNTHER, C.J., concurs.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 694
Pages: 784–792

Head Matter:
FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF LAKE PARK, Appellant/Cross-Appellee, v. Luella GAY, as Trustee of the Charles L. Gay and Luella Gay Trust, Appellee/Cross-Appellant.
No. 95-1231.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fourth District.
May 7, 1997.
Rehearing, Rehearing En Banc, Certification of Question and Certification of Conflict Denied June 10, 1997.
Kathleen J. Loggins of Gibson & Adams, P.A, West Palm Beach, for appellant/cross-appellee.
Richard H. Gaunt, Jr. of Gaunt, Pratt, Radford & Methe, P.A., West Palm Beach, for appellee/cross-appellant.

Opinion:
WARNER, Judge.
This appeal arises from a final judgment in favor of a lessor on an action involving a breach of a commercial lease. Appellant, First National Bank, as lessee, claims that the trial court erred in requiring it to elect its remedy on the day of trial, in failing to give a jury instruction on "best efforts," in excluding evidence regarding conditions of the contract, and in refusing to have a question on the- interrogatory verdict form as to appellant's affirmative defenses to appellee's counterclaim. We agree with appellant's contentions and reverse.
In September 1989, appellee Gay, as lessor, and appellant/lessee entered into a commercial lease for property to be used as a bank branch office. The lease of the current tenant, Barnett Bank, was to expire October 31,1992, with First National's five year lease to commence November 1,1992. The parties agreed in a provision of the lease to use then-best efforts and reasonable diligence to induce Barnett to terminate the lease early. First National made several efforts to this end, and Gay testified that she also made some phone calls. After obtaining the Barnett lease in discovery, First National argued that a provision of the Barnett lease provided for the lessor's option to terminate the lease if Barnett ceased to operate the premises as a commercial bank. Barnett vacated the premises in December 1989 but continued to pay rent to Gay until the normal expiration of the lease.
While the lease between First National and Gay did not contain any provision which provided for the restoration of the premises to their original condition prior to First National's occupancy, First National sought to introduce parol evidence that Gay had advised First National that Barnett had the obligation to restore the property to its original condition, and that when asked what that condition was, she showed the bank officers floor plans representing the interior configuration of the property prior to its use as a bank. Letters between the parties were also proffered to show that the property was to be restored to its original condition when delivered.
In addition, when the lease was signed there was a roof-top sign bolted to the building. First National claimed that this was of material significance to it in entering into the lease. However, Barnett cut down the sign before its lease expired, arguing that it had belonged to Barnett. First National discovered that it could not get a permit to erect a similar sign.
Because Gay did not deliver the premises to First National in their original condition and the rooftop sign had been removed by the date the lease was to commence, First National advised Gay that she could not perform in a timely manner. First National repudiated the lease and filed suit both for breach of contract and rescission of the lease. Gay counterclaimed, alleging that First National breached the lease by failing to take possession.
Just prior to trial, the court made First National elect whether it wished to proceed on its contract remedy or its rescission claims. Its objection to the election prior to trial being overruled, First National pursued its contract remedy. After a jury trial, the jury found for Gay and awarded $100,000 in damages. It is from that judgment that this appeal is taken.
In its first point on appeal, First National argues that the trial court erroneously granted Gay's motion to require First National to elect its remedy prior to the commencement of the trial. We agree. Even where remedies are mutually exclusive, an election between such remedies can be made at any time prior to the entry of judgment. Barbe v. Villeneuve, 505 So.2d 1331 (Fla.1987). Although First National could recover only on one remedy, it had the right to await the outcome of the entire trial and elect its remedy at the end of trial. The proper procedure to follow in such a case is outlined in Goldstein v. Serio, 566 So.2d 1338 (Fla. 4th DCA 1990). Where one remedy is a legal remedy to be tried to the jury and one is an equitable action for the court to decide, the factual issues should be submitted to the jury with an interrogatory verdict form so that the jury would be required to resolve the specific factual issues in dispute. Thereafter, the plaintiff would be required to elect the remedy. As in Goldstein, here requiring the premature election of remedies was reversible error.
The trial court also erred in refusing to allow First National to put on evidence that the property was to be delivered to First National in its "original condition" as defined by the oral representations of Gay prior to the signing of the lease. That Gay could not deliver the premises in this condition was used as a defense to Gay's claim that First National repudiated the lease. One exception to the parol evidence rule allows the admission of an oral agreement which is shown by clear, precise, and indubitable evidence to establish a contemporaneous oral agreement which induced the execution of the written contract. Furlong v. First Nat'l Bank of Hialeah, 829 So.2d 406, 408 (Fla. 3d DCA 1976); Wise v. Quina, 174 So.2d 590 (Fla. 1st DCA 1965). The testimony proffered by First National was precise and detailed regarding the representation as to what condition the property would be in when possession was delivered to First National. Furthermore, there was documentary evidence in the form of blueprints and letters of the parties confirming First National's understanding. The exclusion of the evidence was not harmless error because it would have supported First National's defense that Gay did not perform her obligations under the lease. It would also be relevant to the claim of rescission on retrial.
First National also contends that the trial court erred in refusing to give an instruction on "best efforts" in connection with its claim that Gay had failed to use her best efforts to obtain Barnett Bank's early termination of its lease. The instruction First National submitted was as follows:
The contractual term "best efforts" imposes a legal duty of performance more demanding than mere competence, due diligence, or good faith. It requires the party owing the duty to take all action and do all things necessary to consummate the transaction contemplated by the agreement. "Best efforts" means maximizing the contractual benefits of the person to whom the duty is owed even if the benefits to the one owing the duty are reduced. If the duty of best efforts is owed, it must be performed even at a loss.
When presented, the court commented that "the way that reads, you would almost think they have to take an UZI submachine gun and go down there and say 'end this lease.' " The trial court denied the instruction, determining that the parties could argue the meaning of the term.
We can locate no definition of "best efforts" in Florida law. It appears that the proposed instruction took its words from In re Heard, 6 B.R. 876, 883 (Bankr.W.D.Ky.1980), which in turn credits its observations of the meaning of "best efforts" to lectures on economics and law by Professors Charles Geotz and Robert Scott of the University of Virginia. However, the bankruptcy judge also admits that "best efforts" has been rejected by some courts as a meaningless and unprovable standard. Id.
One of the only eases dealing with the rejection of a jury charge on "best efforts" is United Telecommunications, Inc. v. American Television & Communications Corp., 536 F.2d 1310 (10th Cir.1976). The appellant/defendant requested the following proposed instruction defining "best efforts":
A "best efforts" obligation does not require ATC to accomplish a given objective; i.e., register United's stock. Rather, it requires ATC to make a diligent reasonable and good faith effort to accomplish that objective. The obligation takes into account unanticipated events and the exigencies of continuing business and does not require such events or exigencies be overcome at all costs. It requires only that ATC exercise all reasonable efforts within a reasonable time to overcome any hurdles and accomplish the objective. The fact that the objective is not accomplished is no indication that the party has not utilized its "best efforts."
Id. at 1318 n. 7. Instead, the trial court gave an instruction which set forth the parties' various contentions about the meaning of "best efforts," as both parties had introduced evidence regarding the negotiations and performance of the contract bearing on the intended meaning of the term.
The definition of "best efforts" may vary depending upon the factual circumstances surrounding the transaction and the intent of the parties in entering into the transaction. In the instant case, the bank argued that Gay did not use her best efforts because she did not exercise her rights under the lease by declaring a default when Barnett ceased to operate a bank on the premises. Disputing this, Gay's attorney argued that the provision of the Barnett lease was being misinterpreted by First National. The lease provided that the lessee could declare a default where the bank "closed." Gay argued that, under the lease, closure meant that the bank itself went out of business and was being taken over by regulatory agencies. Therefore, Gay could not have declared a default and terminated the lease with Barnett. Thus, she contended that she had used her "best efforts" through her several calls to Barnett personnel to ask it to terminate the lease.
When First National proposed the instruction on best efforts, the trial judge commented that he didn't think that the instruction applied to this case. Where, as here, the interpretation of the term is in dispute, the question is properly for the jury. See United Telecomms., 536 F.2d at 1319. In light of the facts and the contentions of the parties, we cannot find that the trial court erred in refusing to give the particular instruction proffered by First National. Indeed, to give it may have misled the jury by implying that Gay should have terminated the lease with Barnett regardless of any contractual right of Barnett or should have bought Barnett out of its lease. On retrial, however, we do not preclude the parties from offering instructions explaining best efforts in light of the contentions of the parties.
As a final issue on appeal, First National also claims that the trial court erred in refusing to submit an interrogatory verdict question on its affirmative defense to Gay's claim of breach. The trial court submitted the following questions to the jury:
1. Did LUELLA GAY breach the parties' Lease Agreement by failing to use her best efforts to obtain an early termination of her existing Lease with Barnett Bank and, if so, was that breach the legal cause of damage to the FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF LAKE PARK? [And if yes, answer question 2]
2. What are the extent of damages of FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF LAKE PARK?
3. Did FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF LAKE PARK breach the parties' Lease Agreement by repudiating the Agreement and thereafter not complying with the requirement of the Agreement and, if so, was that breach a legal cause of damage to LUELLA GAY?
Based on Hospital Mortgage Group v. First Prudential Development Corp., 411 So.2d 181 (Fla.1982), First National requested that the trial court also submit an interrogatory that if the jury found that First National repudiated the lease, they should also determine whether Gay had performed her obligations in accordance with the terms of the lease. The court denied the request.
The failure to include the requested interrogatory on the verdict form could have misled the jury and therefore was an abuse of discretion. Tilley v. Broward Hosp. Dist., 458 So.2d 817 (Fla. 4th DCA 1984). The interrogatories given asked the jury to consider only whether First National Bank had repudiated the lease, and if so, then to calcu late the damages of Gay. Without the question requested by First National, the jury was not asked to make a determination on its affirmative defense.
Where interrogatory verdict forms are used, the verdict should include questions on the plaintiff's claims and the affirmative defenses. Otherwise, the jury may not understand that the affirmative defenses must be considered in answering the questions. Ideally, the interrogatory verdict form should track the issues and defenses as set forth in the instructions given by the trial judge.
We do not address the issue raised in the cross-appeal, as it is moot because of our reversal for a new trial.
Reversed and remanded for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
GUNTHER, C.J., concurs.
FARMER, J., concurs specially with opinion.
. One problem here may have been that the jury had to interpret the contract between Gay and Barnett on the meaning of the clause permitting termination when the bank "closed." Construction of a contract is ordinarily a matter of law for the court. See American Med. Int'l, Inc. v. Schel-len 462 So.2d 1 (Fla. 4th DCA 1984). If the court were to determine the proper interpretation of the Bamett/Gay lease, then the jury would have a clearer understanding of what efforts Gay could have taken to terminate the lease.