Opinion ID: 1840122
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: barnett banks, inc.

Text: The county commenced a quick taking proceeding against Barnett's land and made a good-faith estimate of value of $960,000. A month later, the county made a written offer to pay $1,000,000 for the property, but the offer was rejected. A stipulated order of taking was then entered. Subsequently, the parties entered into a stipulated final judgment awarding Barnett $1,060,000 for its property. In each case, there was a dispute over the attorney's fees to be paid by the county. The argument turned on an interpretation of section 73.092, Florida Statutes (Supp.1994), which reads in pertinent part: (1) Except as otherwise provided in this section, the court, in eminent domain proceedings, shall award attorney's fees based solely on the benefits achieved for the client. (a) As used in this section, the term benefits means the difference, exclusive of interest, between the final judgment or settlement and the last written offer made by the condemning authority before the defendant hires an attorney. If no written offer is made by the condemning authority before the defendant hires an attorney, benefits must be measured from the first written offer after the attorney is hired. .... (c) Attorney's fees based on benefits achieved shall be awarded in accordance with the following schedule: 1. Thirty-three percent of any benefit up to $250,000; plus 2. Twenty-five percent of any portion of the benefit between $250,000 and $1 million; plus 3. Twenty percent of any portion of the benefit exceeding $1 million. The landowners contended that benefits should be determined by subtracting the county's good-faith estimate of value from the amount which was finally paid for the land. The county asserted that benefits achieved for the client were based upon the difference between the amount of its written offer and the ultimate award. In each instance, the trial court accepted the landowner's argument and awarded the larger amount of attorney's fees. The Second District Court of Appeal reversed the orders on the premise that the good-faith estimate of value did not constitute a written offer as contemplated by section 73.092(1)(a). [1] As a consequence, Pierpont's attorney's fee was reduced to $1,551, and Barnett's attorney's fee was reduced to $19,800. A & G received no attorney's fee. As a foundation for their arguments, the landowners point out that full compensation within the meaning of article X, section 6 of the Florida Constitution includes the payment of attorney's fees necessary to enforce a condemnee's rights. Dade County v. Brigham, 47 So.2d 602 (Fla.1950); Schick v. Department of Agric. & Consumer Servs., 586 So.2d 452 (Fla. 1st DCA 1991); Orange State Oil Co. v. Jacksonville Expressway Auth., 143 So.2d 892 (Fla. 1st DCA 1962). They contend that in order to uphold the constitutionality of section 73.092, we must interpret the term written offer to include a goodfaith estimate of value. They suggest that a good-faith estimate of value is equivalent to an offer because it is an expression of what the condemning authority is willing to pay. The county responds that the legislature must be assumed to have used the word offer according to its traditional legal meaning and that a good-faith estimate of value is nothing more than that and is not a binding offer. The county asserts that before the enactment of section 73.092, the law encouraged protracted litigation and unnecessary expense, whereas the statute now authorizes an attorney's fee commensurate with the benefits obtained through the attorney's services. The landowner who takes an unreasonable position in response to a reasonable offer runs the risk of little or no attorney's fees if little or no benefits are obtained. At the outset, we have no hesitation in saying that the legislature may enact reasonable provisions to govern the award of attorney's fees in condemnation actions. See Schick v. Department of Agric. & Consumer Servs., 599 So.2d 641 (Fla.1992); Seminole County v. Butler, 676 So.2d 451 (Fla. 5th DCA), review denied, 686 So.2d 581 (Fla. 1996). Moreover, we do not believe that the constitution constrains us from accepting the county's interpretation of the statute. We hold that a good-faith estimate of value does not constitute a written offer as set forth in section 73.092. An offer is an expression by a party of assent to certain definite terms, provided that the other party involved in the bargaining transaction will likewise express assent to the same terms. Arthur Linton Corbin, Corbin on Contracts § 1.11, at 28 (Joseph M. Perillo ed., rev. ed.1993). A good-faith estimate of value is entirely different. If the condemning authority opts to obtain land in advance of final judgment, the declaration of taking must include a good-faith estimate of value based upon a valid appraisal. § 73.031, Fla. Stat. (1993). If the court determines that the petitioner is entitled to the possession of the land prior to final judgment, it will enter an order requiring the petitioner to deposit in the registry of the court a sum not less than the amount of the good-faith estimate of value. § 74.051, Fla. Stat. (1993). Upon motion, the court may permit the landowner to withdraw such funds pending entry of the final judgment. § 74.071, Fla. Stat. (1993). Of particular significance is the fact that if a property owner withdraws all of the funds deposited in the court's registry and the final judgment of compensation is for a lesser amount, the condemning authority is entitled to judgment against the property owner for the difference. The condemning authority is not bound by its good-faith estimate of value and is free to contest the issue of full compensation by presenting testimony of a lower or higher value to the jury. Jacksonville Expressway Auth. v. Bennett, 158 So.2d 821 (Fla. 1st DCA 1963). While the deposit of the estimate of value into the court's registry enables a condemning authority to take title to the land, the estimate does not establish the value of the property rights, and the court's determination that the estimate was made in good faith based upon a valid appraisal is not a finding of just compensation. Florida East Coast Ry. Co. v. Broward County, 421 So.2d 681 (Fla. 4th DCA 1982). The language of section 73.092 does not permit us to conclude that a good-faith estimate of value is the equivalent of a written offer. Therefore, we answer the certified question in the negative. However, we do not foreclose the possibility that under certain circumstances section 73.092 could be unconstitutional as applied. [2] Suffice it to say, none of the factual scenarios before us present such a case. We disapprove Cumberland Farms and Rollingwood Apartments to the extent that they conflict with this opinion. We approve the decisions below. It is so ordered. KOGAN, C.J., and OVERTON, SHAW, HARDING and ANSTEAD, JJ., concur. WELLS, J., concurs with an opinion in which SHAW, J., concurs.