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1. Plaintiff discharges a duty owed to another party as a result of some vicarious, constructive, derivative or technical liability;
2. Defendant should have discharged the duty satisfied by Plaintiff;
3. Plaintiff is without any fault; and
4. Plaintiff suffered in damages by discharging the liability that should be borne by Defendant.

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1. Plaintiff discharges a duty owed to another party as a result of some vicarious, constructive, derivative or technical liability;
2. Defendant should have discharged the duty satisfied by Plaintiff;
3. Plaintiff is without any fault; and
4. Plaintiff suffered in damages by discharging the liability that should be borne by Defendant.

Indemnification claims may be contractual or equitable in nature. See, e.g., Allstate Ins. Co. v. Metro. Dade Cty., 436 So.2d 976, 978 (Fla. 3d DCA 1983). In cases involving contractual indemnity, the terms of the agreement will determine whether the indemnitor is obligated to reimburse the indemnitee for a particular claim. Certainly contracts purporting to indemnify a party against its own negligence will only be enforced if they clearly express such an intent and a general provision indemnifying the indemnitee “against any and all claims,” standing alone, is not sufficient. Camp, Dresser, & Mckee, Inc. v. Paul N. Howard Co., 853 So.2d 1072, 1077 (Fla. 5th DCA 2003).

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FLORIDA STATE COURTS

Supreme Court: Dade Cty. Sch. Bd. v. Radio Station WQBA, 731 So.2d 638, 642 (Fla. 1999); Houdaille Indus., Inc. v. Edwards, 374 So.2d 490, 493 (Fla. 1979); Wendt v. La Costa Beach Resort Condo. Ass’n, 64 So.3d 1228 (Fla. 2011).


First District: Heapy Eng’g, LLP v. Pure Lodging, Ltd., 849 So.2d 424, 425 (Fla. 1st DCA 2003).


Second District: Tank Tech, Inc. v. Valley Tank Testing, L.L.C., 244 So.3d 383, 395 (Fla. 2d DCA 2018); Welch v. Complete Care Corp., 818 So.2d 645, 649 (Fla. 2d DCA 2002).


Third District: Brother’s Painting & Pressure Cleaning Corp. v. Curry-Dixon Constr., LLC, 298 So. 3d 1191, 1194 (Fla. 3d DCA 2020); Nat’l Beverage Corp. v. Costco Wholesale Corp., 736 So.2d 143, 144 (Fla. 3d DCA 1999).


Fourth District: Dental Law Firm, P.A. v. People’s Choice Pub. Adjusters, LLC, 345 So. 3d 897, 905 (Fla. 4th DCA 2022); Diplomat Properties Ltd. P’ship v. Tecnoglass, LLC, 114 So.3d 357, 359-60 (Fla. 4th DCA 2013); Zeiger Crane Rentals, Inc. v. Double A Indus., Inc., 16 So.3d 907, 911 (Fla. 4th DCA 2009).


Fifth District: Florida Peninsula Ins. Co. v. Ken Mullen Plumbing Inc., 171 So.3d 194, 196 (Fla. 5th DCA 2015).

FLORIDA FEDERAL COURTS

Eleventh Circuit: Foley v. Luster, 249 F.3d 1281, 1288 (11th Cir. 2001).


Southern District: Frankenmuth Mut. Ins. Co. v. Pac Comm, Inc., 2021 WL 7367133, *5 (S.D. Fla. Oct. 21, 2021); Silberman v. Premier Beauty & Health LLC, 2021 WL 4312698, *6 (S.D. Fla. Sept. 22, 2021); Lessard-Lanctot v. Moore, No. 1:20-CV-21760, 2020 WL 6748497, at *2 (S.D. Fla. Nov. 17, 2020); Underwriters at Int. v. All Logistics Grp., Inc., 483 F. Supp. 3d 1199, 1208 (S.D. Fla. 2020).

Middle District: Boardwalk Fresh Burgers & Fries, Inc. v. Min Wang, No. 8:19-CV-2527-VMC-CPT, 2021 WL 1581631, at *4 (M.D. Fla. Apr. 22, 2021); In re 23′ Tritoon Pontoon Boat Sea Breeze ’35, No. 2:19-CV-80-SPC-MRM, 2021 WL 1428309, at *2 (M.D. Fla. Apr. 15, 2021).


Northern District: Kesslak v. Tower Hill Preferred Ins. Co., No. 3:08cv303 MCR/MD, 2009 WL 3161808, at *2 (N.D. Fla. 2009).

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2 Defenses to Claim for Indemnification

(1) Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.110(d) (pleading affirmative defenses), and other standard defenses. See § 1.

(2) Statute of Limitations: § 95.11(3)(p), Fla. Stat. (four years); see also Dominion of Canada v. State Farm Fire and Casualty Co., 754 So.2d 852, 855 (Fla.2d DCA 2000)(citations omitted). The statute does not begin to run until the Plaintiff discharges the duty owed by the defendant. E.g., Attorneys’ Title Ins. Fund, Inc. v. Punta Gorda Isles, Inc., 547 So.2d 1250, 1252 (Fla. 2d DCA 1989)

(3) A party seeking indemnity must be without fault. Houdaille Indust., Inc. v. Edwards, 374 So.2d 490, 493 (Fla. 1979); Florida Peninsula Ins. Co. v. Ken Mullen Plumbing Inc., 171 So.3d 194, 196 (Fla. 5th DCA 2015).

(4) An indemnity claim cannot be brought in the absence of a special relationship. See C.B. Contractors, LLC v. Allens Steel Prod., Inc., 261 So.3d 711, 713 (Fla. 5th DCA 2018) (holding lower court’s conclusion that an indemnity claim was unavailable is incorrect and recognizing a special relationship between contractors and subcontractors for the purposes of indemnification); Platinum Estates, Inc. v. T.D. Bank, N.A., No. 11–60670–CIV, 2012 WL 760791, at *5 (S.D. Fla. March 8, 2012); Brickell Biscayne Corp. v. WPL Assocs., Inc., 671 So.2d 247, 248-49 (Fla. 3d. DCA 1996).

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