Cowan v. Levai
The Levais moved for leave to amend to add punitive damages claims against a lawyer and the decedent's girlfriend but did not attach the proposed amended complaint; they filed it only five days before the hearing. The Third District held that a motion to add punitive damages must satisfy both rule 1.190(a)'s mandatory attachment requirement and rule 1.190(f)'s 20-day service requirement, so the trial court erred in granting the noncompliant motion, and reversed with instructions to deny it.
Key facts
- The Levais moved to amend their complaint to add punitive damages claims against a lawyer and the decedent's girlfriend but did not attach the proposed amended complaint and filed the motion only five days before the hearing.
- The trial court granted the motion to amend despite noncompliance with Florida Rule of Appellate Procedure 1.190(a)'s mandatory attachment requirement and rule 1.190(f)'s 20-day service requirement.
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Why it matters
This is a clean, citable rule for defendants facing punitive damages motions: late-filed or omitted proposed amended complaints are fatal, and the 20-day clock runs from service of the motion with the attached pleading… — full analysis with a trial
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