Ramos v. Halpern
A trust beneficiary sued the successor trustee/purchaser of trust assets, and the trial court dismissed all four counts with prejudice for failure to post a $200,000 bond required by a trust provision conditioning any challenge to the purchase price. The Third DCA reversed, holding the bond condition did not apply to the declaratory judgment count seeking a declaration that the bond requirement itself was an unenforceable penalty under section 736.1108(1), and that because that count remained viable, the other three counts should have been dismissed without prejudice rather than with prejudice.
Key facts
- Trust beneficiary sued successor trustee/purchaser challenging the sale of trust assets and seeking to invalidate a $200,000 bond requirement imposed by the trust before any challenge to the purchase price could be brought.
- Trial court dismissed all four counts with prejudice, finding the beneficiary failed to post the required $200,000 bond that was a condition precedent to contesting the purchase price.
- +2 more key facts with a free trial
Why it matters
Practitioners litigating in terrorem or condition-precedent clauses in trusts now have Third DCA authority that a beneficiary may seek a declaration invalidating a bond/penalty provision without first satisfying it, and… — full analysis with a trial
🔒 Read the full opinion, holding & search the library
The full opinion PDF, the rules the court applied, our significance analysis, the background facts, and full-text search across every tracked Florida decision are available to members. Start a free 30-day trial — no credit card.
Not ready to sign up? Get the free Friday digest — the week's key Florida decisions by email, no login required.
Florida Court Tracker provides summaries of publicly available court opinions for informational and research purposes only. This is not legal advice and does not create an attorney–client relationship. Always verify holdings against the official opinion.