Santos v. Western Funding Incorporated
After a county court erroneously dismissed a breach of contract case for lack of prosecution despite record activity within the 60-day safe harbor of rule 1.420(e), the plaintiff moved 48 days later to vacate, and the trial court granted relief under rule 1.540(b)(1). The Third District held that a trial court's oversight in failing to see record activity is a 'mistake' cognizable under rule 1.540(b)(1), but reversed because the movant offered no explanation for its seven-week delay and thus failed to show the motion was filed within a 'reasonable time.'
Key facts
- Plaintiff Santos sued Western Funding Incorporated for breach of contract, but the county court dismissed the case for lack of prosecution despite docket entries showing record activity within the 60-day safe harbor period.
- Forty-eight days after the dismissal, plaintiff moved to vacate under Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.540(b)(1), and the trial court granted the motion for relief.
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Why it matters
The opinion is a useful double-edged tool: it confirms that a trial court's ministerial oversight in dismissing for lack of prosecution is correctable under rule 1.540(b)(1), while reaffirming that the one-year limit is… — full analysis with a trial
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