Locke Lord QuickStudy: Florida Statute of Limitations Update: Third DCA Certifies Conflict with Fifth DCA and Finds that a Foreclosure Judgment can Include all Amounts Due and Owing Regardless of Default Date

On August 1, 2018, the Third District Court of Appeal found that a foreclosure judgment can include all amounts due and owing regardless of the initial date of default. In Eduardo Gonzalez and Rosa Gonzalez v. Federal National Mortgage Association, Case No. 3D17-1246 (Fla. 3d DCA, August 1, 2018), the Third DCA certified conflict with the Fifth District Court of Appeal which previously reversed a final judgment and remanded for the trial court to exclude damages from a foreclosure judgment that occurred more than five years prior to the filing date.

In certifying the conflict, the Third DCA disagreed with the decision rendered in Velden v. Nationstar Mortgage, LLC, 234 So. 3d 850 (Fla. 5th DCA 2018) as contrary to the Florida Supreme Court’s decision in Bartram v. U.S. Bank National, Ass’n, 211 So. 3d 1009 (Fla. 2016). The Florida Supreme Court may now get another opportunity to bring further clarity to the interplay between the statute of limitations and foreclosure actions.

Coupled with previous rulings that allow plaintiffs to allege the original date of default as long as they also allege a subsequent default that falls within the statute of limitations, this ruling potentially paves the way for foreclosure plaintiffs to recoup all amounts due and owing regardless of the age of the initial default in cases within the Third DCA and other districts.