This question is about a small claims suit in the state of Florida.
I am the plaintiff, and I am suing two(2) parties for damages concerning an automotive repair gone bad.
The case is nearing the trial date, and a pre-trial has already occurred.
One of the parties I am suing is a sole proprietor type business. The other is a large corporation (auto dealer chain). As a matter of proper procedure, I served the documents to the owner of the small business, and the RA of the corporation, which happens to be located in the same state, but out of town. Neither of the defendants have an attorney.
During the pre-trial, the owner of the small business showed up representing his business. However, the corporation showed up with 2 of the employees for which I had been dealing with as a matter of this case and dispute. This didn't surprise me , but it was noticeable to me and the judge that the corporate defendant representatives were very opposed to any pre-trial settlement negotiation. Worse, I overheard one of them say something to the effect they had no authority to authorize any settlement.
Being very new to court, and also representing myself, I didn't have enough knowledge to bring up this statement and issue of one of the defendants possibly not having authority to bind. Also, there was another mysterious individual that was with the party , dressed like an attorney, that never spoke or identified himself.
The pre-trial settlement discussion was a failure, and it was clear that the corporate party in particular decided to use that as just another way to intimidate me.
Based on the comments I heard , subsequent review of law, and discussion with at least one attorney, I decided to send a letter to the judge, along with copies to the defendants. In the letter, I stated my doubts about the corporate party's representatives and their authority to bind. Stated what I heard at the pre-trial about the defendant not having authority to bind. I asked for another pre-trial. The letter wound up going ignored by the judge, or no action taken, and I had it manually entered in the court record.
I don't know for sure what the future will hold, but I am guessing this defendant party may show up at trial in the same way. I intend to make a motion about this, but am wondering on the best way to do it, and what should be required by law. I've notice that in other Florida jurisdictions, there is a form to authorize employees of corporations to represent the company.
Can the defendant just produce this form on the day of the trial and proceed? What if the defendant still has no written authority to bind? If the mysterious person in the suit claims he is the binding authority, can I ask that the others be removed from the courtroom, and only called as witnesses if already listed? If it's clear there is no binding authority present on trial day, can I ask for a reschedule and another pre-trial , or a judgement in my favor?
On a side note, the defense has thus far produced no witness list or evidence list, and the trial is less than 1 month away. We were given a verbal deadline to produce a witness list within 20 days. I have produced mine, and plan to update it, but did miss the deadline due to lack of knowledge on how to do it.
Just looking for some ideas here. Thanks much.
I am the plaintiff, and I am suing two(2) parties for damages concerning an automotive repair gone bad.
The case is nearing the trial date, and a pre-trial has already occurred.
One of the parties I am suing is a sole proprietor type business. The other is a large corporation (auto dealer chain). As a matter of proper procedure, I served the documents to the owner of the small business, and the RA of the corporation, which happens to be located in the same state, but out of town. Neither of the defendants have an attorney.
During the pre-trial, the owner of the small business showed up representing his business. However, the corporation showed up with 2 of the employees for which I had been dealing with as a matter of this case and dispute. This didn't surprise me , but it was noticeable to me and the judge that the corporate defendant representatives were very opposed to any pre-trial settlement negotiation. Worse, I overheard one of them say something to the effect they had no authority to authorize any settlement.
Being very new to court, and also representing myself, I didn't have enough knowledge to bring up this statement and issue of one of the defendants possibly not having authority to bind. Also, there was another mysterious individual that was with the party , dressed like an attorney, that never spoke or identified himself.
The pre-trial settlement discussion was a failure, and it was clear that the corporate party in particular decided to use that as just another way to intimidate me.
Based on the comments I heard , subsequent review of law, and discussion with at least one attorney, I decided to send a letter to the judge, along with copies to the defendants. In the letter, I stated my doubts about the corporate party's representatives and their authority to bind. Stated what I heard at the pre-trial about the defendant not having authority to bind. I asked for another pre-trial. The letter wound up going ignored by the judge, or no action taken, and I had it manually entered in the court record.
I don't know for sure what the future will hold, but I am guessing this defendant party may show up at trial in the same way. I intend to make a motion about this, but am wondering on the best way to do it, and what should be required by law. I've notice that in other Florida jurisdictions, there is a form to authorize employees of corporations to represent the company.
Can the defendant just produce this form on the day of the trial and proceed? What if the defendant still has no written authority to bind? If the mysterious person in the suit claims he is the binding authority, can I ask that the others be removed from the courtroom, and only called as witnesses if already listed? If it's clear there is no binding authority present on trial day, can I ask for a reschedule and another pre-trial , or a judgement in my favor?
On a side note, the defense has thus far produced no witness list or evidence list, and the trial is less than 1 month away. We were given a verbal deadline to produce a witness list within 20 days. I have produced mine, and plan to update it, but did miss the deadline due to lack of knowledge on how to do it.
Just looking for some ideas here. Thanks much.
Civil Procedure Issues: What Can Be Done About a Corporation Not Sending Authorized Representatives to Court
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