While One Suit Over Citizens’ DOAH Hearings is Dropped, Drama Builds in Another

A federal judge agreed to dismiss a lawsuit brought by a 92-year-old Miami homeowner claiming that a state-run arbitration agency deprives policyholders of their constitutional rights when reviewing claims disputes against Citizens Property Insurance Corp.

“The dismissal is effective immediately upon the filing of a written notice of dismissal, and no subsequent court order is required,” reads the notice of dismissal, filed by attorney Michael Citron on Friday.

A reason for the dismissal was not given. The judge dismissed the suit without prejudice, meaning it can be filed again at a later date.

Citron’s client, Stainton Williams, sued Citizens in July, after the state-created Citizens moved to send claims disputes to the Florida Division of Administrative Hearings, also known as DOAH. Having a state agency review claims disputes deprives insureds of their right to a neutral court and does not require administrative law judges to disclose conflicts of interest, the suit alleged.

Citizens in 2022, during the worst of the claims litigation escalation in Florida, acted to introduce endorsements in policies that allowed the insurer or the insured to have claims disputes heard at DOAH. While Citizens officials have said the move has sped up resolution time and has reduced legal fees, a few policyholders took issue.

“This is not merely a dispute over insurance,” the Williams complaint reads. “It is a direct challenge to a calculated and state-backed apparatus that deprives Florida homeowners of their most basic constitutional rights: access to the courts, neutral adjudication and meaningful due process.”

The federal suit was brought by Williams’ daughter, the attorney-in-fact for her father. The complaint alleging that Citizens had denied a 2024 claim because the damage was caused by storm surge, not wind. Citron could not could not immediately be reached for comment on why the suit was dropped.

The dismissal does not directly affect a similar, state-court action filed by a Hillsborough County homeowner. That case has led to some drama of its own. A circuit judge in August temporarily barred Citizens from sending cases to DOAH while the case is proceeding. Citizens filed an appeal, halting the judge’s order.

But the Hillsborough judge, Circuit Judge Melissa Polo, on Aug. 21 vacated the automatic stay on her order that barred new cases going to DOAH hearings. The same day, she denied Citizen’s request to move the case from Tampa to Tallahassee.

“The unfairness to Plaintiff is manifest,” Judge Polo wrote. “Defendant seeks to deprive him of due process and access to his chosen forum and to shield itself from judicial scrutiny by insisting on venue in a county where it resides, all while enforcing an unconstitutional clause.”

A week later, Citizens’ attorney Ricky Polston, a former state Supreme Court judge, filed a motion to disqualify Polo from hearing the Williams case altogether. Polo has shown that she is biased in favor of the homeowner and has prejudged the outcome, the disqualification motion reads.

Citizens’ corporate representative, attorney Danielle Bullock, provided an affidavit in support of the unusual disqualification move. Parts of the case are still pending before the Hillsborough court and the state’s 2^nd District Court of Appeals.

Topics Lawsuits