Siebold v. Paradise Bay – Over $1M Win for Client

Rachael Bronstein By Dec 9, 2019 Posted in Uncategorized Share

October 2019, Mansfield, Bronstein & Stone was awarded a judgment of $1,170.499 by a Broward County Court in a bench trial brought against two individual defendants. The issues to be resolved by the Court were the breach of a personal guaranty by each of the two individual defendants; the interpretation of the underlying promissory note and attached personal guaranty; and, the bearing of the dismissal with prejudice for lack of personal jurisdiction of the corporation that executed the promissory note.

The Defendants raised several affirmative defenses, including lack of consideration and forgery of the signatures contained in the promissory note and personal guaranty.   The Court, however, ultimately found that the evidence showed that the Defendants had in fact personally guaranteed the debt to the Plaintiff.  Additionally, the Court held that consideration for the guaranty was proven – as required by Florida law – and that the same was not sufficiently refuted by defendants.  Ultimately, the court held that the Plaintiff was not barred from enforcing the promissory note and personal guarantee as result of the prior dismissal with prejudice for lack of personal jurisdiction.    

In addition to the nearly $1.2 million judgment awarded to our client, the trial judge ruled that attorney’s fees and costs were to be awarded to the Plaintiff pursuant to the contract between the parties.