Second District Court of Appeals Case Highlights the Important Differences Between “Jurisdiction” and “Venue”

Are you currently litigating against a trustee or trust beneficiary in   West Palm Beach? Have you encountered the argument that Florida is not the proper venue for the trust litigation? Do you know what that means?  Check out what the Second District Court of Appeal of Florida had to say about the distinction between venue and jurisdiction.

Venue

• Venue is the legal concept of the appropriate location for a lawsuit to be heard by a Court.
• So venue is a question of geographic location of the court where a lawsuit is commenced.
• Did you know that the Florida Trust Code has established guidelines for determining whether venue is appropriate?
• Do you know where to find the rules? Have you checked Fla. Stat. §736.0204?
• The principal place of administration is usually a good place to start but what does that mean?
• The principle place of administration of a trust is the trustee’s usual place of business where records pertaining to the trust are kept or, if no business exists then the trustee’s residence.
• Do you know where else venue would be proper?

Jurisdiction

• Jurisdiction is distinct from venue.
• Jurisdiction focuses on the authority of a court to hear a particular case.
• A party has a constitutional right to not be dragged into a court that lacks jurisdiction; no such right exists for venue.
• While venue is about convenience, jurisdiction is about legal authority.

Hunt v. Hooper

• On December 12, 2008 the Florida Second District Court of Appeals spoke on the distinction between venue and jurisdiction in the case of Hunt v. Hooper, -So.2d-, 2008 WL 5191505, 33 Fla.L.Weekly D2824a.
• The plaintiffs in Hunt v. Hooper were the adult children of the co-trustee of “the Hooper Trust” until the co-trustee’s death in 2005. In December of the next year the children sued the trustee in Pinellas County claiming undue influence and breach of fiduciary duty.  The trustee had administered the trust in Canada.
• The trustee relying on Florida’s old trust code argued that the proper venue was actually Canada but under the new trust code the adult children prevailed.
• The Court noted how the trustee’s argument misconstrued the constitutional rights involved with jurisdiction in his view of proper venue, a fatal mistake.
• Palm Beach Probate litigators know that venue is crucial to success, a jury is a reflection of the venue and also travel can get costly. Proper choice of venue is an important part of any strategic litigation plan involving Florida probate.