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KINGS POINT - Armed with new information, attorneys for residents who want to cement their purchase option for multi million dollar recreational facilities here are renewing the legal battle.
An amended complaint was filed in Hillsborough County last month, according to Patrick De Gravelles, one of the lawyers working on the Kings Point case. De Gravelles is associated with the firm of Becker and Poliakoff, a specialist in Florida condominium law with principal offices on Florida’s east coast.
The complaint filed in December contains information about transfer of the recreational properties by the developer, WCI Communities, Inc., to an entity, new information that was uncovered in the discovery process, De Gravelles told The Observer this week.
Attorneys for the defendant developer responded to the amended complaint by renewing their efforts to end the litigation with a motion to dismiss the matter, the plaintiff’s attorney added.
A date for hearing the motion within the context of the adjusted complaint has not yet been set, De Gravelles said. However, whenever it is held, the attorney said, he expects a definite decision on this portion of the litigation from Circuit Court Judge Sam Pendino to whom the case is assigned.
The lawyer also noted that, on the other hand, he does not expect the litigation itself will be wrapped up soon. Reiterating an opinion he has expressed in the past, De Gravelles said the case well may be “one that goes up on appeal,” meaning the litigated issues may have to be heard at the appeals level. A Hillsborough County Circuit Court decision appealed by either party to the action, if heard, customarily would be taken before the Second District Court of Appeal.
Among the factors that De Gravelles bases his opinion on is that Becker and Poliakoff consistently has maintained there are unique aspects of the Kings Point litigation which never have been legally settled or resolved in any court.
The lawsuit was initiated more than a year ago when some 70 condominium associations in the gated community moved to legally enforce what they contend are their rights, as secured under Florida’s long-established condominium law in connection with resident purchase of community recreational amenities.
The issue arose in 2004 when WCI rebuffed a resident effort to enter into purchase negotiations . Part of the dispute revolves around whether the developer sold outright to another company or merely shifted to its subsidiary control of the recreational facilities such as the massive north and south clubhouses, including pools. Another concern to residents has been annual 10 percent increases of the monthly fees they pay for access to the recreational facilities. Such a rate consistently applied more than doubles the monthly fee within eight years.
When Judge Pendino heard the initial complaint, he ruled out nine of the ten counts contained in the first Kings Point list of allegations. During ensuing months since that hearing, the Kings Pointers’ legal team has continued the discovery process, including at least one deposition, and considered strategy in connection with the remaining count.
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