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Florida appeals cut Security First fee award after multiplier evidentiary gap
The Fifth District Court of Appeal reduced the award because the expert did not verify whether other lawyers would take the case without a contingency fee multiplier.
Insurance Business reports Florida’s Fifth District Court of Appeal reversed a trial court’s decision to double attorney fees in a first party property insurance dispute involving Security First Insurance Company.
The appeals court said policyholders failed to present competent evidence supporting a contingency fee multiplier under the Florida Supreme Court’s Standard Guaranty Insurance v. Quanstrom framework. That ruling led the court to cut the $250,160 fee award in half.
The case, Security First Insurance Company v. Annon (5D2025-1458), was decided on October 9, 2026, after the underlying property claim had been resolved without trial and only the fee dispute remained on appeal.
Insurance Business adds the trial court had set the lodestar at $125,080 under section 627.428 of the Florida Statutes, and Security First did not contest that base amount, only the 2.0 multiplier.