Senate Bill 360 was signed by Governor DeSantis on April 13, 2023. The new law impacts both the statute of limitations period and the statute of repose period for construction defect claims. The more impactful changes are outlined below:
- The statue of limitations period refers to the time period during which a party may bring a claim (i.e., file suit) against another party. SB 360 changes the point in time when the limitations period begins to run. Under the new law, the limitations period begins to run from the earliest date of: (1) the authority having jurisdiction issuing a temporary certificate of occupancy, a certificate of occupancy or a certificate of completion, or (2) the date construction was abandoned (if the project was not completed).
- The statute of repose period is a strict deadline that is set is stone regardless of when the cause of action accrued / when the claimant knew or should have know about the defect. Neither the certificate of occupancy nor the date of abandonment impacts the statute of repose period. The statute of repose period for construction defect claims has now decreased from 10 years to 7 years as a result of SB 360.
- Subsequent work performed pursuant to a contractor’s warranty obligation does not extend the deadline for filing a claim.
- For multi-building communities, each building is to be considered its own improvement for the purpose of determining the deadline for filing a claim.
IMPACT ON COMMUNITY ASSOCIATIONS:
Community associations now have less time to pursue construction defect claims, so it is imperative for boards to investigate any suspected defects in a timely manner, and for boards to discuss potential legal remedies with counsel early in the investigation process.
In the case of developer-turnover claims, the window to pursue a claim following turnover is limited, so communities need to be prepared to move quickly once turnover occurs. The membership should be proactive in vetting legal counsel, engineers, etc. prior to turnover so that there is a team already in place ready to assist.
Senate Bill 360 Text: http://laws.flrules.org/2023/22
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