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A Florida appellate court overturned the sanction of dismissal for a party's violation of mediation confidentiality where there was not an adequate showing of prejudice and no finding that the party willfully violated mediation confidentiality.
In Hill v. Greyhound Lines, Inc., 988 So.2d 1250 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. Aug. 29, 2008), Hill filed a workers compensation claim against Greyhound. At mediation, Greyhound stated that it would not authorize back surgery because Hill's treating physician had given inconsistent recommendations. Following mediation, Hill relayed this conversation to his treating physician.
The workers compensation judge dismissed Hill's claim as a sanction for violating mediation confidentiality. On appeal, the Court reversed this ruling for two reasons. First, the judge had not made a finding that Hill's violation was willful and deliberate as would be necessary to justify the extreme sanction of dismissal. Second, Greyhound failed to demonstrate that any meaningful prejudice was caused by the disclosure.
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