Terms Used In Florida Statutes 601.65

  • Citrus fruit: means all varieties and regulated hybrids of citrus fruit and also means processed citrus products containing 20 percent or more citrus fruit or citrus fruit juice. See Florida Statutes 601.03
  • Citrus fruit dealer: means any consignor, commission merchant, consignment shipper, cash buyer, broker, association, cooperative association, express or gift fruit shipper, or person who in any manner makes or attempts to make money or other thing of value on citrus fruit in any manner whatsoever, other than of growing or producing citrus fruit. See Florida Statutes 601.03
  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Department: means the Department of Citrus. See Florida Statutes 601.03
  • Department of Agriculture: means the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. See Florida Statutes 601.03
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Person: means any natural person, partnership, association, corporation, trust, estate, or other legal entity. See Florida Statutes 601.03
If any licensed citrus fruit dealer violates any provision of this chapter, such dealer shall be liable to the person allegedly injured thereby for the full amount of damages sustained in consequence of such violation. Such liability may be enforced either by proceeding in an administrative action to and before the Department of Agriculture and pursuing such action to its ultimate termination if desired or by filing of a judicial suit at law in a court of competent jurisdiction; however, in such court suit the bond of such citrus fruit dealer theretofore posted with the Department of Agriculture pursuant to s. 601.61 shall not be amenable or subject to any judgment or other legal process issuing out of or from such court in connection with such law suit, whether cash bond or surety company bond, but such bonds shall be amenable to and enforceable only by and through administrative proceedings before the Department of Agriculture, it being the intent and purpose of the Legislature that such citrus dealer’s bond so posted with the Department of Agriculture shall be applicable and liable only for the payment of claims duly adjudicated by order of the Department of Agriculture and the determination of such adjudicated claim if and in the event such order is appealed by any aggrieved party to the administrative proceeding.