(1) A trustee of any self-insurance trust fund organized under the laws of this state is not personally liable for monetary damages to any person for any statement, vote, decision, or failure to act, regarding the management or policy of the fund, by a trustee, unless:

(a) The trustee breached or failed to perform her or his duties as a trustee; and

Terms Used In Florida Statutes 624.489

  • Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
(b) The trustee’s breach of, or failure to perform, her or his duties constitutes:

1. A violation of the criminal law, unless the trustee had reasonable cause to believe her or his conduct was lawful or had no reasonable cause to believe her or his conduct was unlawful. A judgment or other final adjudication against a trustee in any criminal proceeding for violation of the criminal law estops that trustee from contesting the fact that her or his breach, or failure to perform, constitutes a violation of the criminal law; but does not estop the trustee from establishing that she or he had reasonable cause to believe that her or his conduct was lawful or had no reasonable cause to believe that her or his conduct was unlawful;
2. A transaction from which the trustee derived an improper personal benefit, either directly or indirectly; or
3. Recklessness or an act or omission which was committed in bad faith or with malicious purpose or in a manner exhibiting wanton and willful disregard of human rights, safety, or property.
(2) For the purposes of this section, the term “recklessness” means the acting, or omission to act, in conscious disregard of a risk:

(a) Known, or so obvious that it should have been known, to the trustee; and
(b) Known to the trustee, or so obvious that it should have been known, to be so great as to make it highly probable that harm would follow from such action or omission.
(3) The immunities from liability provided in this section with respect to trustees also apply to members of the board of directors of a commercial self-insurance fund organized as a corporation under part I of chapter 607 if the board of directors has contracted with an administrator authorized under s. 626.88 to administer the day-to-day affairs of the fund.
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