Hernando County v. McGee & Mason, PA - Sovereign Immunity

FL District Court of Appeal Opinions

Filed March 27th, 2026

Detected March 28th, 2026

Summary

The Florida Fifth District Court of Appeal affirmed a trial court's decision denying Hernando County's motion to dismiss a complaint seeking attorney's fees. The appellate court found that the county's reliance on matters outside the complaint was improper for a motion to dismiss, and sovereign immunity claims would proceed.

View original document View source feed page

What changed

The Florida Fifth District Court of Appeal affirmed the trial court's denial of Hernando County's motion to dismiss a complaint filed by McGee & Mason, P.A. and Joseph Mason, Esquire. The complaint sought payment of outstanding attorney's fees for services allegedly rendered to the City of Weeki Wachee before its dissolution. Hernando County had argued that sovereign immunity barred the claims, but the appellate court found that the county improperly relied on evidence outside the four corners of the complaint when making its motion to dismiss.

This decision means that the case will proceed to further proceedings in the trial court, allowing the Appellees to pursue their claims for attorney's fees. Compliance officers within government entities should note that motions to dismiss based on sovereign immunity must be supported by evidence within the complaint itself, and that claims for services rendered to dissolved entities may be actionable. The specific implications for Hernando County and potentially other municipalities regarding their liability for pre-dissolution debts and the application of sovereign immunity will be further determined through the ongoing litigation.

What to do next

Review sovereign immunity arguments and supporting documentation for motions to dismiss.
Ensure all evidence supporting a motion to dismiss is contained within the complaint or its attachments.
Proceed with litigation for claims related to pre-dissolution services and attorney's fees.

Source document (simplified)

Support FLP

CourtListener is a project of Free
Law Project, a federally-recognized 501(c)(3) non-profit. Members help support our work and get special access to features.

Please become a member today.

Join Free.law Now

March 27, 2026 Get Citation Alerts Download PDF Add Note

Hernando County, a Political Subdivision of the State of Florida v. McGee & Mason, PA, and Joseph Mason, Esquire

District Court of Appeal of Florida

Citations: None known
Docket Number: 5D2025-0708
Opinion
Authorities (1)
Cited By (0)
Summaries (0)
Similar Cases (0)
PDF

Combined Opinion

FIFTH DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL
STATE OF FLORIDA

Case No. 5D2025-0708
LT Case No. 27-2024-CA-540

HERNANDO COUNTY, a political
subdivision of the STATE OF
FLORIDA,

Appellant,

MCGEE & MASON, P.A., AND
JOSEPH MASON, ESQUIRE,

Appellees.

Nonfinal appeal from the Circuit Court for Hernando County.
Don Collins Barbee, Jr., Judge.

Melissa A. Tartaglia and Jon A. Jouben, of Hernando County
Attorney’s Office, Brooksville, for Appellant.

Robert Bruce Snow, of Robert Bruce Snow, P.A., Brooksville,
for Appellees.

March 27, 2026

EDWARDS, J.

Hernando County, a political subdivision of the state of
Florida, appeals the trial court’s non-final order denying its motion
to dismiss the multi-count complaint of McGee & Mason, P.A. and
Joseph Mason, Esquire (“Appellees”), in which Appellees sought
payment of outstanding attorney’s fees for services they allegedly
performed for and billed to the City of Weeki Wachee before that
city was legally dissolved. Hernando County moved to dismiss
claiming, inter alia, that sovereign immunity barred the Appellees’
claims. We have jurisdiction pursuant to Florida Rule of Appellate
Procedure 9.130(a)(3)(F)(iii). In its motion to dismiss, Hernando
County relies on matters not found within the four corners of the
complaint or attachments thereto. The trial court correctly
determined that was beyond the scope of what it could properly
consider when ruling on a motion to dismiss. See Enlow v. E.C.
Scott Wright, P.A., 274 So. 3d 1192, 1193 (Fla. 5th DCA 2019)
(citing Busch v. Lennar Homes, LLC, 219 So. 3d 93, 94 (Fla. 5th
DCA 2017) (additional citation omitted)). Therefore, we affirm and
remand for further proceedings.