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Filing# 158866944 E-Filed 10/10/2022 10:03:17 AM
INTHE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE 17TH
JUDICIAL CIRCUIT IN AND FOR
BROWARD COUNTY, FLORIDA
VALERIE BROOKS,
CASE NO.: CACE-22-014300
Plaintiff,
VS.
UNIVERSAL PROPERTY & CASUALTY
INSURANCE COMPANY,
Defendant.
i
DEFENDANT'S FIRST SET OF INTERROGATORIES TO PLAINTIFF
Defendant, UNIVERSAL PROPERTY & CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY (the
"Insurance Company") pursuant to Rule 1.340 ofthe Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, propounds
the followingFirst Set of Interrogatories
upon Plaintiff, to be answered in writing,
(the"Insured"),
under oath, within the time specified.
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I HEREBY CERTIFY that a true and correct copy of the foregoingwas furnished via E-
Service to: Michael E. Chiholm, Esq., Sondela Law LLC (michael@sondelalaw.com;
on this 10th day of October, 2022.
counsel for Plaintiff,
Attorneyfor Defendant
Universal Property & Casualty Ins. Co.
P.O. Box 9388
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33310
Telephone:954-958-3319
Toll-Fee: 1-833-658-8594 (JudgesOnly)
Facsimile: 954-958-1262
By-. /s/ Paris A. Roach
Paris A. Roach, Esq.
Florida Bar No. 1028751
For Service of Court Documents onlv:
Primary: upciceservice01@universalproperty.com
Secondary: agl 130@universalproperty.com
Tertiary:
pr0211@universalproperty.com
*** FILED: BROWARD COUNTY, FL BRENDA D. FORMAN, CLERK 10/10/2022 10:03:17 AM.****
Page 2
For Scheduling Matters:
ag1130@universalproperty.com
*Please do not send any inquiries or scheduling matters to
upciceservice@universalpropertv.com or upciceservice01@universalpropertv.com.
Page 3
DEFINITIONS
1. "Calendar Year" means that period of time that begins at 12:01 a.m. on January 1 of any
given year and ends at 11:59 pm. on December 31 of that year.
2. "Claim" means the insurance claim that Plaintiff (asdefined herein)reportedto Defendant
(as defined herein)and that serves as a basis for any causes of action asserted againstDefendant
in this action.
3. "Claimed Cause of Loss" means the event and/or reason that You (asdefined herein)are
claimingthat the Insured Property (as defined herein)was damaged.
4. "Concerning", "concern," or any other derivative thereof as used herein, shall be
construed as referringto, responding to, relatingto, pertainingto, connected with, comprising,
memorializing, commenting on, substantiating,
regarding, discussing,showing, describing,
analyzing,and constituting.
reflecting,
5. "Control" means having possession of and/or the power and/or authorityto request
possession ofthe subjectmatter or a copy thereof,or direct the possession,movement, transfer or
of the subjectproperty or document.
other disposition
6. "Date" means the exact date (including
day, month, and year).Ifthe exact day,month, and
year is not ascertainable,then the best available approximation of the exact day, month, and year.
7. "Defendant" means Universal Property & Casualty Insurance Company.
8."Document" or"documents" means anythingwhich may be considered to be a document or
tangiblethingwithin the meaning of Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.350 and means any and all correspondence,
records,reports, memoranda, notes, letters,
telegrams,emails,voicemails, telexes,texts, messages
(including,but not limited to, memos, notes and/or reports of telephone conversations and
conferences),studies,analyses,books, magazines, newspapers, publications,
booklets,pamphlets,
circulars, minutes, or other communications (including,
bulletins,instructions, but not limited to,
interoffice and intra-office
communications), questionnaires, surveys, contracts, memoranda of
agreements, assignments, books of account, journals,ledgers,summaries, opinions,reports,
evaluations,financial statements and all records of or reflectingbusiness operations,mortgages,
evaluations,orders,working papers, bills of load sheets,warehouse rece*ts,
lading,shippinglists,
letters of credit, records of summaries of personalinterviews or conversations,
insurance policies,
appointment calendars, diaries,schedules, printouts, drawings, specifications, patents, patent
applications,certificates ofregistration,
applicationsfor registration,
graphs,charts,studies,planning
materials,statistical statements and compilations,forecasts,work papers, invoices,statements, bills,
checks, bank books, bank statements, forms, vouchers, notebooks, data sheets,microfilm,microfiche,
audio tape, video tape, compact disks,blueprints,
photographicnegatives, architectural
specifications,
diagrams, schematics, logic diagrams, timing diagrams, pictures,photographs,microscopically
obtained photographs,test results,belts,tapes, magnetic tapes, paper tapes, plotteroutput recordings,
discs,data cards,films, data processingfiles, computer files and other computer readable records or
programs and all other written,printedor recorded matter of any kind, and all other data compilations
Page 4
from which information can be obtained, and translated,if necessary, and all originals, drafts and
copies thereof. Any documents bearing any marks including,but not limited to, initials, stamped
indicia,comments, or notations,of any kind that are not a part of the original
text or photographic
reproductionthereof are to be considered and identified as separate documents.
"Dwelling" means the physical dwelling located
9. at the Insured Property (as defined
herein).
10. "Insured Property" means the real property listed on the declarations page of
specifically
the Policy(asdefined herein).
11. "Other Structures" means any structures located at the Insured Property that are set apart
from and/or not connected to the Dwelling including,but not limited to, those structures connected
only by a fence,utility
line,and/or similar connection.
12. "Person" or "Persons" shall mean any natural person but not
or any legalentityincluding,
limited to,corporation,partnersh* and unincorporated association, firm, joint venture,
a
proprietorship,and/or any other entityor group ofnatural persons or such entities,
singularor plural,
male, female, or neuter gender,as the context may require,and any officer.
13. "Plaintiff" means any person and/or entitynamed as a in this
plaintiff action.
14. "Policy" means the insurance policythat serves as a basis for any causes of action asserted
againstDefendant in this lawsuit.
15. "Related to", "relatingto", and "relate to" shall include
pertaining to, relevant
to, referring
to, supporting,contradicting,
mentioning,evidencing,discussing or otherwise involving, whether
directly the subjectmatter of the specified
or indirectly, request.
16. "Universal" means Defendant UNIVERSAL PROPERTY & CASUALTY INSURANCE
COMPANY
17. "Written Communication" or "correspondence" means the conveyance of information
by a writing,whether by letters,
e-mails,memoranda, handwritten notes and/or faxes.
"Witness Statement" or "Statement" means a statement of any person with knowledge
18.
of relevant facts,regardlessof when the statement was made, and is either (i)a written statement
signed or otherwise adopted and/or approved in writing by the person making it; or, (ii)a
stenographic, and/or other type of recording of a person's oral statement
mechanical, electrical,
of such recording.
verbatim transcript
and/or any substantially
19. "You" or "Your" means the specific party responding to these requests and/or any person
and/or entitynamed as a Plaintiff in this action.
20. "Your Counsel" means the attorney or attorneys who are representingor have represented
you either with regardto the claim or in this lawsuit.
Page 5
INTERROGATORIES
In accordance with Rule 1.340(e)of the Fla. R. Civ. P., space has been provided aftereach
interrogatoryfor a response to be inserted. However, ifmore space is needed, "the answering
party may attach additional documents with answers and referto them in the space provided in
the interrogatories."
See, Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.340(e).
1. Please state the name and address ofthe person answering these Interrogatories
and the
name and address of any person assistingin preparing responses to these
Interrogatories.
ANSWER:
2. Please state all facts upon which you base the contention that the damage(s) sustained
to the Plaintiff's property is covered under the subjectinsurance policy.
ANSWER:
3 Please state the name and address of all persons who are believed or known by you,
your agents or your attorneys to have any knowledge concerning any issues in this
lawsuit;please specifythe subjectmatter about which each witness has knowledge.
ANSWER:
4. Please state the name and address of every person known to you, your agents or your
attorneys, who have knowledge about or possession,custody or control of any model,
plat,map, drawing, motion picture,
videotape,or photograph pertainingto any fact or
issue involved in this controversy; please describe as each what items such
individual(s) have, the name and address of the party who took or prepared it and the
date it was taken or prepared.
ANSWER:
Page 6
5. Please state the name and address of every individual who has conducted an
adjustment or evaluation of the Plaintiff's residence to determine the
investigation,
cause o f the allegeddamage to which Plaintiff is seeking insurance coverage.
ANSWER:
6. Please state each item of damage to the dwelling, contents or for additional living
you are claiming and/or other damages that you are claiming and provide
expenses that
an explanationfor the computation of each item o f damage.
ANSWER:
7. Please state if you have ever been a party, either plaintiff
or defendant, in a lawsuit
other than the present matter and, if so, please state whether you were plaintiff or
defendant,the nature of the action and the date and court in which suit was filed.
ANSWER:
8 Please indicate whether you have any insurance claims in the last ten (10) years
filed
priorto the subjectclaim or any claims subsequent to the aforementioned date. If so,
pleaseidentifythe nature o f the claim, the insurer and the date o f the claim.
ANSWER:
9- Please indicate if the subjectproperty was insured by you pursuant to any other
insurance policiespriorto the issuance of the Universal policy at issue. If so, please
name the insurance carrier and the applicablepolicyperiods.
Page 7
ANSWER:
10. Please identifythe initial date and time that the allegeddamage claimed in the lawsuit
occurred to the subjectproperty and the nature of the damage.
ANSWER:
11. Please list all damages discovered on the date referenced in Interrogatory10 and
identifythe individual that discovered the damage.
ANSWER:
12. Please identifyany and all repairsmade to the subjectproperty, that you are claiming
were damaged, within five (5)years priorto the loss at issue or anytime subsequentto
and the party making the repair.
the claim at issue,as well as the nature ofthe repair(s)
ANSWER:
13. Please state any and all actions taken by you or anyone on your behalf to protect the
allegeddamaged property from further damage.
ANSWER:
14. Please identifyall persons/companies that inspected and/or appraised the subject
property at the time of or priorto your purchase of the property.
Page 8
ANSWER:
[THIS REMAINING SPACE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK]
Page 9
VALERIE BROOKS
STATE OF FLORIDA t
t
COUNTY OF BROWARD t
BEFORE ME, the undersigned authority,
personallyappeared
who is personallyknown to me being first duly sworn accordingto law, deposes and says that she
executed the foregoing Verified Answers to Defendant's First Set of Interrogatories
and that they
are true and correct to the best of her knowledge and belief.
IN WITNESS WHEREORE, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal ofmy office;
in the County and State last aforesaid,this dayor ,2022.
NOTARY PUBLIC
State of Florida
My Commission expires:
Preview
Filing# 158866944 E-Filed 10/10/2022 10:03:17 AM INTHE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE 17TH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT IN AND FOR BROWARD COUNTY, FLORIDA VALERIE BROOKS, CASE NO.: CACE-22-014300 Plaintiff, VS. UNIVERSAL PROPERTY & CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY, Defendant. i DEFENDANT'S FIRST SET OF INTERROGATORIES TO PLAINTIFF Defendant, UNIVERSAL PROPERTY & CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY (the "Insurance Company") pursuant to Rule 1.340 ofthe Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, propounds the followingFirst Set of Interrogatories upon Plaintiff, to be answered in writing, (the"Insured"), under oath, within the time specified. CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I HEREBY CERTIFY that a true and correct copy of the foregoingwas furnished via E- Service to: Michael E. Chiholm, Esq., Sondela Law LLC (michael@sondelalaw.com; on this 10th day of October, 2022. counsel for Plaintiff, Attorneyfor Defendant Universal Property & Casualty Ins. Co. P.O. Box 9388 Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33310 Telephone:954-958-3319 Toll-Fee: 1-833-658-8594 (JudgesOnly) Facsimile: 954-958-1262 By-. /s/ Paris A. Roach Paris A. Roach, Esq. Florida Bar No. 1028751 For Service of Court Documents onlv: Primary: upciceservice01@universalproperty.com Secondary: agl 130@universalproperty.com Tertiary: pr0211@universalproperty.com *** FILED: BROWARD COUNTY, FL BRENDA D. FORMAN, CLERK 10/10/2022 10:03:17 AM.**** Page 2 For Scheduling Matters: ag1130@universalproperty.com *Please do not send any inquiries or scheduling matters to upciceservice@universalpropertv.com or upciceservice01@universalpropertv.com. Page 3 DEFINITIONS 1. "Calendar Year" means that period of time that begins at 12:01 a.m. on January 1 of any given year and ends at 11:59 pm. on December 31 of that year. 2. "Claim" means the insurance claim that Plaintiff (asdefined herein)reportedto Defendant (as defined herein)and that serves as a basis for any causes of action asserted againstDefendant in this action. 3. "Claimed Cause of Loss" means the event and/or reason that You (asdefined herein)are claimingthat the Insured Property (as defined herein)was damaged. 4. "Concerning", "concern," or any other derivative thereof as used herein, shall be construed as referringto, responding to, relatingto, pertainingto, connected with, comprising, memorializing, commenting on, substantiating, regarding, discussing,showing, describing, analyzing,and constituting. reflecting, 5. "Control" means having possession of and/or the power and/or authorityto request possession ofthe subjectmatter or a copy thereof,or direct the possession,movement, transfer or of the subjectproperty or document. other disposition 6. "Date" means the exact date (including day, month, and year).Ifthe exact day,month, and year is not ascertainable,then the best available approximation of the exact day, month, and year. 7. "Defendant" means Universal Property & Casualty Insurance Company. 8."Document" or"documents" means anythingwhich may be considered to be a document or tangiblethingwithin the meaning of Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.350 and means any and all correspondence, records,reports, memoranda, notes, letters, telegrams,emails,voicemails, telexes,texts, messages (including,but not limited to, memos, notes and/or reports of telephone conversations and conferences),studies,analyses,books, magazines, newspapers, publications, booklets,pamphlets, circulars, minutes, or other communications (including, bulletins,instructions, but not limited to, interoffice and intra-office communications), questionnaires, surveys, contracts, memoranda of agreements, assignments, books of account, journals,ledgers,summaries, opinions,reports, evaluations,financial statements and all records of or reflectingbusiness operations,mortgages, evaluations,orders,working papers, bills of load sheets,warehouse rece*ts, lading,shippinglists, letters of credit, records of summaries of personalinterviews or conversations, insurance policies, appointment calendars, diaries,schedules, printouts, drawings, specifications, patents, patent applications,certificates ofregistration, applicationsfor registration, graphs,charts,studies,planning materials,statistical statements and compilations,forecasts,work papers, invoices,statements, bills, checks, bank books, bank statements, forms, vouchers, notebooks, data sheets,microfilm,microfiche, audio tape, video tape, compact disks,blueprints, photographicnegatives, architectural specifications, diagrams, schematics, logic diagrams, timing diagrams, pictures,photographs,microscopically obtained photographs,test results,belts,tapes, magnetic tapes, paper tapes, plotteroutput recordings, discs,data cards,films, data processingfiles, computer files and other computer readable records or programs and all other written,printedor recorded matter of any kind, and all other data compilations Page 4 from which information can be obtained, and translated,if necessary, and all originals, drafts and copies thereof. Any documents bearing any marks including,but not limited to, initials, stamped indicia,comments, or notations,of any kind that are not a part of the original text or photographic reproductionthereof are to be considered and identified as separate documents. "Dwelling" means the physical dwelling located 9. at the Insured Property (as defined herein). 10. "Insured Property" means the real property listed on the declarations page of specifically the Policy(asdefined herein). 11. "Other Structures" means any structures located at the Insured Property that are set apart from and/or not connected to the Dwelling including,but not limited to, those structures connected only by a fence,utility line,and/or similar connection. 12. "Person" or "Persons" shall mean any natural person but not or any legalentityincluding, limited to,corporation,partnersh* and unincorporated association, firm, joint venture, a proprietorship,and/or any other entityor group ofnatural persons or such entities, singularor plural, male, female, or neuter gender,as the context may require,and any officer. 13. "Plaintiff" means any person and/or entitynamed as a in this plaintiff action. 14. "Policy" means the insurance policythat serves as a basis for any causes of action asserted againstDefendant in this lawsuit. 15. "Related to", "relatingto", and "relate to" shall include pertaining to, relevant to, referring to, supporting,contradicting, mentioning,evidencing,discussing or otherwise involving, whether directly the subjectmatter of the specified or indirectly, request. 16. "Universal" means Defendant UNIVERSAL PROPERTY & CASUALTY INSURANCE COMPANY 17. "Written Communication" or "correspondence" means the conveyance of information by a writing,whether by letters, e-mails,memoranda, handwritten notes and/or faxes. "Witness Statement" or "Statement" means a statement of any person with knowledge 18. of relevant facts,regardlessof when the statement was made, and is either (i)a written statement signed or otherwise adopted and/or approved in writing by the person making it; or, (ii)a stenographic, and/or other type of recording of a person's oral statement mechanical, electrical, of such recording. verbatim transcript and/or any substantially 19. "You" or "Your" means the specific party responding to these requests and/or any person and/or entitynamed as a Plaintiff in this action. 20. "Your Counsel" means the attorney or attorneys who are representingor have represented you either with regardto the claim or in this lawsuit. Page 5 INTERROGATORIES In accordance with Rule 1.340(e)of the Fla. R. Civ. P., space has been provided aftereach interrogatoryfor a response to be inserted. However, ifmore space is needed, "the answering party may attach additional documents with answers and referto them in the space provided in the interrogatories." See, Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.340(e). 1. Please state the name and address ofthe person answering these Interrogatories and the name and address of any person assistingin preparing responses to these Interrogatories. ANSWER: 2. Please state all facts upon which you base the contention that the damage(s) sustained to the Plaintiff's property is covered under the subjectinsurance policy. ANSWER: 3 Please state the name and address of all persons who are believed or known by you, your agents or your attorneys to have any knowledge concerning any issues in this lawsuit;please specifythe subjectmatter about which each witness has knowledge. ANSWER: 4. Please state the name and address of every person known to you, your agents or your attorneys, who have knowledge about or possession,custody or control of any model, plat,map, drawing, motion picture, videotape,or photograph pertainingto any fact or issue involved in this controversy; please describe as each what items such individual(s) have, the name and address of the party who took or prepared it and the date it was taken or prepared. ANSWER: Page 6 5. Please state the name and address of every individual who has conducted an adjustment or evaluation of the Plaintiff's residence to determine the investigation, cause o f the allegeddamage to which Plaintiff is seeking insurance coverage. ANSWER: 6. Please state each item of damage to the dwelling, contents or for additional living you are claiming and/or other damages that you are claiming and provide expenses that an explanationfor the computation of each item o f damage. ANSWER: 7. Please state if you have ever been a party, either plaintiff or defendant, in a lawsuit other than the present matter and, if so, please state whether you were plaintiff or defendant,the nature of the action and the date and court in which suit was filed. ANSWER: 8 Please indicate whether you have any insurance claims in the last ten (10) years filed priorto the subjectclaim or any claims subsequent to the aforementioned date. If so, pleaseidentifythe nature o f the claim, the insurer and the date o f the claim. ANSWER: 9- Please indicate if the subjectproperty was insured by you pursuant to any other insurance policiespriorto the issuance of the Universal policy at issue. If so, please name the insurance carrier and the applicablepolicyperiods. Page 7 ANSWER: 10. Please identifythe initial date and time that the allegeddamage claimed in the lawsuit occurred to the subjectproperty and the nature of the damage. ANSWER: 11. Please list all damages discovered on the date referenced in Interrogatory10 and identifythe individual that discovered the damage. ANSWER: 12. Please identifyany and all repairsmade to the subjectproperty, that you are claiming were damaged, within five (5)years priorto the loss at issue or anytime subsequentto and the party making the repair. the claim at issue,as well as the nature ofthe repair(s) ANSWER: 13. Please state any and all actions taken by you or anyone on your behalf to protect the allegeddamaged property from further damage. ANSWER: 14. Please identifyall persons/companies that inspected and/or appraised the subject property at the time of or priorto your purchase of the property. Page 8 ANSWER: [THIS REMAINING SPACE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK] Page 9 VALERIE BROOKS STATE OF FLORIDA t t COUNTY OF BROWARD t BEFORE ME, the undersigned authority, personallyappeared who is personallyknown to me being first duly sworn accordingto law, deposes and says that she executed the foregoing Verified Answers to Defendant's First Set of Interrogatories and that they are true and correct to the best of her knowledge and belief. IN WITNESS WHEREORE, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal ofmy office; in the County and State last aforesaid,this dayor ,2022. NOTARY PUBLIC State of Florida My Commission expires: