Ross v. SunTrust Bank et al

Filing 23

ORDER: Defendants SunTrust Bank and SunTrust Mortgage, Inc.'s Motion to Strike Jury Demand (Doc. # 19 ) is GRANTED. The jury demand is STRIKEN from the Complaint. Signed by Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington on 6/16/2017. (DRW)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
TAMPA DIVISION
DAVID ROSS,
Plaintiff,
v.

Case No. 8:17-cv-783-T-33TBM

SUNTRUST BANK, et al.,
Defendants.
_____________________________/
ORDER
This matter comes before the Court upon consideration of
Defendants SunTrust Bank and SunTrust Mortgage, Inc.’s Motion
to Strike Jury Demand (Doc. # 19), filed on June 1, 2017. As
of this Order, Plaintiff David Ross has not filed a response
in opposition and the time for doing so has passed. As such,
the Court grants the Motion as unopposed.
Discussion
“The Seventh Amendment provides ‘[i]n Suits at common
law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty
dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved.’”
Chauffeurs, Teamsters & Helpers, Local No. 391 v. Terry, 494
U.S. 558, 564 (1990) (quoting U.S. Const. amend. VII). A party
may waive its right to a jury trial if the waiver is knowing
and voluntary. Bakrac, Inc. v. Villager Franchise Sys., Inc.,

164 Fed. Appx. 820, 823 (11th Cir. 2006). However, because of
the

historical

importance

of

this

right,

“any

seeming

curtailment . . . should be scrutinized with the utmost care.”
Chauffers, 494 U.S. at 565 (internal citations omitted).
Furthermore,

“because

the

right

to

a

jury

trial

is

fundamental, courts must indulge every reasonable presumption
against waiver.” Burns v. Lawther, 53 F.3d 1237, 40 (11th
Cir. 1995) (per curiam) (internal quotations omitted).
In his Complaint, Ross demands a jury trial. (Doc. # 1
at 8). However, the mortgage includes a jury waiver provision
that reads: “The Borrower hereby waives any right to a trial
by jury in any action, proceeding, claim, or counterclaim,
whether in contract or tort, at law or in equity, arising out
of or in any way related to this Security Instrument or the
Note.” (Id. at 22, ¶ 25). Ross, by his failure to file a
response in opposition, makes no argument that this waiver
provision is unenforceable or otherwise ineffective.
Accordingly, it is
ORDERED, ADJUDGED, and DECREED:
Defendants SunTrust Bank and SunTrust Mortgage, Inc.’s
Motion to Strike Jury Demand (Doc. # 19) is GRANTED. The jury
demand is STRIKEN from the Complaint.

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DONE and ORDERED in Chambers in Tampa, Florida, this
16th day of June, 2017.

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