## Facts

- An elderly woman granted her niece a broad power of attorney to manage her finances.
- The niece allegedly misappropriated the principal’s funds and assets (including cash, securities, benefits, and income) during approximately 1990–1992, totaling about $587,267.
- The principal asserted she did not discover the wrongdoing until October 1995, when the niece attempted to transfer a partial interest in the principal’s condominium.
- In 1997, the principal sued the niece and another relative, alleging breach of fiduciary duty, civil theft, conspiracy, conversion, unjust enrichment, and related claims.
- The principal argued the claims were timely because accrual should be postponed until discovery, given the fiduciary relationship and her age-related mental decline; a guardian was later substituted as party.

## Issues

1. Whether the delayed discovery doctrine postpones accrual of claims for breach of fiduciary duty, civil theft, conspiracy, conversion, and unjust enrichment arising from alleged misappropriation by an attorney-in-fact.
2. Whether, absent statutory authorization, courts may extend delayed discovery to such tort and quasi-contract claims to avoid otherwise applicable statutes of limitation.

## Decision

- The Florida Supreme Court quashed the district court’s decision and reinstated the trial court’s summary judgment for the defendants.
- The Court held the delayed discovery doctrine did not apply to the asserted causes of action.
- Applying the general accrual rule, the Court concluded the claims accrued when the wrongful acts occurred and were barred by the four-year (most claims) and five-year (civil theft) limitation periods.

## Legal Principles

- In Florida, a cause of action generally accrues when the last element of the cause of action occurs, as set by statute.
- Delayed discovery is a limited exception that applies only where the Legislature has expressly provided (or clearly authorized) discovery-based accrual for specific claim types.
- Courts may not create new categories of delayed discovery based on equitable concerns, including the existence of a fiduciary relationship or difficulty detecting financial wrongdoing.
- A fiduciary relationship under a power of attorney does not, by itself, alter statutory accrual rules or limitation periods for tort and quasi-contract claims.

## Conclusion

The Florida Supreme Court held that discovery-based accrual could not be judicially extended to fiduciary misappropriation claims for breach of fiduciary duty, civil theft, conspiracy, conversion, or unjust enrichment; because the alleged misconduct occurred years before suit, the claims were time-barred under the applicable statutes of limitation.


Davis v. Monahan, 832 So. 2d 708 (Fla. 2002)