The Florida Senate gave final approval Wednesday night to a bill that would shorten the time for residents to file lawsuits about construction defects in their homes.
The Senate voted 31-7 to back the bill (SB 360), which the House approved last week.
The dissenting votes were cast by Minority Leader Lauren Book, D-Plantation; Sen. Lori Berman, D-Boca Raton; Sen. Rosalind Osgood, D-Fort Lauderdale; Sen. Jason Pizzo, D-Hollywood; Sen. Tina Polsky, D-Boca Raton; Sen. Darryl Rouson, D-St. Petersburg; and Sen. Geraldine Thompson, D-Windermere.
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The Senate passed the bill by a similar vote on March 15, but the House made a change last week, sending the issue back to the Senate for a final vote.
The bill, which is ready to go to Gov. Ron DeSantis, deals with a series of issues, including lawsuits about “latent” construction defects — essentially defects that can remain hidden from homeowners for years — and what is known in the legal world as a “statute of repose.”
The bill, in part, would shorten the statute of repose for filing lawsuits about latent construction defects from 10 years to seven years.
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