The application of Florida’s Building Code is a question of law for the court. It’s NOT a question for a witness to determine.
In a recent personal injury dispute dealing with the tripping and falling on a public sidewalk, a key issue included the application of Florida’s Building Code on a Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) project. Summary judgment was granted for the defendants where a major portion of the ruling was based on the inapplicability of Florida’s Building Code to the public sidewalk. Even though the plaintiff had an expert witness that opined that the Florida Building Code did apply, the trial court rejected this opinion in determining the Code did not apply:
Whether the Florida Building Code is applicable to this case ultimately is a question of law belonging to the court, not the witness. See Lindsey v. Bill Arflin Bonding Ag., Inc., 645 So. 2d 565, 568 (Fla. 1st DCA 1994) (“The legal effect of a building code presents a question of law for the court, not a question of fact for the jury.”); see also Edward J. Seibert, A.I.A. Architect & Planner, P.A. v. Bayport Beach & Tennis Club Ass’n, Inc., 573 So. 2d 889, 891-92 (Fla. 2d DCA 1990) (“An expert should not be allowed to testify concerning questions of law and the interpretation of the building code presented a question of law. It was the duty of the trial court to interpret the meaning of the code . . . .” (citations omitted)). As such, it was the responsibility of the trial court to determine whether the building code applies to the sidewalk in this case and whether the code provided evidence of negligence. See Martin v. Omni Hotels Mgmt. Corp., No. 6:15-cv-1364-ORL-41KRS, 2017 WL 2928154, at *4 (M.D. Fla. April 19, 2017) (“Accordingly, [the expert] may not testify as to the applicability or inapplicability of any provision of the Florida Building Code. This Court will determine what provisions, if any, are applicable to the facts of this case.”).
Here, the trial court was correct to reject the expert’s opinion and conclude the building code was not applicable to this case. The express scope of the code prohibits its application to the right-of-way sidewalk where [the plaintiff] fell. Further, the expert was unable to provide any support for his novel interpretation applying the building code to a public sidewalk unconnected to any building or structure. His view would have the effect of extending the Florida Building Code to cover the thousands of miles of public right-of-way sidewalk across the state of Florida. Such a strained approach paves a path far too wide and stretches the building code far too long.
Jackson v. Florida Department of Transportation, 50 Fla.L.Weekly D2224b (Fla. 5th DCA 2025).
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