In Florida, standard of review for ad valorem tax assessments not whether there is any reasonable hypothesis to support them.

The Sarasota County Property Appraiser's ad valorem tax assessments of properties owned by CVS for tax years 2006, 2007, and 2008 totaled approximately $97 million. CVS's independent appraisals of the same properties totaled approximately $59 million. Under Florida law, a property appraiser's ad valorem tax assessment is initially presumed to be correct. This presumption can be rebutted if the taxpayer proves by a preponderance of the evidence that the appraiser either did not consider properly the criteria in the statute or arbitrarily used appraisal practices that are not generally applied. If the presumption is rebutted, the taxpayer must prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the assessment is "in excess of just value." If the presumption is not rebutted, the taxpayer must prove, by a higher standard of clear and convincing evidence, that the assessment is "in excess of value." The trial court upheld the county property appraiser's $97 million assessment, finding that the appraiser properly considered the statute and did not arbitrarily use appraisal practices that are not generally applied. The trial court acknowledged that CVS's position was sensible but considered itself bound to uphold the county property appraiser's valuation if there was any reasonable hypothesis to support it. The appeals court reversed the trial court because it applied an incorrect standard--the "any-reasonable-hypothesis" standard. The appeals court found that standard had been expressly abrogated by a Florida statute enacted in 2009 that applied retroactively and rejected the any-reasonable-hypothesis standard. On remand, the trial court was instructed to follow the statute and at no point consider whether the assessment was within the range of reasonable appraisals or whether it is supported by any reasonable hypothesis. Written By The Appraisal Journal. CVS EGL Fruitville Sarasota FL, LLC v. Todora Court of Appeals of Florida September 18, 2013 2013 WL 5225769 Need to sell your unwanted house call us 954 247 1353 or click here!