In May 1989 A.P. Stuckey and his wife sued Rupert and Lettie Nell Brown, their partners in a large Suwannee County thoroughbred horse farm. They asked that the partnership's assets be divided, and they also sued for malicious interference with business relations, libel and slander, and several other civil claims. The jury awarded the Stuckeys more than $500,000, but the judge ordered a new trial on grounds the verdict was contrary to the evidence. On appeal, the First District Court reversed.