What Is Procuring Cause? How Florida Brokers Prove They Earned the Commission

Procuring cause in plain terms

A broker is the procuring cause of a sale when the broker's efforts started a series of events that continued, without a real break, until the transaction closed. The focus is on cause and effect. It is not enough to have shown the property once, and it is not required that the broker be in the room at closing. The question is whether the broker's work is what produced a ready, willing and able buyer on terms the seller accepted.

People often describe it as an "unbroken chain of events." The chain usually starts with the introduction of the buyer to the property, or the property to the buyer, and runs through showings, follow-up, price discussions, negotiation and the contract.

Where procuring cause disputes come from

Most procuring cause disputes fall into a few patterns:

• Two agents, one buyer. A buyer tours a property with one agent, then writes the offer through a different agent. Both agents claim the commission.
• The cut-out. A buyer and seller who met through a broker go around that broker and close directly, or through a friendly third party, to avoid paying the fee.
• The straw broker. A new "broker" appears late in the deal, does little or no work, and is named on the contract so the commission goes somewhere other than the broker who earned it.
• The delayed closing. The deal appears to die, then closes months later on similar terms with the same buyer, and the original broker is told the earlier work no longer counts.
• Listing disputes. The listing agreement expires or is cancelled shortly before a buyer the broker produced comes back and buys.

Each pattern turns on the same evidence: who did what, when, and whether the work actually led to the sale.

The evidence that proves procuring cause

Procuring cause is decided on facts, so the broker who can document the chain usually wins. The most important evidence includes:

1. The first introduction. Texts, emails, showing confirmations, MLS showing logs, lockbox records, and sign-in sheets that show when and how the buyer first learned of the property.
2. Continuous contact. Follow-up messages, second showings, disclosures sent, comparable sales provided, and answers to the buyer's questions. Gaps in contact are where the other side will attack.
3. Negotiation history. Draft offers, counteroffers, price discussions and the terms that ended up in the final contract. If the final deal looks like the one you negotiated, that matters.
4. The agreements. Listing agreements, buyer broker agreements, cooperative compensation offers, referral agreements, and any protection or tail period language.
5. The timeline of the closing. The contract date, who was named as broker, the closing statement, and when the commission was paid and to whom.
6. What the parties said. Statements by the buyer or seller about why they bought, who showed them the property, or why they switched agents can be powerful evidence on either side.

Preserve all of it now. Phones get replaced, texts get deleted, and showing services do not keep data forever.

What can break the chain

The other side in a procuring cause case will usually argue that something broke the chain between your work and the closing. Common arguments include:

• Abandonment. The broker stopped working with the buyer or let the deal go cold, and the buyer moved on.
• Estrangement. The buyer became dissatisfied with the broker for a real reason and chose someone else.
• Intervening work. A second broker did substantial new work that actually produced the sale, rather than simply finishing what the first broker started.
• Different deal. The final transaction is materially different from what the first broker worked on: a different property, a different structure, or very different terms.

These arguments are fact questions. A buyer who switched agents because a third party encouraged it, or a seller who arranged the timing of a closing to avoid a fee, does not break the chain simply by saying so. Who caused the break, and why, often decides the case.

Procuring cause, arbitration and court

Where both brokers are members of a Realtor association, a procuring cause dispute between them is often handled through association arbitration rather than court. Disputes that involve a buyer or seller who went around the broker, a broker who is not a member, or claims such as fraud, civil conspiracy or tortious interference are commonly brought in court. Which forum applies depends on the agreements and memberships involved, and that should be reviewed early because it affects deadlines and strategy.

When a commission case becomes a fraud case

Some commission disputes are honest disagreements about who did the work. Others are not. When parties coordinate to cut a broker out, use a straw broker, backdate or alter documents, or hide the closing, the case may support claims beyond a simple commission claim, including fraud, civil conspiracy and tortious interference with a business relationship. Those claims can open the door to different damages, and in serious cases, punitive damages. Our May 2026 verdict involved claims of fraud, civil conspiracy and tortious interference arising from an $84,000 commission. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

This was a jury verdict. Post-trial proceedings may affect the final judgment and amounts recovered. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome in any future matter.

What to do if you think you were cut out

1. Do not confront the buyer or seller in writing until you have collected your own records. What you send now can be used later.
2. Collect and back up your file: texts, emails, call logs, showing records, MLS history, lockbox data, agreements, and anything showing the deal closed.
3. Write a timeline while your memory is fresh: each contact, showing, and conversation, with dates.
4. Pull the public record for the closing: the deed, recording date, and price.
5. Check your deadlines. Commission claims are subject to limitation periods that depend on the type of claim and the agreement. Do not wait.
6. Have an attorney review the file before you send a demand, so the demand fits the claims you can actually prove.

Talk to a Florida procuring cause attorney

If you believe you are the procuring cause of a sale and someone else was paid, call 305-748-3789 or use our private procuring cause questionnaire. We review broker commission and procuring cause disputes throughout Florida, including Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Tampa, Orlando and Jacksonville. Meetings by appointment only.

Related reading: Broker commission disputes · Cut out of a commission · Straw broker schemes · Commission fraud and civil conspiracy

This page is general information, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.