Doing Business in Florida Blog

Exclusive Arbitration Clauses and Non-Parties to Agreements: The Eleventh Circuit Holds That the Kardashians Cannot Compel Arbitration

January 23, 2017
Paul A. Avron  |  Appellate Litigation, Arbitration, Registered Trademarks

Last week, the Kardashian sisters lost their bid in the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit to compel Kroma Makeup EU, LLC (“Kroma EU”) to arbitrate a dispute.  As background, Lee Tillett, Inc. (“Tillett”) developed and registered a trademark more than a decade ago for a line of cosmetics known as “Kroma” cosmetics.  Tillett gave Kroma

The Fight Over Short Term Rentals – Two Competing Bills Could Change the Short Term Rental Landscape in Florida

January 22, 2017
Jeffrey R. Margolis  |  Hospitality and Leisure, Real Estate, Short Term Rentals, State & Local Government

Florida is renowned for its tourism and real estate.  The two are intertwined, a symbiotic relationship that has continued to grow. And yet, the emergence of short term rentals has created a rift in the relationship, and regulation of short term rentals is a hot issue in both local governments as well as the Florida legislature.   The rise of the on-line

The Life Settlement Industry – Bankruptcy Issues - Part 1

January 16, 2017
Leslie Gern Cloyd and Deborah B. Talenfeld  |  Bankruptcy Litigation, Bankruptcy/Restructuring, Business Reorganization

A “life settlement” is the sale of a life insurance policy to a third party for a value in excess of the policy's cash surrender value, but less than its death benefit.  The life settlement industry focuses on the purchase and sale of life settlements or fractional interests in life settlements to investors.  These investors may be anyone from

Ruden: The Story of the First Successful Reorganization of a Law Firm and Lessons Learned

January 10, 2017
Leslie Gern Cloyd  |  Bankruptcy Litigation, Bankruptcy/Restructuring, Business Reorganization

Ruden McClosky, P.A. (“Ruden”), a formerly large and prestigious law firm that was founded in 1959 and at its peak had more than 200 attorneys commenced a bankruptcy case by filing a petition for Chapter 11 relief (“Petition”) in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida on November 1, 2011.   The firm was a victim of the

Judge Strikes Down Proposed "Public Notice of Pollution" Rule

January 8, 2017
Daniel H. Thompson  |  Environmental, Government and Regulatory, Pollution

On December 30, 2016, an Administrative Law Judge with Florida’s Division of Administrative Hearing, Judge Bram D. E. Canter, issued a Final Order striking down a proposed rule of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection entitled “Public Notice of Pollution”   As explained in my July 29, 2016, blog, the proposed rule was intended to replace a FDEP-issued emergency rule that by Florida law was effective for only 90 days. As with the emergency rule, the proposed rule would have significantly increased pollution notification requirements.

Foreign Businesses Catering to U.S. Tourists Can Enforce Contract Provisions Determining Where Litigation for Injuries Suffered Overseas Must Be Initiated

January 5, 2017
Paul A. Avron  |  Appellate Litigation, Bankruptcy Litigation, Bankruptcy/Restructuring, Foreign Businesses, Foreign Courts, Forum Section Clauses, U.S. Tourists

According to a new Eleventh Circuit opinion, Feggestad v. Kerzner Int’l Bahamas, Ltd., foreign businesses that employ online purchase or reservation systems to sell goods or services to U.S. customers can enforce so-called “forum selection” clauses—contract clauses that designate the geographic location of the court that will hear disputes arising from

Death, Taxes, Insurance, Oh My!

December 12, 2016
Mitchell W. Goldberg

Supreme Court to Decide If the Filing of a Faulty Proof of Claim in Bankruptcy Permits a Debtor to Sue Under the FDCPA

December 11, 2016
Fred O. Goldberg

Pressure's Building on South Florida's Urban (Re)Development

December 5, 2016
Anthony J. Carriuolo

Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality – Showcasing the Real in Real Estate

November 30, 2016
Barry D. Lapides

Is Your Competitor Making False Comparative Advertising Claims?

November 30, 2016
Leonard K. Samuels and Jeffrey S. Wertman

Each year, false advertising lawsuits cost companies millions of dollars in damages and cause significant damage to their reputation and goodwill. Just recently, on November 9, 2016, a former customer of Krispy Kreme doughnuts filed a $5 million false advertising class action lawsuit in federal court in California alleging that Krispy Kreme doughnuts falsely marketed and sold certain products representing that they were filled with actual fruit, when the products allegedly contained no raspberries, blueberries or maple. (Jason Saidian v. Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc., Case No. 2:16-cv-08338, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California).

A Victory for Florida Policyholders: The Florida Supreme Court Upholds the Concurrent Cause Doctrine

November 30, 2016
Michael J. Higer and Gina Clausen Lozier