Articles Posted in Business Litigation

As the United States Supreme Court explained in Nw Nat’l Life Ins. Co. v. Riggs, 203 U.S. 243 (1906), the freedom of contract is a constitutionally protected right. Contracting parties are free to address any issue they choose, including the question of whether their agreement may be modified at all and, if so, how. When…

For a long time, Florida courts have employed the “litigation privilege” to provide “all persons involved in judicial proceedings, including parties and counsel, and absolute privilege from civil liability for acts taken in relation to those proceedings.” North Star Cap. Acquisitions, LLC v. Krig, 611 F.Supp.2d 1324 (M.D. Fla. 2009). Precedent from the Supreme Court…

Tortious interference claims are frequently pled in business litigation against competitors, and generally assert a type of “unfair competition” that interferes with a business relationship. Under Florida law, the elements of tortious interference with a business relationship are: (1) the existence of a business relationship that affords the plaintiff existing or prospective legal rights; (2)…

Precedent from the Supreme Court of Florida in Argonaut Insurance Company v. May Plumbing Company, 474 So.2d 212 (Fla. 1985), set forth the legal standard for recovery prejudgment interest where there is recovery of financial loss at trial. Argonaut held that “when a verdict liquidates damages on a plaintiff’s out-of-pocket, pecuniary losses, plaintiff is entitled,…

Under Florida law, restrictive covenants are generally unenforceable under Florida law as restraints on trade. Section 541.18, Florida Statutes, states that “[e]very contract, combination or conspiracy in restrain of trade or commerce in this state is unlawful.” Precedent from the Supreme Court of Florida in White v. Mederi Caretenders Visiting Servs. of Se. Fla, LLC,…

Under Florida law, trade secrets may be enforced via a statutory cause of action for trade secret misappropriation. Florida Statute Section 688.002(4) defines the term “trade secret” as: “[I]nformation, including a formula, pattern, compilation, program, device, method, technique, or process that: (a) Derives independent economic value, actual or potential, from not being generally known to,…

Some Florida employers and their owners or managers have been sued for alleged intentional infliction of emotional distress. The Supreme Court of Florida in Metro. Life Ins. Co. v. McCarson, 467 So.2d 277 (Fla. 1985), held that to prove intentional infliction of emotional distress, the plaintiff must prove (1) the defendant engaged in intentional or…

Florida’s Whistleblower’s Act, governing private sector employers, prohibits the employer from taking “retaliatory personnel action” against an employee because the employee “[o]bjected to, or refused to participate in, any activity, policy, or practice of the employer which is in violation of a law, rule, or regulation.” Section 448.102(3), Florida Statutes. The statute defines “retaliatory personnel…

Claims of false advertising are often asserted under the federal Lanham Act. In Tobinick v. Novella, 848 F.3d 935 (11th Cir. 2017), the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit explained that “[t]he Lanham Act prescribes liability for false advertising to ‘commercial advertising or promotion.’” To evaluate whether a claim can be asserted…

In Florida, an injunction is the generally favored remedy in cases of breach of a non-compete agreement. The Supreme Court of Florida in Miller Mechanical, Inc. v. Ruth, 300 So.2d 11 (Fla. 1974), explained that in cases of breach of a restrictive covenant, “[t]he Court may award damages for breach of contract but the normal…