Articles Posted in Business Litigation

Florida law permits a person or company to sue under a business contract which that party did not actually agree to because that person or business is a “third-party beneficiary” to the contract. A third-party beneficiary is an entity which receives a benefit under a contract but is not one of the parties that signed…

Attorneys’ fee provisions in contracts can significantly influence how a dispute will be resolved. An aggrieved party can become emboldened if an attorneys’ fees award is available as a prevailing party. At first blush, it may appear prudent for a business to have its contract contain an attorneys’ fee provision which allows it to claim…

Resolving a dispute through arbitration can affect the scope and amount of discovery, the speed of resolution, as well as the ultimate result of business litigation. Whether a particular dispute between parties is arbitrable is defined by what the parties agreed to. Arbitration clauses often narrow the scope of arbitrable issues to particular types of…

Trial of a business dispute through the court system or through arbitration can have significant consequences. As discussed in previous articles, resolving a dispute through arbitration can affect the scope and amount of discovery, the speed of resolution, as well as the ultimate result of the case. Arbitration of a dispute may be more beneficial…

As a defense to the enforcement of a contract, a party can claim the affirmative defense that the agreement is “unconscionable.” The unconscionability defense requires that the party claiming it show that both the substance of the agreement is unreasonably favorable to a party and that the agreement was made procedure by which the parties…

The unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic affected many Florida business’ ability to comply with their contractual obligations. Government quarantine measures as well as changes in economic conditions and consumer demand continue to influence contract compliance. Mavrick law released two articles at the outset of the pandemic concerning contractual disputes and COVID-19. The first addressed the contractual defense…

Noncompete agreements sometimes designate the laws of other states to govern the parties’ contractual obligations, even if the agreement is made in Florida. This is known as a choice of law provision. When these choice-of-law provisions are valid and enforceable, they can have significant repercussions on the results of noncompete litigation. Peter Mavrick is a…

The Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act (FDUTPA) provides businesses with a civil cause of action against unscrupulous business practices. While FDUTPA has limitations, it is applicable in a wide variety of circumstances when a plaintiff can show that a defendant engaged in unfair or deceptive business practices against a consumer. Peter Mavrick is…

Misappropriation of a trade secret can occur when there is an acquisition of another’s trade secret by improper means or through disclosure or use of a trade secret without consent by a person who used improper means to acquire the trade secret or knew that the trade secret was improperly acquired. Section 688.002, Florida Statutes.…

When a party appeals a court order before the conclusion of the case, the appellate court’s decision on the questions of law presented on appeal governs how the trial court decides those questions of law throughout all subsequent stages of the lawsuit. This concept is known as the “law of the case” doctrine. The law…