Florida law contains an explicit privilege against disclosure of alleged trade secrets. This trade secret privilege is set forth in Florida Statutes Section 90.506, which states in pertinent part: “A person has a privilege to refuse to disclose, and to prevent other persons from disclosing, a trade secret owned by that person if the allowance…
Continue reading ›Under federal law, trademark infringement claims mainly governed by the Lanham Act. The Lanham Act imposes civil liability on “[a]ny person who … uses in commerce any word, term, name, symbol, or device, or any combination thereof, or any false designation of origin, false or misleading description of fact, or false or misleading misrepresentation of…
Continue reading ›Miami’s Third District Court of Appeal, in Agritrade, LP v. Quercia, 253 So.3d 28 (Fla. 3d DCA 2017), explained the elements of a Florida law cause of action for unjust enrichment: “(1) plaintiff has conferred a benefit on the defendant, who has knowledge thereof; (2) defendant voluntarily accepts and retains the benefit conferred; and (3)…
Continue reading ›Florida’s Second District Court of Appeal in Atomic Tattoos, LLC v. Morgan, 45 So.3d 63 (2d DCA 2010), explained that a trial court should order a temporary injunction in non-compete covenant litigation only when “the moving party has demonstrated (1) irreparable harm to the moving party unless the injunction issues, (2) unavailability of an adequate…
Continue reading ›Federal courts in Florida allow a part to obtain a temporary restraining order, commonly referred to as a “TRO,” by proving the following elements set forth by the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in Schiavo ex. rel Schindler v. Schiavo, 403 F.3d 1223 (11th Cir. 2005): “(1) [there is] a substantial…
Continue reading ›The tort of “tortious interference with business relationship” is phrased in various ways, including “tortious interference with contractual relationship,” “intentional interference with prospective economic advantage,” and “tortious interference with advantageous business relationship.” However nominally titled, the tortious interference tort is defined by its four basic elements that a party must prove: (1) the existence of…
Continue reading ›Physicians have sometimes challenged their non-compete agreements on the grounds that continuity of patient care is an “overriding public policy reason.” Physicians have argued that public policy allows the physician to care for his patients after termination of his employment, even when the wording of the restrictive covenant bars the physician from continuing to treat…
Continue reading ›Florida law sets forth the requirements for entry of a non-compete injunction, i.e., a court order barring competition under specified circumstances and duration. Relevant here, section 542.335(1)(j), Florida Statutes, provides that a court shall enforce a valid “restrictive covenant by any appropriate and effective remedy, including but not limited to, temporary and permanent injunctions.” Peter…
Continue reading ›“In an action for breach of contract, the goal is to place the injured party in the position it would have been in had the other party not breached the contract so as to give the aggrieved party the benefit of its bargain.” Katz Deli of Aventura, Inc. v. Waterways Plaza, LLC, 183 So. 3d…
Continue reading ›“A general principle of corporate law is that a corporation is a separate legal entity, distinct from the individual persons comprising them, and, absent some basis to pierce the corporate veil, there is no basis for imposing liability for corporate debts and obligations under the individuals.” Beltran v. Vincent P. Miraglia, M.D., P.A., 125 So.…
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