Florida Business Litigation Lawyer Blog

To enforce a non-compete agreement, it is not sufficient to merely show that the scope of the restrictions in the non-compete agreement are reasonable. There must between a connection between the restrictions of the non-compete agreement and the business information. For example, if a business has a legitimate business interest in its product pricing information,…

Florida businesses that enter into contracts will often place “choice of law” provisions within their contracts. There provisions typically govern which state or country’s laws apply to a given transaction. These clauses are usually enforced by the courts, with some exceptions. While states generally share the same fundamental rules of contract law, the choice of…

Handling business litigation in one’s home forum, as opposed to a remote location, can have significant strategic advantages and reduce the stress and hassle of litigation. When a Florida business becomes involved in a lawsuit with an out-of-state opponent, that business may be forced to challenge the opponent’s invocation of an out-of-state forum or need…

When a former employer seeks an injunction to enforce a non-compete or non-solicitation agreement, it must prove that it will suffer irreparable harm without entry of an injunction. A party seeking to enforce a non-solicitation provision by injunction does not need to prove that defendant’s specific activities will cause irreparable injury, rather the statute provides…

The federal statute 26 U.S.C. § 7434 permits a person to claim that another has filed a false tax return on his or her behalf, potentially subjecting an employer to a statutory penalty of $5,000 and attorneys’ fees. Sometimes, disgruntled former employees and independent contractors (collectively referred to as “workers”) will use this statute to…

Spoliation of evidence is a circumstance that may arise in business litigation when one party fails to preserve or intentionally destroys evidence after becoming aware of an imminent lawsuit. Spoliation is defined as “[t]he intentional destruction, mutilation, alteration, or concealment of evidence [.]” SPOLIATION, Black’s Law Dictionary (11th ed. 2019). Spoliation issues in business litigation…

Parties involved in a business litigation dispute may sometimes seek extraordinary remedies when they believe the circumstances warrant it. A party will sometimes seek to enjoin or compel another’s conduct to prevent them from causing irreparable harm through their action or inaction. In business litigation, one party often tries to get the court to order…

Confidential business information may be considered a legitimate business interest justifying enforcement of the non-compete clause. Not all information used by a business will be considered valuable confidential business information by a court, particularly if the information can be obtained through the public domain. However, certain compilations of information, even if public, can be considered…

The recent United States Supreme Court case, Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia, 17-1618, 2020 WL 3146686 (U.S. June 15, 2020), held that lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) employees are protected by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII). While the holding may be considered groundbreaking by some LGBT advocates, the…

Florida companies often transact business outside the State of Florida and abroad. When those transactions go wrong, it can be important for both strategic and convenience reasons for the litigation to occur in Florida. Peter Mavrick is a Fort Lauderdale business litigation lawyer. The Mavrick Law Firm represents clients in breach of contract litigation, non-compete…