The Mavrick Law Firm regularly represents entrepreneurs who open businesses in industries in which they were formerly employees. As such, often times we are confronted with covenants not to compete signed by the entrepreneur when he or she was employed with his or her former employer. The restrictive covenants will usually restrict the entrepreneur from…
Continue reading ›The Mavrick Law Firm’s earlier publication, Florida Non-Compete: Supreme Court To Resolve Conflicting Appellate Court Decisions, examined a conflict between the Fourth District Court of Appeal and the Fifth District Court of Appeal that centered around of the protection of referral sources in the home healthcare industry by Florida’s Non-Compete Statute, § 542.335, Fla. Stat.…
Continue reading ›The use of the two-tier method to determine whether collective actions should proceed under Section 216(b) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) is inappropriate because it: (1) conflates Rule 23 standards with non-applicable wage and overtime claims under the Fair Labor Standards Act; and (2) wastes judicial resources and the resources of the parties.…
Continue reading ›Employers that are faced with collective actions under the Fair Labor Standards Act may be able to defeat Motions for Conditional Certification if they can demonstrate the individualized nature of named plaintiff’s claims. See Caballero v. Kelly Services, Inc., WL 12732863, at *7 (S.D. Tex. Oct. 5, 2015) (denying certification where alleged violations were “not…
Continue reading ›Prospective business purchasers should diligently verify the accuracy of a sellers representations because misrepresentations made by sellers sometimes are inactionable under Florida law. Florida courts routinely apply the doctrine of caveat emptor, otherwise known as the buyer beware doctrine, to preclude misrepresentation claims that arise out of commercial transactions. See Transcapital Bank v. Shadowbrook at…
Continue reading ›The Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act (FDUTPA), § 501.201 et seq., Florida Statutes, is a remedial statute intended “to protect the consuming public and legitimate business enterprises from those who engage in unfair methods of competition, or unconscionable, deceptive, or unfair acts or practices in the conduct of any trade or commerce.” §…
Continue reading ›Under Florida law, if a member of an LLC wishes to individually sue another member for damages arising out of the membership, the plaintiff-member must prove: “(1) a direct harm to the … member such that the alleged injury does not flow subsequently from an initial harm to the company and (2) a special injury…
Continue reading ›All businesses, especially those that may become the target of a merger or acquisition, that want their successor entities or assignees to have the right to enforce non-compete agreements against their former employees should include a provision that allows third-parties to enforce the non-compete agreements. Unless a non-compete agreement expressly authorizes enforcement of the non-compete…
Continue reading ›Most businesses that sell products or services encourage their salesmen to do whatever it takes to make a sale. This leads to the salesmen exaggerating regarding the quality of the product or service they are selling. Although exaggerations or statements promoting the quality of a product or service can lead to increased sales, it could…
Continue reading ›The Florida Supreme Court will soon release an opinion that settles whether unidentified prospective patients and referral physicians are protected legitimate business interests within the meaning of Florida’s Non-Compete Statute, § 542.335 Fla. Stat. On March 9, 2017, the Florida Supreme Court heard Oral Arguments in Americare Home Therapy, Inc., Etc. v. Hiles, a medical…
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