Florida

August 21, 2025
Mich. Couple Say They Were Coerced Into Arbitration Pact

A Michigan couple have sued a Mexican resort company in a bitter feud over a timeshare, arguing that they were jailed in Mexico and forced, under threat of further imprisonment, to sign a settlement agreement sending any additional aspects of the dispute to arbitration in Canada.
August 21, 2025
Judge OKs Deal To End Misrepresented Pickleball Paddle Suit

A Florida federal judge on Wednesday approved a settlement resolving a class action accusing a pickleball paddle manufacturer of deceptively marketing its products as certified by the sport's governing body that will pay out up to $300 to each class member.
August 21, 2025
Feds Claim Fla. Billing Co. Aided $15M Medicare Fraud

The U.S. government urged a Florida federal judge to deny an outsourcing company's motion to toss a $15 million False Claims Act lawsuit, saying the business aided a Miami-based laboratory to fraudulently bill Medicare for genetic tests that weren't used to treat patients.
August 21, 2025
Judge Rejects New Trial Bid In Bike Wheel Patent Case

A Florida federal judge has denied a bike wheel maker's request for a new trial on claims of patent infringement against a rival more than two years after a jury made a finding of no infringement, saying the jury's conclusions were reasonable based on what was shown to them.
August 21, 2025
Ethics Case Reasserted Against Fla. Judge Over Deepfake

A Florida judicial ethics panel has reasserted allegations that a state judge in Broward County violated the state's Code of Judicial Conduct during her 2024 election campaign, ahead of a final hearing set for Dec. 16 by the hearing panel chair of the Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission.
August 21, 2025
Employer Plans In Limbo As Courts Grapple With Trans Care

Despite appellate courts' apparent willingness to allow states to ban gender-affirming care for minors, employers are still waiting for clarity on whether federal anti-discrimination laws require health plans to cover transgender healthcare access, experts say.
August 20, 2025
Feds Lose Bid To Unseal Epstein Grand Jury Files In NY

A Manhattan federal judge Wednesday rejected the U.S. Department of Justice's request to unseal grand jury transcripts from the trafficking case against the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, saying the government has not justified unsealing the materials and did not give Epstein's survivors sufficient notice before filing its request.
August 20, 2025
UF Prof's Appeal In Free Speech Suit Was Late, 11th Circ. Says

The Eleventh Circuit on Wednesday ruled that an English professor who sued University of Florida officials for alleged free speech violations filed his appeal too late, saying he missed his deadline by eight days.
August 20, 2025
Character.AI Founder Seeks Exit From Teen's Suicide Suit

The co-founder of Character.AI has asked a Florida federal judge to toss certain claims in a suit alleging a teen's suicide was caused by a negligently designed artificial intelligence chatbot, saying he can't be sued individually in Florida because he's never done any business in the state.
August 20, 2025
Envestnet Didn't Preserve Data In IP Suit, Special Master Says

A special master in Delaware federal court has recommended sanctioning Envestnet for failing to properly preserve data from a piece of log management software as part of a suit, accusing it of scheming to steal rival fintech software company FinApps' trade secrets.
August 20, 2025
Bakery Wants 11th Circ. To Rehear $15.6M Union Pension Row

An Eleventh Circuit panel should rethink its split decision to hold a wholesale bakery liable for up to $15.6 million in payments to the union pension fund it withdrew from, the bakery argued Wednesday, saying the case is of great consequence for pension law interpretation and deserves a second look.
August 20, 2025
Yacht Brokerage Fights Judge's Exclusion Reading

A yacht brokerage trade group urged a Florida federal court to reject a magistrate judge's recommendation freeing a professional liability insurer from covering the group in an antitrust class action, arguing that the magistrate judge misinterpreted a "standard setting" exclusion.
August 20, 2025
Fla. Man Who Evaded $7M In Federal Taxes Gets Probation

A Florida investor who admitted to cheating the Internal Revenue Service out of $7 million in taxes was sentenced Wednesday to probation after telling a federal judge he suffers from serious health issues, including Stage 4 kidney cancer and early-onset dementia.
August 20, 2025
Florida Panel Revives Suit Over Gun Store Zoning Restriction

A Florida appellate panel on Wednesday issued a split decision reviving a state court lawsuit brought by a gun retailer alleging state law preempts a city zoning ordinance allegedly meant to restrict firearm sales, ruling there's a fact issue that must be decided by a jury.
August 20, 2025
Fla. Court Revives Hospice Worker's Disability Bias Suit

A Florida appeals court on Wednesday revived a hospice worker's disability discrimination suit, ruling that her claims are not time-barred because the Florida Commission on Human Relations has not yet officially given her notice about her claim that would conclude the administrative process.
August 20, 2025
11th Circ. Revives Cannabis Users' 2nd Amendment Challenge

The Eleventh Circuit said Wednesday that a federal law disarming medical cannabis users likely ran afoul of the Second Amendment because it was inconsistent with the nation's history of gun regulation.
August 20, 2025
IRS Lost Lien In Bankruptcy, Man Says In $28M Tax Battle

The Internal Revenue Service jettisoned any federal tax lien it claims to have against a man by filing an unsecured claim in his bankruptcy case, he told a Florida federal court Wednesday in response to the government's $28 million lawsuit against him.
August 19, 2025
CFPB Ends 'Biased' Investigation Of Gun-Financing Fintech

Credova, a fintech firm specializing in buy-now, pay-later financing for firearms and outdoor recreational goods purchases, is no longer facing what the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau now says was a "politically motivated" investigation on its part, the firm's parent company announced Tuesday.
August 19, 2025
PE Firm Hit With Contempt, Receiver In Del. Over Legal Bills

A magistrate in the Delaware Chancery Court has entered an order for contempt and sanctions, as well as a receivership, against private equity firm 777 Partners in its former chief financial officer's suit seeking advancement of legal fees in connection with a fraud investigation and multiple lawsuits related to the company's business.
August 19, 2025
USDOT Flags States' Lapses In Deadly Fla. Truck Crash Probe

The U.S. Department of Transportation on Tuesday called out three states' apparent failures in enforcing licensing standards for commercial truck drivers following last week's deadly highway crash in Florida that left three people dead and instantly became a flash point for the Trump administration's hard-line immigration policies.
August 19, 2025
Lab Owner Gets 3 Years For $40M COVID-19 Test Fraud

A co-founder of a laboratory accused of submitting $40 million in unnecessary COVID-19 and genetic testing claims to healthcare benefit programs was sentenced to three years in prison Tuesday, after a Florida federal judge credited him for the extensive cooperation he provided the government before and during a trial against his co-defendants.
August 19, 2025
$8M Lake Michigan Dock Damages Suit Sent To Florida

A Michigan federal judge has said a Lake Michigan marine transportation company accusing Lockheed Martin Corp. and the U.S. Navy of causing more than $8 million of damage to its facility while testing a naval vessel must pursue the litigation in the Middle District of Florida.
August 19, 2025
11th Circ. Bars Salvage Claim Over Historic French Shipwreck

The Eleventh Circuit ruled Tuesday that an underwater salvage outfit cannot recover payment for locating la Trinité, a French ship sunk off the coast of Florida in 1565, because the Sunken Military Craft Act blocks salvage rights without France's consent.
August 19, 2025
21 AGs Push DEA To Schedule 'Designer Xanax'

Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman and 20 other state attorneys general are urgently asking the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration to schedule an unregulated substance known as "designer Xanax" under the Controlled Substances Act, saying it is contributing to overdose deaths and posing a growing threat to public health.
August 19, 2025
Chinese Co. Looks To Enforce $217M Salmon Farming Award

Chinese agribusiness Joyvio Group Co. Ltd. is asking a Florida federal court to enforce a $217 million arbitral award it won following its nearly $1 billion purchase of a Chilean salmon farming business, after it emerged that the previous owners had deliberately inflated production capacity to drive up the price.

Expert Analysis

Series

Playing Esports Makes Me A Better Lawyer

Competing in a global esports tournament at Wimbledon last year not only fulfilled my childhood dream, but also sharpened skills that are essential to my day job, including strategic thinking, confidence and networking, says AJ Schuyler at Jackson Lewis.
How Changes In State Gift Card Laws May Affect Cos. In 2025

2024 state legislative movements around the escheatment of unused gift card balances and consumer fraud protections should prompt issuers to consider whether changes in company domicile or blanket cash-back policies are needed in the new year, say attorneys at Alston & Bird.
An Associate's Guide To Career Development In 2025

As the new year begins, associates at all levels should consider establishing career metrics, fostering key relationships and employing other specific strategies to help move through the complexities of the legal profession with confidence and emerge as trailblazers, say EJ Stern and Amanda George at Fractional Law Firm.
How White Collar Enforcement May Shift In Trump's 2nd Term

After President-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House next month, the administration’s emphasis on immigration laws, drug offenses and violent crime will likely reduce the focus on white collar crime overall, but certain areas within the white collar world may see increased activity, say attorneys at Keker Van Nest.
The Justices' Securities Rulings, Dismissals That Defined '24

The U.S. Supreme Court's 2024 securities rulings led to increased success for defendants' price impact arguments, but the justices' decisions not to weigh in on important issues relating to the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act's pleading requirements may be just as significant, say attorneys at Skadden.
Series

Fixing Up Cars Makes Me A Better Lawyer

From problem-solving to patience and adaptability to organization, the skills developed working under the hood of a car directly translate to being a more effective lawyer, says Christopher Mdeway at Kaufman Dolowich.
Making The Pitch To Grow Your Company's Legal Team

In a compressed economy, convincing the C-suite to invest in additional legal talent can be a herculean task, but a convincing pitch — supported by metrics and cost analyses — may help in-house counsel justify the growth of their team, say Elizabeth Smith and Roger Garceau at Major Lindsey.
Ledbetter's Legacy Shines In 2024 Equal Pay Law Updates

The federal Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act turned 15 this year, and its namesake's legacy is likely to endure in 2025 and beyond, as demonstrated by 2024's state- and local-level progress on pay equity, as well as several rulings from federal appellate courts, say attorneys at Fisher Phillips.
Top 10 Whistleblowing And Retaliation Events Of 2024

From a Florida federal court’s ruling that the False Claims Act’s qui tam provision is unconstitutional to a record-breaking number of whistleblower tips filed with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, employers saw significant developments in the federal and state whistleblower landscapes this year, say attorneys at Proskauer.
When US Privilege Law Applies To Docs Made Outside The US

As globalization manifests itself in disputes over foreign-created documents, a California federal court’s recent trademark decision illustrates nuances of both U.S. privilege frameworks and foreign evidentiary protections that attorneys must increasingly bear in mind, say attorneys at Hunton.
Notable 2024 Trademark Cases And What To Watch In 2025

Emerging disputes between established tech giants and smaller trademark holders promise to test the boundaries of trademark protection in 2025, following a 2024 marked with disputes in areas ranging from cybersquatting to geographic marks, says Danner Kline at Bradley Arant.
What 2024 Trends In Marketing, Comms Hiring Mean For 2025

The state of hiring in legal industry marketing, business development and communications over the past 12 months was marked by a number of trends — from changes in the C-suite to lateral move challenges — providing clues for what’s to come in the year ahead, says Ben Curle at Ambition.
Series

Group Running Makes Me A Better Lawyer

The combination of physical fitness and community connection derived from running with a group of business leaders has, among other things, helped me to stay grounded, improve my communication skills, and develop a deeper empathy for clients and colleagues, says Jessica Shpall Rosen at Greenwald Doherty.
How White Collar Defense Attys Can Use Summary Witnesses

Few criminal defense attorneys have successfully utilized summary witnesses in the past, but several recent success stories show that it can be a worthwhile trial tactic to help juries understand the complex decision-making at issue, says Jonathan Porter at Husch Blackwell.
Opinion

6 Changes I Would Make If I Ran A Law School

Reuben Guttman at Guttman Buschner identifies several key issues plaguing law schools and discusses potential solutions, such as opting out of the rankings game and mandating courses in basic writing skills.