Appeals in Brief
Tobacco Litigation Headed Back to Supreme Court?
It's been almost 5 years since the Florida Supreme Court issued its grand compromise decision in Engle v. Liggett Group, Inc., 945 So. 2d 1246 (Fla. 2006). As contemplated by that decision, many individual suits have been filed by Engle class members. Some...
FL’s 4th District: Tanker Driver Was Reckless Even Though Not Speeding
The Fourth District Court of Appeal handed down quite a few reversals in criminal cases last week, with Santisteban v. State, No. 4D09-229, the most unusual one I've read in a while. The decision addresses 3 uncommon issues: (1) Is it proper for a judge...
DCAs Call Up Major Cases for Post-Labor Day Oral Argument (Updated)
So much for easing back to work after the long weekend. At least for judges in the First District and Fourth District Court of Appeal. As the Miami Herald reports, the 1st DCA is hearing consolidated oral argument this afternoon in Florida Gaming Centers,...
FL Supreme Court Reads Household Exclusion to Extend Beyond Named Insureds’ Household
The Florida Supreme Court returned from its summer hiatus last week with its first regular release of opinions since July 8, and sent this message: when the grandkids come to visit, don’t let them drive your car! Among the new opinions released on...
Amici Curiae Influential in 11th Circuit’s PPACA Decision
If you read through all 207 pages of 11th Circuit Judge Hull and Judge Dubina’s co-authored majority opinion in Florida v. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, you'll notice that although the state Attorneys General succeeded in having the Health Care...
Enforceability of Senior Living Facilities’ Arbitration Agreements Remains a Hot Issue in Florida’s Appellate Courts
Arbitration is thought to be a way to resolve disputes more quickly and without the burdens of litigation and appeals in court proceedings. More than 10 years ago, assisted living facilities and nursing homes in Florida began including arbitration agreements among the...
Can Settlement Proposals Releasing Multiple Parties Trigger Fee-Shifting?
Losing at trial hurts. Getting hit with the bill for your adversary's attorney’s fees makes it hurt ever-so-much more. That’s why fee-shifting under Florida Statutes Section 768.79 -- available to parties that make a proposal for settlement under Rule...
Illegal Immigrant Workers’ Comp Claimants Win 2 Rounds in the 1st DCA
It’s hard to confuse the First District Court of Appeal of Florida (in Tallahassee) with its namesake in California. It’s even harder to confuse with that court’s San Francisco neighbor, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The 9th...
Florida Supreme Court Restricts Reach of Asbestos Litigation Reform Law
Long before foreclosure lawsuits flooded Florida court dockets, chief judges here and throughout the country were fretting over how to deal with the even more daunting “asbestos-litigation crisis” [Amchem Products, Inc. v. Windsor, 521 U.S. 591, 597...