Earlier this week we explored the American Rule and its prohibitions against recovering attorney’s fees unless a contractual provision or statute permits the prevailing party to recover those attorney’s fees. We also explored two difficulties that can arise when a party seeks to recover his or her attorney’s fees under a statute. The first difficulty…
Continue reading ›Recovering attorney’s fees is governed by the American Rule. This rule generally prohibits a party from recovering his or her attorney’s fees unless the fees are expressly permitted pursuant to a contract, statue, or rule. Q.H. v. Sunshine State Health Plan, Inc., 305 So. 3d 543 (Fla. 4th DCA 2020) (“Under the American rule, a…
Continue reading ›Class actions are generally large lawsuits involving many plaintiffs bringing the same claims against the same defendant. These lawsuits can arise in a number of scenarios including employer/employee relationships. See Calderone v. Scott, 838 F.3d 1101 (11th Cir. 2016) (employees brought a class action lawsuit against their employer for violating Florida minimum wage laws). The…
Continue reading ›A plaintiff seeking permanent injunction must satisfy a four-factor test before a court can rule it is entitled to an injunction. A plaintiff must demonstrate: (1) that it has suffered an irreparable injury; (2) that remedies available at law, such as monetary damages, are inadequate to compensate for that injury; (3) that, considering the balance…
Continue reading ›A claim of accounting is a useful tool to trace funds or establish claims and liabilities in a fiduciary relationship. To obtain an equitable accounting, the plaintiff must prove the following elements: a fiduciary relationship exists between the parties or the transaction at issue is complex, and (2) the remedy at law is inadequate. Tracfone…
Continue reading ›“Parties to a contract may stipulate to a particular forum in which to resolve future disputes.” Rudman v. Numismatic Guar. Corp. of Am., 298 So. 3d 1212 (Fla. 3d DCA 2020). These clauses are known as forum selection clauses and presumed to be valid unless the party resisting enforcement can demonstrate the clause is unjust…
Continue reading ›Indemnity and hold harmless agreements are powerful tools that require the other party to the agreement to cover losses and expenses of the indemnitee. A hold harmless agreement is a type of indemnification agreement. “The term ‘hold harmless’ means to fully compensate the indemnitee for all loss or expense, and an agreement to hold harmless…
Continue reading ›A party seeking to enforce a restrictive covenant must plead and prove the existence of at least one legitimate business interest justifying enforcement of the restrictive covenant. Fla. Stat. § 542.335. That same party must also “plead and prove that the contractually specified restraint is reasonably necessary to protect the legitimate business interest or interests…
Continue reading ›Protecting trade secrets can be critical to a business. Trade secrets are defined as information that “(a) [d]erives independent economic value . . . from not being generally known to, and not readily ascertainable by proper means by, other persons who can obtain economic value from its disclosure or use; and (b) [i]s the…
Continue reading ›Florida’s statute governing restrictive covenants requires the party trying to enforce the restrictive covenant to plead and prove the existence of at least one legitimate business interest justifying enforcement of that covenant. Fla. Stat. 542.355 (“The person seeking enforcement of a restrictive covenant shall plead and prove the existence of one or more legitimate business…
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