Articles Posted in Business Litigation

In business litigation, Florida courts will not enforce an agreement if the agreement is unconscionable. Under Florida law, “before a court may hold a contract unconscionable, it must find that it is both procedurally and substantively unconscionable.” Gainesville Health Care Ctr., Inc. v. Weston, 857 So. 2d 278 (Fla. 1st DCA 2003). It is therefore…

Expectation damages or “benefit of the bargain” damages are one way to measure damages for breach of contract claims in business litigation. Under Florida law, where there is a “total breach of contract,” the alleged non-breaching party can elect to seek recovery of “expectation damages” or “reliance damages” resulting from the breach of contract. Expectation…

Business litigation in Florida often involves claims for trade secret misappropriation under Florida’s Uniform Trade Secret Act (FUTSA) or the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA). For liability to attach under DTSA or FUTSA, the trade secret information must be the fruit of a wrongful acquisition or misappropriation. A common issue concerning trade secret claims is…

In business litigation, courts will enforce non-solicitation agreements against a business’ former employee to protect the business’ substantial customer relationships. Section 542.335, Florida Statutes governs the enforceability of customer non-solicitation agreements. Like other restrictive covenants in Florida, the non-solicitation clause must be: (1) reasonable in time, area, and line of business, (2) supported by a…

A party’s trade secrets are one of the categories of legitimate business interests protected by Florida’s non-compete statute, Section 542.335. Courts will enforce non-compete agreements to protect a party’s legitimate business interests if the interest qualifies as a trade secret under Florida law. In business litigation arising from a non-compete agreement, a common issue is…

Contractual disputes often arise from issues surrounding the sale of a business, including whether the previous business owner’s restrictive covenants are assignable to and enforceable by the successor owner. “An assignment is a transfer of all the interests and rights to the thing assigned.” Lauren Kyle Holdings, Inc. v. Heath-Peterson Constr. Corp., 864 So. 2d…

One of the main issues in trade secret litigation is whether the business can prove the statutory element that there was a “misappropriation” of its trade secrets. To qualify for protection under Florida Uniform Trade Secrets Act (“FUTSA”) and the federal Defend Trade Secrets Act (“DTSA”), an employer must prove its trade secrets were acquired…

A frequent issue in business litigation is whether restrictive covenants in an employment contract are enforceable. “Florida statutory law (as a matter of public policy) does not allow a party to enforce a restrictive covenant unless it proves that enforcement is necessary to protect its legitimate business interests.” Evans v. Generic Sol. Eng’g, LLC, 178…

The Lanham Act is a federal statute that protects businesses from various types of unfair competition, including trade dress infringement. The term “trade dress” is defined as “the total image of a product . . . [that] may include features such as size, shape, color or color combinations, textures, graphics, or even particular sales techniques.”…

Parties generally have a duty to mitigate their damages under Florida law. A party’s “failure to mitigate” its damages is a defense commonly raised in employment litigation. “The doctrine of avoidance consequences, commonly referred to as a duty to mitigate damages, prevents a party from recovering those damages inflicted by a wrongdoer which the injured…