Articles Posted in Business Litigation

Florida companies should always consider the risk that a business litigation defendant will attempt to avoid paying an adverse money judgment through bankruptcy proceedings. While bankruptcy protection is usually invoked by people and companies that are genuinely insolvent, bankruptcy protection can also be abused by cunning defendants to avoid paying adverse judgments. Claims which are…

Businesses often include provisions in their contracts which require any disputes to be resolved in arbitration. Under Florida law, there are very narrow circumstances where a court may interfere with the arbitrator’s decision. Common arbitration errors that occur in business litigation include due process errors, errors in application of a legal standard, fraud, partiality of…

Business litigation between competitors often involves discovery of information that may be subject to trade secret protection. Parties will often enter stipulations for confidentiality orders to protect the information from third-party disclosure, however that may not protect a business from the damage caused by their competitor’s access to that information. Businesses must ensure that trial…

Florida law permits a business to seek an injunction when its trade secrets have been misappropriated. This can be a deceptively complex process for companies that are not familiar with trade secret law. To prevail on a motion for a temporary injunction, a plaintiff must not only show that what was taken qualifies as a…

Arbitration is a method of dispute resolution which can provide a speedy and less costly resolution to disputes. Arbitration is often preferred by the party who is a defendant on the belief that arbitration is better strategically. The speedier resolution of arbitration does not come without a cost. A party to an arbitration aggrieved by…

Arbitration is a method of dispute resolution which parties may agree to through a pre-dispute contract. Often, a plaintiff will attempt to avoid the contractual agreement to arbitration because the plaintiff believes that arbitration puts him or her at a strategic disadvantage. A plaintiff may argue that he or she did not have the capacity…

Arbitration can provide Florida businesses with a swift and less costly resolution to a dispute in comparison to litigation. Arbitration generally benefits the party accused of wrongdoing more than the plaintiff. Accordingly, a plaintiff will usually have the incentive to try to find a way to avoid the application of an arbitration clause while a…

Florida law concerning a claim of civil theft is a double-edged sword. A company that prevails on a business litigation claim of civil theft can be awarded treble damages and attorneys’ fees. However, a company claiming civil theft risks having to pay the opposing side’s attorney’s fees for failure to prove the required element of…

Parties to a contract with an arbitration agreement will often litigate the issue of whether the arbitration provision covers the parties’ dispute. Because arbitration is a different method of dispute resolution than court litigation, the distinguishing traits of arbitration can tactically benefit one party more than the other. Parties will often have the incentive to…

Consumers who receive an inferior product or service than what was advertised are certainly harmed by false advertising, but they may not have the incentive to sue or take action against the company issuing false advertisements. False advertising can have a far greater impact on competitors. A business that engages in false advertising can damage…