Articles Posted in Business Litigation

Equitable estoppel is a legal doctrine that essentially prevents one party from taking unfair advantage of another party. Equitable estoppel allows a non-signatory to a contract to compel arbitration of a signatory’s claims against them, if the signatory raised allegations of concerted misconduct by both the non-signatory and one or more of the signatories to…

Under the Lanham Act, a defendant may be liable for trademark infringement, if, without consent, he/she uses “in commerce any reproduction, counterfeit, copy, or colorable imitation of a registered mark” which “is likely to cause confusion or to cause mistake, or to deceive.” 15 U.S.C. § 1114(1). The Act defines a “counterfeit” as a “spurious…

Protection of trade secrets and proprietary information is critical when a business receives a subpoena for its business information and documents. Even when a business is not a party to a lawsuit, it can be compelled to produce sensitive information that can cause irreparable harm. It is often necessary to seek an order of protection…

The Lanham Act provides that a successful plaintiff may recover: (1) defendant’s profits, (2) any damages sustained by the plaintiff, and (3) costs of the action. 15 U.S.C. § 1117(a). In exceptional cases, a district court may award attorney fees to the prevailing party. The Lanham Act gives broad discretion to the district court to…

Aggrieved litigants can claim they are victims of a conspiracy – that a group of persons has agreed to perform an unlawful act and damaged them. Such claims can expose multiple parties to liability for the same conduct by allegedly contributing to harm against the plaintiff. A “conspirator” can be found responsible for a harm…

It has long been recognized that before injunctive relief can be granted a movant must show irreparable injury. Langford v. Rotech Oxygen & Medical Equipment, Inc., 541 So.2d 1267 (Fla. 5th DCA 1989). Many non-compete contracts will contain a provision that stipulates that a violation of the restrictive covenant not to compete would create an…

Purchasers of businesses and business assets often protect their investment by requiring the seller to sign a non-compete agreement. If the seller continued to engage in the same services, there would be little to no incentive for customers to buy from the Purchasers. The contract must specify the type of services that are prohibited by…

Florida employers often require employees to sign non-solicitation agreements to protect their business from having its employees poached. Non-solicitation agreements often fail to define the term “solicit.” Solicitation is defined in Black’s Law Dictionary (11th ed. 2019), as “[t]he act or an instance of requesting or seeking to obtain something; a request or petition.” Cases…

Businesses submitting licensing applications with state or local government agencies are often required to file confidential documents and financial records. The State of Florida has a broad public records policy requiring that “all state, county, and municipal records…[shall be]…open for personal inspection and copying by any person.” Florida Statute § 119.01(1). Businesses are often confronted…

The term ‘trade dress’ refers to the appearance of a product when that appearance is used to identify the creator of that product. Trade dress encompasses the total image of a product and may include features such as size, shape, color, texture, graphics, or particular sales techniques.” AmBrit, Inc. v. Kraft, Inc., 812 F.2d 1531…