Articles Posted in Business Litigation

Many businesses require employees, independent contractors, and others to sign restrictive covenants. Common restrictive covenants are non-compete covenants prohibiting competition with the business, non-solicitation covenants prohibiting solicitation of the businesses’ customers and employees, and non-disclosure covenants preventing the disclosure of certain company information. However, these covenants have certain restrictions on enforceability. Some of those restrictions…

After a claimant successfully prevails in a lawsuit and obtains a money judgment against the opposing party, the claimant must collect on the judgment. However, collecting is often easier said than done because the losing party does not usually pay the judgment voluntarily. The prevailing party must often undertake further legal proceedings to collect on…

A trade secret could be the lifeblood of a business, and it is critical for businesses to protect their trade secrets. If a business’ trade secret is misappropriated, the business likely will want to commence litigation. What remedies can the business obtain for the trade secret misappropriation? Determining the remedies for trade secret misappropriation is…

It is important for businesses to protect their trade secrets to prevent their misappropriation. But sometimes, a business’s trade secrets are stolen despite the business’s best efforts to protect them. For example, an employee may steal his employer’s trade secrets and start a competing business or provide the secret to an already established competing business.…

When a business prevails in a lawsuit that was brought unjustly, it might have a cause of action for malicious prosecution. The cause of action for malicious prosecution arises out of the wrongful commencement of a judicial proceeding. “The essence of the tort of malicious prosecution is the misuse of legal machinery for an improper…

Breach of contract is a common cause of action in business disputes. When deciding whether to file a lawsuit for breach of contract, one must determine the remedies are available for the particular breach of contract in question. Florida law allows remedies for damages, restitution, and specific performance. Ocean Commc’ns, Inc. v. Bubeck, 956 So.…

Businesses commonly enter into restrictive covenants with their employees to prohibit them from unfairly competing with the business during and after employment. Restrictive covenants include contracts that restrict competition, such as non-compete agreements, non-disclosure agreements, and confidentiality agreements. When preparing a restrictive covenant, what provisions should be included? Typically, a business should include provisions that…

Plaintiffs often attempt to pursue punitive damages in litigation. Punitive damages are intended to punish reprehensible conduct by a defendant. Cooper Industries, Inc. v. Leatherman Tool Group, Inc., 532 U.S. 424 (2001). Punitive damages can be attractive for plaintiffs because they can multiply compensatory damages thereby resulting in a much larger recovery. See Fla. Stat.…

Parties to a lawsuit are generally responsible for paying their own attorney’s fees regardless of the lawsuit’s outcome. This is known as the “American Rule.” However, exceptions to the American Rule exist when the lawsuit arises from a breach of contract that contains an attorney’s fee provision or the violation of a statute that contains…

Sometimes businesses enter contracts under false pretenses because certain material information is misrepresented or concealed from the business. The business can assert a claim for fraudulent inducement to try and escape the contract. However, the business will have to prove the misrepresentation was made with fraudulent intent. Gemini Inv’rs III, L.P. v. Nunez, 78 So.…