Articles Posted in Business Litigation

Contracting parties may stipulate to a particular forum for resolving future disputes. Am. K-9 Detection Servs., Inc. v. Cicero, 100 So. 3d 236 (Fla. 5th DCA 2012). This is known as a forum selection clause. The clause can be mandatory, which requires the parties to litigate in the particular chosen forum to the exclusion of…

Waiver is the voluntary relinquishment of a known right. Major League Baseball v. Morsani, 790 So. 2d 1071 (Fla. 2001). The concept of wavier is important in law because it applies to a wide variety of scenarios. A litigant can waive the right to a term expressed within a contract pre-suit, to bring a claim…

A party can recover lost profit damages as direct damages or consequential damages. Lost profits, like all damages, are considered direct when they flow directly and immediately from the contractual breach. HCA Health Services of Florida, Inc. v. CyberKnife Ctr. of Treasure Coast, LLC, 204 So. 3d 469 (Fla. 4th DCA 2016). Lost profits are…

Plaintiffs commonly pursue punitive damages when asserting fraud claims. The purpose of punitive damages is to punish unlawful conduct. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. Brewer, 191 So. 3d 508 (Fla. 2d DCA 2016). They are available when a defendant commits intentional misconduct or gross negligence. Fla. Stat. § 768.72. Punitive damages are especially…

Under Florida law, enforcement of a non-compete agreement requires requires proof of at least one “legitimate business interest.” Fla. Stat. § 542.335 (“The person seeking enforcement of a restrictive covenant shall plead and prove the existence of one or more legitimate business interests justifying the restrictive covenant.”). A failure to plead or prove the existence…

Many business contracts contain arbitration provisions, which often creates a question as to whether the contracting parties must resolve their dispute in arbitration. Florida courts consider three elements when determining whether to enforce a contractual arbitration provision. They are (1) whether a valid written agreement to arbitrate exists; (2) whether an arbitrable issue exists; and…

Florida and federal statutes generally define a “trade secret” to be information that the owner takes reasonable measures to keep secret and the information derives “independent economic value” from not being generally known to others. Courts ordinarily view the existence of a trade secret as a question of fact. The United States Court of Appeals…

The Florida Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act (“FUFTA”) is a powerful tool because it provides creditors with remedies against debtors attempting to conceal assets. Through FUFTA, Florida adopted a Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act that many states adopted. FUFTA allows creditors to sue debtors trying to avoid paying a debt. Peter Mavrick is a Fort Lauderdale business…

Liquidated damages are determinable with exactness from the cause of action as pleaded by a mathematical calculation or by application of a rule of law. Boulos v. Yung Sheng Xiamen Yong Chem. Indus. Co., 855 So.2d 665 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003). Many contracts contain a liquidated damage provision that attempts to ascribe an automatic amount…

A third-party can enforce a contract even though it is not a party to that contract if the contracting parties expressly intended to primarily and directly benefit the third-party. Bochese v. Town of Ponce Inlet, 405 F.3d 964 (11th Cir. 2005) (“Under Florida law, a third party is an intended beneficiary of a contract between…