When a party to a non-compete agreement no longer provides services in that particular “line of business,” they may no longer have a legitimate business interest preventing the other party from competing. However, discontinuance from servicing a specific demographic of customers does not necessary constitute the fact that a party may no longer offer services…
Continue reading ›Sometimes, an employment relationship can become acrimonious. A disgruntled employee is more likely to complain and more likely to fail to perform work. As a result, some terminated employees try to assert that the loss of their employment was not their performance or attitude but instead because of unlawful retaliation. In lawsuits accusing the employer…
Continue reading ›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…
Continue reading ›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…
Continue reading ›The Florida Civil Rights Act (FCRA) requires that an employee-plaintiff comply with an administrative procedure with the Florida Commission of Human Relations (FCHR) prior to filing suit. The purpose of this requirement is to reduce the number of discrimination lawsuits by filtering clearly meritless claims and attempting to resolve disputes before a civil lawsuit may…
Continue reading ›When a business is purchased, often the former owner will enter into a separate employment agreement to provide continuity of service to the customers and a smooth transition from the former owner to the new one. Such agreements typically include a non-compete provision so that the former owner does not attempt to take the customers…
Continue reading ›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…
Continue reading ›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…
Continue reading ›It is a common mistake in trade secret litigation for the company seeking protection for its trade secrets to fail to explain what trade secrets it wishes to protect. Courts require that plaintiffs describe their trade secret with a certain degree of particularity. Failing to do that can be fatal to trade secret claims. Peter…
Continue reading ›The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (Coronavirus Response Act) was enacted to allow employees to take paid leave in certain qualifying conditions in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. Generally, an employee may take 2 weeks of medical leave and be paid 100% of his or her salary when he or she is unable to work…
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