General Commercial & Complex Litigation
Every industry faces the risk of lawsuits. Our practice requires us to keep pace with the constantly expanding body of regulatory, procedural, statutory and case law impacting our clients. For over 25 years our lawyers have tried or arbitrated hundreds of commercial disputes involving all sectors of the business world.
Construction & Development Litigation
Our firm represents local, national and international real estate developers involved in commercial, industrial and large-scale residential projects in South Florida. We also represent general contractors, builders, and homeowner/condominium associations involved in litigation, including design and construction defects and mold litigation.
Financial Transaction Litigation
We represent many financial institutions and other lenders, as well as borrowers, in litigation involving corporate finance issues such as the issuance of debt or equity, fraud claims, lender liability issues, and disputes arising out of notes, guarantees and other financial instruments. We have been involved in cases here in Florida, throughout the country, and with overseas institutions.
Director & Officer Liability
In addition to representing companies in a variety of corporate disputes, our lawyers have also represented the officers and directors of both small and large companies in a range of cases, including shareholder derivative lawsuits, breach of fiduciary duty and corporate malfeasance claims.
Securities Litigation & Arbitration
We have significant experience in the defense of securities fraud class actions. We have defended securities fraud claims brought against some of Florida’s largest publicly traded companies, as well as their officers and directors. We also have represented many individual securities and commodities brokers, as well as their customers, in arbitration proceedings and litigation involving broker abuse issues.
Aircraft Finance & Seizures
The firm represents several aircraft leasing and finance companies. From time to time lessors and lenders of commercial aircraft find it necessary to seize their aircraft or invoke other remedies to protect their assets or secure payment. Because of scheduled service and rapid turnaround of aircraft from one airport to the next, timely and knowledgeable decisions and execution are a must. We have successfully represented clients in this industry for more than 15 years.
Class Action Litigation
Our firm has successfully defended numerous companies in federal and state court class actions. The industries we represent have included property and casualty, automobile insurance, health care, consumer products and pharmaceuticals. Published decisions where our firm prevailed in class action cases include Chinchilla v. Star Casualty Ins. Co., 833 So. 2d 804 (Fla. 3d DCA 2002); and McCulloch v. PNC Bank, 298 F.3d 1217 (11th Cir. 2002).
Intellectual Property Litigation
This specialized area of litigation has rapidly expanded in the past decade as access to and distribution of copyrighted and patented materials continually increases with emerging technologies. Our firm has litigated copyright infringement claims and tried cases in federal courts involving trademark and patent infringement. We have successfully represented manufacturers, distributors, service companies and entertainers seeking to protect their particular products, service marks, ideas, artistic expressions, creative materials and processes from unauthorized commercial use, distribution and exploration.
Employment Law & Unfair Competition
The firm represents and advises employers on a full range of employment topics. Our attorneys have provided pre-litigation counsel and tried a number of cases involving sex, age, disability, national origin, race and other prohibited forms of discrimination. We also have handled cases involving the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Family Medical Leave Act. Our lawyers likewise have represented clients in "whistle blower" matters and in connection with unfair competition claims, issues involving restrictive covenants, trade secrets, employment agreements and employment policies and procedures. We also have years of experience guiding clients through administrative proceedings before the EEOC and other government agencies.
Professional Malpractice Defense
We take particular pride in the fact that some of the nation’s largest and most respected law firms and accounting firms, as well as individual attorneys and accountants at those firms, turn to our firm for representation in claims involving their professional service. We have more than 25 years of experience in this area of practice and have primarily acquired our clients through peer referrals and professional recommendations.
Franchise & Distributorship Litigation
We represent both franchisors and franchisees in a variety of service and manufacturing industries, including several multi-national and publicly traded corporations. With many of our attorneys being fully bilingual, the firm has also developed an active practice in distributorship litigation throughout South and Central America and the various Caribbean countries.
Health Care Litigation
We counsel litigants involved in both civil and criminal disputes in limited areas of this highly regulated industry, including cases involving the Stark laws and the anti-kickback provisions of the federal health care statutes. We have represented physicians and medical facilities throughout Florida and have been involved in litigation, on both state and federal levels, with some of the largest health care management companies. We are currently representing several health insurance companies in defense of alleged improper billing practices in a national class action in Federal Court.
Environmental Litigation
Several of our attorneys have advanced their interest in the environment and environmental defense causes into an active environmental litigation practice. Over the years, our firm has litigated cases under federal environmental protection statutes including NEPA, CERCLA and RCRA. Our attorneys also have assisted clients in dealing with environmental regulatory agencies such as Florida's DERM.
Mass Torts & Products Liability
For many years our attorneys have litigated many high profile products liability cases, including class actions involving tobacco, polybutelene, insurance products and prescription drugs. We also have represented manufacturers in multi-district litigation arising out of mass torts such as commercial airline disasters.
Media & Defamation Litigation
Our lawyers have represented defendants in highly significant and complex media law cases, including Miami's ABC affiliate, the 20-20 news program, and the New Republic magazine. We are familiar with the arcane and complex rules applicable to public figure status, privileges, and damages in the libel and defamation context. We are also at the forefront of the intersection of new technology, and the internet, and defamation law.
Partnership Disputes
Within our commercial litigation practice, we have represented parties in many "business divorces," whose former partnership or other business association has now soured and led to stalemate, threats of litigation, or claims and cross-claims. We are familiar with all of the issues such cases raise, such as the rights of shareholders and members under statute and contract, buy-sell rights, valuation, access to documents, and receivership, fully capable of litigating any issue of either contract or tort that may be raised.
White Collar Crimes & Grand Jury Proceedings
Representations include ongoing investigations as well as active cases, sometimes in parallel civil, administrative and even criminal proceedings. In general, the focus is: forcefully advocating for people in business as well as government leaders who are confronted by sensitive allegations from local, state or federal authorities; utilizing strategies that rely on patient dialogue, when possible, as well as aggressive advocacy, when needed, through every stage of trial and appellate litigation. Matters have included pre-litigation success in challenging sources of administrative and criminal exposure as well as courtroom vindication in cases ranging from the landmark Port of Miami corruption trial to Neutrality Act charges against prominent community leaders.