General rules, as we are all too familiar, are privy to exceptions. A general rule concerning settlement agreements is that only parties to the settlement agreement are bound by its terms. Necessarily, there are instances wherein a party not in privity to a settlement agreement is nevertheless bound. One such instance is when an insurer disregards its duty to defend its insured.
Once the creditor obtains a decree from the court that the debtor made a fraudulent transfer, the creditor may collect on its claim under Florida’s Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act (“FUFTA”), which provides creditors with various remedies. See a previous blog post on the various remedies under FUFTA, Remedies for Creditors […]
Starting a new business can be both incredibly exciting and substantially stressful, and many entrepreneurs hastily begin business without considering many important legal considerations in starting up. However, with legal guidance and proper planning, starting a new business can be easy, effortless (sort of), and smooth.
Service of process is likely an issue about which many attorneys and parties don’t give much thought; it’s a standard procedure conducted hundreds if not thousands of times a day across the country, and is usually done through a professional process server. However, when attorneys deviate from the standard procedure of sending a lawsuit to a process server and allowing them to effectuate service, whether due to cost or strategic considerations, it is easy to run afoul of the Florida and Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
Creditors may become frustrated when they discover a debtor has engaged in an unfair transaction that hampers their ability to collect payment. However, creditors are not without remedy in the event that there has been some funny business with the debtor’s finances. Regardless of the debtor’s intentions behind the questionable […]
In a contingency case there are certain circumstances in which an attorney’s fee award can be increased through the use of a multiplier from 1.5 to 2.5.[1] Recent cases have limited the applicability of the use of a multiplier in Florida. However, careful navigation of the current case law gives some guidance of the types of cases in which a multiplier is appropriate and in which a multiplier is not appropriate.
After entering a participation agreement, a once promising loan sometimes becomes a problem loan once the borrower defaults. Following default, both the lead and participating banks always assess collectability. If the parties find the borrower is uncollectible based upon changes in circumstances, flaws in the underwriting or borrower fraud, it […]
On September 29, 2016 the Florida Supreme Court amended rules 4-1.1 and 6-10.3 to the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar. As a result, Florida attorneys will now be required to obtain 3 credit hours of CLE in approved technology programs. Further, language was added to the Comment to Rule 4.1.1 Competence, which reads as follows:
Competent representation may also involve the association or retention of a non-lawyer advisor of established technological competence in the field in question. Competent representation also involves safeguarding confidential information relating to the representation, including, but not limited to, electronic transmissions and communications.
What does this mean for litigators dealing with electronic evidence? I like to say that the realm of eDiscovery is a melding of legal and IT, two groups of professionals who speak different languages, and who under typical circumstances do not care to speak the language of the other. We have all heard that attorneys speak legalese, and we know of the “IT speak” that flies over the heads of IT industry outsiders. How can we manage the additional eDiscovery industry terminology that is a necessary part of the conversations between IT and legal that surround litigation or a government investigation? At the time of my entry into the field of eDiscovery in 2013, I had not even heard of the term metadata, much less jargon like DeNIST, TIFFing, load file, and so on.
Involuntary bankruptcy is a legal proceeding creditors may use to force a debtor into bankruptcy, rather than a debtor voluntarily seeking bankruptcy protection on his or her own behalf. Creditors seeking involuntary bankruptcy must file a petition in the bankruptcy court, and the debtor has the opportunity to defend against […]
Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act (FDUTPA) was passed by the Florida Legislature in 1973, and was designed as a state law complement to the Federal Trade Commission Act. 15 U.S.C. § 45. FDUTPA, sometimes referred to as the “Little FTC Act,” provides private remedies based on consumer protection […]