Florida

Story on Motion to Compel Appropriate Shoes Caused Mistrial

A newspaper column about a motion to compel defense counsel to wear appropriate shoes at trial resulted in a mistrial after one juror read the article to others. Judge Donald Hafele of Palm Beach County declared the mistrial in an auto negligence case, but allowed jurors to render an advisory…

Jul 14, 2009 2:13 PM CDT

Prominent Fla. Lawyer Faces Bar Case in Settlement ‘Scheme to Defraud’

A proposed class action settlement characterized by a state appeals court as “a scheme to defraud” has put a prominent Miami lawyer in hot water with the Florida Bar, along with his opposing counsel in the case. In a disciplinary filing, the lawyer regulatory agency contends that founding partner Hank…

Jul 13, 2009 7:18 PM CDT

Florida A&M Law Breathes Sigh of Relief, Gets ABA Accreditation

Florida A&M University’s law school, plagued with patches of problems since it reopened in 2002, has won a key recommendation from an ABA committee that it receive full accreditation. ABA spokeswoman Nancy Slonim confirmed Thursday the ABA’s committee on accreditation is recommending the Orlando-based FAMU College of Law receive full…

Jul 10, 2009 6:44 PM CDT

Lawyer’s Lucky Shoes Spur Motion to Compel Appropriate Footwear

A Florida plaintiffs lawyer who doesn’t like the holes in his opponent’s tasseled loafers has filed a “motion to compel defense counsel to wear appropriate shoes at trial.” The motion, filed in Palm Beach County, was denied, the Palm Beach Post reports. Bill Bone of Larmoyeux & Bone claimed in…

Jul 10, 2009 6:41 PM CDT

Fla. Supremes Rule Gov. Must Pick Judge from All-White Panel

The Florida Supreme Court ruled last week that Gov. Charlie Crist had no consitutional authority to refuse to seat a new judge because he only had white nominees to choose from. Robert J. Pleus retired from the state’s Fifth District Court of appeal in September. Crist was given a list…

Jul 7, 2009 5:40 PM CDT

Smaller Law Firms Get More Big-Company Work, Survey Finds

The nation’s largest companies are increasingly turning to smaller and midsized law firms to perform legal work for less money. The survey of 550 large companies found that 38 percent hired law firms last year outside of the nation’s top 200 law firms, the Wall Street Journal reports. In 2007,…

Jul 6, 2009 12:07 PM CDT

U of Miami Urges 1st-Years to Defer; Legal Job Market Is Uncertain, Dean Says

Due to an unexpected deluge of deposit checks from accepted applicants this year, the University of Miami School of Law is urging incoming students to consider deferring their first year of law school until the fall of 2010. Especially if they weren’t all that convinced that the legal profession is…

Jul 1, 2009 4:26 PM CDT

Trial Lawyer Tapped by Fla. Gov. for Post Dies on Way Home

Well-known Florida trial lawyer Glenn M. Burton died Wednesday, not long after he was tapped by Florida’s governor to serve on the Tampa Sports Authority Board. He was 51. The Tampa Tribune reports that Burton was driving back from a Florida Bar convention in Orlando when his heart stopped. His…

Jun 26, 2009 11:25 AM CDT

Law Grad Sues Prominent Defense Lawyer to Hold Him to $1M TV Challenge

A South Texas College of Law graduate has filed a $1 million breach of contract suit against prominent Florida criminal defense lawyer Cheney Mason, claiming the lawyer’s statements—on national TV challenging anyone to show him how his client could have gunned down four people—amounted to a dare. Because Dustin Kolodziej…

Jun 24, 2009 5:59 PM CDT

DOJ Says It’s Not Backing Off Effort to Force UBS to ID Swiss Bank’s US Clients

Contrary to a recent New York Times report, the U.S. Department of Justice says it has no intention of backing off a high-profile federal lawsuit that seeks to force a Swiss bank to disclose the names of thousands of American customers who might have used secret accounts to avoid paying…

Jun 23, 2009 10:46 PM CDT

Divorce Case on Hold as Fla. Judge Mulls Whether Couple is Married

Before a Florida couple can officially split, a judge apparently will have to determine whether they ever officially married. Heather Bowser says they did. Matthew Ditzel says they didn’t, reports the Orlando Sentinel. The woman who certified the couple’s May 24, 2008 marriage has lost her state notary commission and…

Jun 23, 2009 10:09 PM CDT

As Alleged Associate Affair Goes Viral, What Should a BigLaw Firm Say?

When an associate in the Miami office of White & Case allegedly began an affair with a married woman, he presumably did not expect angry e-mails from her husband attaching her purported text messages with multiple men to be widely circulated via the Internet. But that’s what happened, as e-mails…

Jun 23, 2009 6:59 PM CDT

Fla. Judge Dismisses RICO Claims Against Trial Lawyer Willie Gary

Corrected: Finding that a former legal secretary for his firm failed to establish either a pattern of criminal activity or direct injury, a Florida judge has dismissed two counts of racketeering in a lawsuit she filed against litigator Willie Gary. The Martin County suit, which alleged rape as well as…

Jun 22, 2009 6:33 PM CDT

SCOTUS to Decide Case Expanding Miranda Warning

The U.S. Supreme Court agreed today to take a case that explores whether police should have to tell suspects that they have a right to have a lawyer present during interrogations. The high court challenge comes from Kevin Dwayne Powell, who was convicted in Florida of being a felon in…

Jun 22, 2009 3:28 PM CDT

Former Lawyer Gets Probation in $1.2M Trust Fund ‘Situational Occurrence’

A former Florida lawyer has been sentenced to 15 years of probation and an unspecified period of house arrest after pleading guilty to an organized scheme to defraud more than $50,000. Richard Bagdasarian, 54, of Boca Raton, has admitted stealing nearly $1.2 million from a client trust account, and apparently…

Jun 16, 2009 7:33 PM CDT