Insurance Coverage - Premises Liability
Zurich American Insurance Co. v. National Specialty Insurance Co.The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida holds that the language “arising out of” and “maintenance” in a commercial tenant’s Managers and Lessors of Premises Additional Insured endorsement provides defense and indemnity for a landlord, even when the cause of a tenant accident occurred in a property’s common area under landlord control.
Read MoreClass Actions
Life of the South Insurance Co., et al. v. Carzell, et al.The United States Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals clarifies what constitutes minimal diversity for purposes of the Class Action Fairness Act.
Read MorePunitive Damages / Leave to Amend
Birdie M. Varnedore, M.D., et al. v. Todd E. Copeland, Esq., as Trustee and Guardian Ad LitemThe Fifth DCA strictly interprets the procedural requirements to seek leave to amend a pleading to allege entitlement to punitive damages.
Read MoreAttorney's Fees / Construction Sureties
Internat’l Fidelity Insurance Co., et al., v. Americaribe-Moriarity JVUpon recommendation from a U.S. magistrate court, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida granted a prevailing construction surety’s motion to tax attorneys’ fees and costs, based substantially upon a boilerplate indemnity provision between contractor and subcontractor, the legal relationship between surety and principal, and Section 57.105(7) of the Florida Statutes (2008).
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EmbroidMe.com, Inc. v. Travelers Property Casualty Co. of AmericaThe U.S. Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals holds that, pursuant to Florida law, an insurer’s reliance on its “voluntary payments” provision (commonly found in general liability policies) to avoid reimbursement of an insured’s pre-tender defense costs did not arise to a coverage defense; thus, the insurer need not conform to the notice requirements of the Claims Administration Act (Fla. Stat. § 627.426) in the invocation of the exclusion.
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Sebo v. American Home Assurance Co., Inc.Florida’s Supreme Court finds that the concurring cause doctrine, rather than the efficient proximate cause doctrine, applies to insurance coverage decisions “when independent perils converge [resulting in a loss] and no single cause can be considered the sole or proximate cause.”
Read MoreForeclosures
Bartram v. U.S. Bank Nat’l Ass’n.In a case with no shortage of amicus briefs, Florida’s Supreme Court held that the five year statute of limitation for residential mortgage foreclosures is triggered and reset with each new default in the payment of the mortgage, notwithstanding a prior acceleration and attempted foreclosure that was ultimately dismissed pursuant to Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 1.420(b).
Read MoreConsumer Protection - Foreclosure
Bank of America, N.A. v. SiefkerFlorida’s Fourth District Court of Appeals awkwardly reconciles the state’s mortgage foreclosure rules and the Florida Consumer Collections Practices Act (“FCCPA” – see §§ 559.55-559.785.) to find that the assignee of a secured mortgage may initiate an action to foreclose on that mortgage at any time, notwithstanding the FCCPA’s requirement that an assignee of a debt, before taking action to collect that debt, provide notice of the assignment to the debtor.
Read MoreLabor & Employment
Villarreal v. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco CompanyThe Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, in an en banc rehearing, holds that a job applicant purportedly denied employment in violation of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (“ADEA”) may not prosecute the violation as a disparate impact claim, because a job applicant does not have the “status as an employee” required by the text of Section 4(a)(2) of the ADEA.
Read MoreLabor & Employment - Class Actions
Calderone v. ScottThe Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals confirms in a matter of first impression for the Circuit that aggrieved employees may maintain dual class actions for federal FLSA and state wage claims.
Read MoreInsurance Coverage - Premises Liability
Zurich American Insurance Co. v. National Specialty Insurance Co.The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida holds that the language “arising out of” and “maintenance” in a commercial tenant’s Managers and Lessors of Premises Additional Insured endorsement provides defense and indemnity for a landlord, even when the cause of a tenant accident occurred in a property’s common area under landlord control.
Read MoreClass Actions
Life of the South Insurance Co., et al. v. Carzell, et al.The United States Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals clarifies what constitutes minimal diversity for purposes of the Class Action Fairness Act.
Read More