Florida

Rockin' The Paradise

Posted on September 03, 2008
You'll watch the RNC convention yesterday? I thought Conrad Bain was simply electrifying. Oh, it was that other old guy from Connecticut? Still a good speech.Stay tuned later this morning for our world famous, frequently imitated but never duplicated 3d DCA Watch...

Is She Really Going Out With Him?

Posted on September 02, 2008
Wow. See what happens when you go windsurfing for a few days.And how was your Labor Day holiday?

SFL Friday -- Labor Day Edition

Posted on August 29, 2008
So that was some speech last night, huh? I mean the power, the intensity, the enthusiasm, the stagecraft, I think good people from both sides of the aisle can agree that Senator Dick Durbin quite simply NAILED IT.Oh, you mean someone else spoke, too? He wasn't bad either, I guess...

BREAKING -- Charles Canady Newest Florida Supreme Court Justice

Posted on August 28, 2008
Charles T. Canady gets the nod:Canady, 54, is Crist?s first appointment to the state?s high court. He will fill the vacancy left by Justice Raoul G. Cantero III, who resigned earlier this year. ?I consider this to be one of the most important decisions I will make as governor, because the Supreme Court justices make precedent-setting decisions that affect the lives of all Floridians for generations to come,? Crist said...

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DMX Engages in Sexy Pillow Talk With Judge Schwartz

Posted on August 28, 2008
They say the guy has a way with words, and he sure did show it at his bond hearing in front of Judge Schwartz yesterday:On Wednesday (August 27), X (real name: Earl Simmons) pleaded guilty to his Florida charges of attempted purchase of cocaine and marijuana and was sentenced to time served and a $483 court fine, lawyer Bradford Cohen told MTV News...

3d DCA Watch -- When Granny Gets Mad, Run for the Hills!

Posted on August 27, 2008
Hi folks, it's that time of the week, so let's dive right in and see what our merry band of appellate judges to the south are up to in this week's edition of 3d DCA Watch:Weiss v. CourshonHooray! Judge Salter is back, he's sick of crappy pro se pleadings, and he's not afraid to say so in the utmost polite, classy and professional manner that stands in stark contrast to certain cranky more senior judges that shall remain nameless but which have last names that rhyme with "warts...

Congratulations Laurie!!

Posted on August 27, 2008
Uber-appellate lawyer Laurie Waldman Ross has been appointed to the 3d DCA Judicial Nominating Commission.Hey, whaddaya know, sometimes they do get things right!

Vote, You Plebs!

Posted on August 26, 2008
Being high-information consumers, and given that there are judges up for election today, I hope you all don't need to be reminded to vote.But remember to let your employees out early so they can get to the polling precinct, and maybe all you smart lawyers can even become part of the polling process for November to help make sure the election runs as smoothly as possible -- given the reality that the election is ultimately in the hands of Miami-Dade County officials...

Costly Arbitration Is Cheap and Efficient

Posted on August 26, 2008
That seems to be the message from the continuing money pit that is the Americatel arbitration debacle:Americatel El Salvador won an arbitration against Compañía de Telecommunicaciones de El Salvador -- or CTE -- to allow greater access to the Salvadoran market...

Mike Tein Expounds on Sophisticated Ponzi Schemes, Eskimo Purchasing Patterns

Posted on August 25, 2008
Our boy Mike made some more good press over the weekend. This time he is representing investors duped by the Latin America Ipod scheme. Here he is explaining how good of a con man the alleged perpetrator was:Attorney Michael Tein, representing one of Pimstein's largest investors, developer Victor Gonzalez, said his client lost more than $2 million...

Richard Williams Needs to Speak With His "Electronic Billing System" Manufacturer.

Posted on August 21, 2008
I assume everyone saw the fire fee ruling by Judge Rodriguez, right? The DBR story is here. But the real meat is in the Court's order, which you can review here.In summary the Court reduced the requested multiplier (which was five) to two, and slashed attorney Richard Williams' lodestar by more than half, finding that many of the verified time entries were not supported by competent evidence...

3d DCA Watch -- Wishing and Hoping

Posted on August 21, 2008
I just can't quit you, 3d DCA!Even though the cupboard has grown increasingly bare over the last few weeks, I turn instinctively to your significantly improved website each Wednesday, hoping for something -- anything -- that could be construed as mildly entertaining or even informative...

DMX Likes to Shop At NMB Wal-Mart, Apparently Is Also Handicapped.

Posted on August 20, 2008
Well, that was fun!I guess now we have to go back to our practices, listen to other lawyers, judges, clients, witnesses, actually talk to people in business settings, you know, all that crap. If you all have any good stories about what your firms did during the storm, pass them on...

And I'm Not Missing A Thing. Watching The Full Moon Crossing The Range....

Posted on August 19, 2008
Hi kiddies, well Tropical Storm Fay is upon us like some wet juicy French Kiss, shutting downtown office buildings completely, closing the courthouses, messing up depositions, court filings, travel plans, schools, you pretty much name it. She's like that!I hope you all are ridin' the storm out safe and sound, snuggled in and hunkered down...

Ed Moss and Metrorail. What Am I Missing Here?

Posted on August 15, 2008
I guess those commie-loving Greenpeacers over at SHB want everyone to go to work in some kind of Ed Begley-styled vegetable car or, worse yet, by public transportation:Nearly 350 employees at Shook, Hardy & Bacon have signed up for bonuses under a program that encourages use of alternative transportation...

Scott Salomon Not "Evil" Or "Wicked," According to Scott Salomon

Posted on August 15, 2008
They say all news is good news, so by that standard Scott Salomon, Coral Springs attorney and former lawyer for Backstreeter Nick Carter, must be thrilled:The state Supreme Court issued an emergency suspension. The Florida bar declared that Salomon "has caused and continues to cause great public harm...

Breaking -- Florida Supreme Court Nominees Announced! World Yawns.

Posted on August 14, 2008
OK this list made me weep and not in a good way, but again all I can say is it could have been a whole lot worse:For Cantero's vacancy, the commission choose: Judge Charles Canady, 54, Lakeland, Second District Court of Appeal; Judge Kevin Emas, 50, Miami, 11th Judicial Circuit; Edward G...

3d DCA Watch -- You Say Apodictic, I Say Apoplectic, Let's Call The Whole Thing Off

Posted on August 13, 2008
I was tempted to skip this week's Third DCA Watch simply because the pickings were so slim and because I'm bored out of my wits. Still, because I am dedicated to you, dear readers, I put in the long, hard slog and actually read this week's opinions.Four or so cafecitos later, amidst a dreary discussion of the standards and differences applicable to a petition for administration of a will and a petition to establish a lost or destroyed will in probate, I was jolted in my chair by this sterling example of legal writing from none other than Judge Shepherd:As to the former, it is apodictic that matters dehors the four corners of a complaint or petition may not be considered on a motion to dismiss...

Great Minds Etc.

Posted on August 13, 2008
Hey it's weird how great minds sometimes come up with great ideas around the same time, isn't it? Like whoever independently came up with the idea of a lovable monster family sitcom, hence we had both The Munsters and The Addams Family.Reading today's paper brought to mind those wacky 1950s monsters with hearts of gold:Attorney General Michael Mukasey conceded Tuesday that high-ranking Justice Department officials failed to stop illegal hiring practices that favored conservatives over liberals because of what he described as a ''systemic'' problem within the department...

Less Gin, More Coffee?

Posted on August 12, 2008
Sure we drink lots of coffee over here at SFL because we're bored, it makes us "edgy" at depositions, and because many judges and senior partners prattle on and we would fall asleep otherwise, but apparently it has other positive attributes as well:Probably the most important effects of caffeine are its ability to enhance mood and mental and physical performance...

Welcome, Contestants!

Posted on August 12, 2008
And here they are. Some good, some bad, some in between:Applicants to replace Justice Raoul Cantero III include three judges from the 3rd District Court of Appeal in Miami: Angel Cortinas, Juan Ramirez Jr. and Leslie Rothenberg. Applications also arrived from Miami-Dade Circuit Judges Gisela Cardonne Ely, Kevin Emas and Israel Reyes...

They Write Letters

Posted on August 11, 2008
Carlos Concepcion explains how you can be a hero:Why pay my employees to take time off from work to assist voters? Because poll workers do not work for political parties or candidates. They take an oath to leave their political opinions and partisan leanings at home...

Please Governor, Don't Pick A Whack Job. Is That Too Much To Ask?

Posted on August 08, 2008
Now that Charlie Crist is getting everything in order in case new BFF John McCain decides to make him his number two, I'm starting to get a little worried about his Florida Supreme Court picks.Before Charlie made his swoon, I actually thought he's been a pretty good Governor...

SFL Friday -- Bring On the Pain.

Posted on August 08, 2008
So it's Friday, the Dolphins start up tomorrow, and apparently we found an old Jets quarterback to save our team. Welcome back, Ray Lucas!Meanwhile, although our County can afford to hand over hundreds of millions in taxpayer money to the failing Marlins organization, we apparently can't afford a decent school system, court system, road system -- hail, with gas prices going through the roof it's apparently the perfect time to cut one of the few successful examples of mass transit in South Florida:If you take the shuttle to get to Miami Dolphins games, you?re going to have to find another way to get there...

Akerman Lawyers Ponder World Free of Milk, Other Partners

Posted on August 07, 2008
The indignities keep on piling up. First, possibly forced to drink coffee using some type of non-dairy creamer! Oh the sorrow.Now this:Merger talks between Wolf Block and Florida-based Akerman Senterfitt have hit a snag, according to a statement Wednesday by leadership at the two firms...

3d DCA Watch -- "I'll Take A Recusal on Rye, Your Honor."

Posted on August 06, 2008
Isn't state court a hoot? Motion practice can be like waiting in line at the old Corky's or Pumpernik's, lawyers and court reporters stuffed in and around the small hallways, fighting to be heard, listening for your number, hoping/praying the judge has read your brief or at a minimum has the file on her desk...

Welcome to 1905 -- Bakers' Right to Contract Protected!

Posted on August 05, 2008
This is an old-fashioned Lochner-era beatdown:No matter how beautiful a condominium complex looks in the brochure, it might behoove any buyer to look at the fine print in the contract based on a ruling by a federal judge.The brochure showed a 56-story elliptical-shaped building on the water with a nearby marina...

"His Was A Life Well Lived."

Posted on August 04, 2008
What a moving and deeply affecting service today at Temple Beth Sholom in loving memory of Steve Chaykin. Several hundred legal glitterati were in attendance to mourn, grieve, and celebrate the larger than life personality that was Steve. I saw judges, lawyers, lawmakers, and other leaders of our community, all in solidarity at the untimely passing of a great lawyer, father, brother, son, husband, and community leader...

Sue Me, Sue You Blues

Posted on August 04, 2008
What's the cure for lawsuit blues? Sue your attorneys:Now filling dozens of boxes stacked in the dining room and garage of their suburban Boca Raton home, the legal fight has destroyed the Lansons' lives.Meryl Lanson wants to prove the legal system -- attorneys, judges and other professionals -- conspired against them...

Swingers and Alan Kluger -- SFL Friday

Posted on August 01, 2008
So it's a slow news day, it's Friday and I'm bored. Is this thing on? Where the hail is everybody -- the roads are clear, the usual nutjobs at the circuit courthouse don't seem to be around, and I can almost walk down Flagler without having to see anybody that I dislike or think is a jerk...

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