Florida

Exonerated By a Fingerprint, ID Theft Victim Sues Over Criminal Ordeal

Tallie Gainer III didn’t have any criminal record. A college graduate, a youth pastor and a happily married father of four children, he wasn’t a likely suspect in a bad-check case. But after his wallet was stolen at a Denny’s not far from his Florida home, Gainer suddenly found himself…

Sep 16, 2008 6:35 PM CDT

Bar Seeks Suspension for ‘Obstreperous’ Would-Be Judge

The Florida Bar is recommending a suspension for the “obstreperous behavior” of a lawyer accused of failing to listen to the judge presiding over his traffic case. The lawyer, William Abramson, went on to challenge the judge for election. The bar took the rare move of asking the Florida Supreme…

Sep 16, 2008 5:27 PM CDT

‘Fashion Police’ Put Fla. Teen in Jail Over Saggy Pants

A Florida judge has found a saggy pants ban unconstitutional, as it was applied in the case of one Riviera Beach teen. Because 17-year-old Julius Hart was on probation in a marijuana possession case, his arrest on the saggy pants charge put him in jail overnight, reports the Palm Beach…

Sep 16, 2008 4:20 PM CDT

Client Who Told Fla. Lawyer in 1999 She Helped Bury Body Now Tells Authorities

Almost a decade ago, a 22-year-old client of Florida attorney Jay Hebert told him she had helped bury the body of a missing real estate agent. Her own boyfriend had murdered the woman, who was his wife, the client said, and then persuaded her to help clean up. The secret…

Sep 12, 2008 5:28 PM CDT

Fla. Judge to Inmates: No More Saggy Pants in My Court

For the second day running, a Florida judge sent inmates back to jail for a change of clothes today before hearing their cases. The issue was saggy pants: Circuit Judge Daniel Perry said yesterday that he was tired of seeing inmates appear before him “with their rear ends hanging out…

Sep 11, 2008 3:39 PM CDT

Big Minority-Owned Firm Acquires Another Small One

One of the largest minority-owned law firms in the country is acquiring a smaller one, in the latest step in its ongoing growth plan. Adorno & Yoss, which is headquartered in Miami, will acquire Houston-based Monty Partners before the end of the year, reports the National Law Journal, in an…

Sep 10, 2008 6:32 PM CDT

Trial Judge in Fla. Strikes State-Law Ban on ‘Gay Adoption’

A 31-year-old prohibition against adoptions of children by same-sex couples in Florida has been held unconstitutional by a trial judge in Monroe County. The ruling, which allows a 52-year-old openly gay foster parent in Key West to adopt the disabled teenager he has been raising since 2001, held that the…

Sep 10, 2008 4:52 PM CDT

South Florida Developers Winning Cases Brought by Unhappy Condo Buyers

Several buyers of new condos in South Florida who are dissatisfied with their properties are failing to get courts to allow them to cancel the deals. Many condo investors in the state had intended to buy condominium units and flip them for a quick profit, an unlikely prospect now that…

Sep 9, 2008 2:41 PM CDT

Arnstein Plans Major Growth in Florida

In the news last month for its plan to eliminate its summer program, Arnstein & Lehr is now reportedly planning a major expansion in Florida. The Chicago-based law firm, which has 143 lawyers on its attorney roster, plans to double its Florida contingent from 43 to as many as 90…

Sep 4, 2008 9:31 PM CDT

Fla. Judge Sends Hundreds of Cases to Private Defense Lawyers

Ruling today that the Miami-Dade Public Defender’s Office is too understaffed to handle most of the felony cases it is getting, a Florida judge said 60 percent must be handled by other counsel. However, Circuit Judge Stanford Blake didn’t go as far as Public Defender Bennett Brummer had requested. He…

Sep 3, 2008 7:11 PM CDT

Despite Sanctions Threat, Lawyer Spars with Judge Over Scheduling Order

A labor lawyer from one of two Orlando law firms threatened with sanctions for missing scheduling orders sparred with a federal judge in a hearing this month. Richard Celler, who heads the wage-and-hour division of Morgan & Morgan, told the National Law Journal it’s impossible to comply with the order…

Aug 28, 2008 3:53 PM CDT

Fla.‘s Python Problem Prompts Proposed National Ban on Imports

Burmese pythons aren’t native to Florida. But there apparently may be tens of thousands of them slithering around Florida’s Everglades National Park. Many or most seem to be descendants of a few pets that were released around 1979, or even earlier. The giant carnivorous constrictors are known for crushing and…

Aug 26, 2008 8:06 PM CDT

Prominent Lawyer Pleads Guilty for Role in Billionaire’s Alleged Embezzling

An up-and-coming Miami lawyer has agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and money laundering in connection with his representation of a wealthy businessman, the National Law Journal reports. Miami lawyer Richard Simring entered the plea in July in the Eastern District of Virginia, but few were…

Aug 21, 2008 6:38 PM CDT

One Year Later, Star Miami Student Still Has a Dream

A year ago, Juan Gomez was facing deportation after his high school graduation, despite his stellar record both in the classroom and as a star player on the football team. He and his brother, now 19 and 20, respectively, had come to this country as toddlers, along with their parents,…

Aug 21, 2008 5:31 PM CDT

Courthouses and Law Schools Close for Tropical Storm Fay

Several Florida courthouses and law schools announced they would be closed Monday and Tuesday because of Tropical Storm Fay. Federal courthouses in Miami-Dade, Broward and Monroe counties were closed along with several state courts, the National Law Journal reports. Among the law schools that announced closings were the University of…

Aug 19, 2008 3:00 PM CDT