United States Patent and Trademark Officev. Booking.Com B. V., Case No. 19–46 (2020).
Adding “.com” to a generic description that is not otherwise capable of being trademarked is permissible if consumers do not view the name containing “.com” as generic.Seila Law LLC v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Case No. 19–7 (2020).
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s structure, which structure states the director cannot be removed at will by the President, is unconstitutional.DeRoyv. Carnival Corporation, No. 18-12619 (11th Cir. 2020).
A forum selection clause that chooses federal court over state court binds litigants to that forum even though jurisdiction may also lie in state court.Jackson v. Household Finance Corporation III, Case No. SC18-357 (Fla. 2020).
The predicate for admission of business records can be laid by a qualified witness merely testifying to the foundational elements of the exception, i.e., there is no need for the witness to “detail the basis for his or her familiarity with the relevantbusiness practices of the company or give additional details about those practicesas part of the initial foundation . . . .”Neon Investments, LLC v. AfinaPallada, Inc., Case No. 4D20-281 (Fla. 4th DCA 2020).
Post-judgment intervention is generally not permitted and permitted only when the intervention does not seek to attack the judgment.Barr v. AmericanAssociation of Political Consultants,Inc.,Case No. 19–631 (2020).
The federal government cannot exempt itself from the anti-robocall provisions of the TelephoneConsumer Protection Act of 1991, 47 U. S. C. §227(b)(1)(A)(iii).Trichellv. Midland Credit Management, Inc., Case No. 18-14144 (11th Cir. 2020).
Litigants who claim injury under the Federal Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1692(e), arising out of a misleading communication lack Article III standing if they were not misled, i.e., did not rely on the misleading communication.Foley & Lardner, LLP v. Unknown Heirs, Case No. 2D18-2929 (Fla. 2d DCA 2020).
An “Asset Management Agreement” that permits delegation of “certain aspects ofasset resolution tasks to a workout specialist, loan consultant, asset managementadvisor, real estate broker or agent, attorney, or others, to be determined by [assignor]” does not, under the principle of ejusdem generis, limit the ability of assignor to assign foreclosure rights to a third party.Doe v. Natt, Case No. 2D19-1383 (Fla. 2d DCA 2020).
Reference to the American Arbitration Association’s rules in a clickwrap agreement is not “clear and unmistakable evidence” of the intent of the parties to delegate the threshold issue of arbitrability to an arbitrator.Coral Gables Imports, Inc. v. Suarez, Case Nos. 3D19-1197 & 3D19-1721 (Fla. 3d DCA 2020).
Thclerk of court’s affixing a “Summary Reporting System” file closure-type stamp to a non-final order does not transform an otherwise non-final order into a final order for appellate purposes.Corley v. Long-Lewis, Inc., Case No. 18-10474 (11th Cir. 2020).
A federal court order granting a voluntary dismissal without prejudice is a final order.Okefenoke Rural Electric Membership Corporation Dayspring Health, LLC, Case No. 1D18-4059 (Fla. 1st DCA 2020).
A person who uses another’s land without the legal right to do so, and does so for the statutory prescriptive period, is entitled to a prescriptive easement even if all parties involved thought the use was not on the servient tenement’s property.Witters Contracting Company v. West, Case No. 2D18-4547 (Fla. 2d DCA 2020).
No judgment for a fraudulent lien can be imposed against the individual owner of a company if the fraudulent lien is signed by the president of the contracting company, i.e., in a representative capacity.Global Discoveries, Ltd., LLC v. Keller,Case No. 2D19-3627 (Fla. 2d DCA 2020).
The passing of the statute of repose to enforce a lien does not eliminate the lien if an action to enforce the lien was filed prior to the passage of the statute of limitations to enforce the lien.Bailey v. Shelborne Ocean Beach Hotel Condominium Association, Inc., Case Nos. 3D17-0559 & 3D17-0767 (Fla. 3d DCA 2020).
A condominium association has the authority and duty to maintain the condominium common elements, even if the workmay also constitute alterations or improvements,but may not engage in a substantial and material alteration in appearance as part of the work unless it receives unit owner approval.Bank of New York as Trustee For The Noteholders CWABS Inc. Assetbacked Notes, Series 2006-SD4006-SD4 v. Calloway, Case No. 4D19-584 (Fla. 4th DCA 2020).
A pooling agreement may serve as evidence of a foreclosing lender’s standing.Securities and Exchange Commission v. Quiros, Case No. 19-11409 (11th Cir. 2020).
A bar order arising out of a settlement agreement must be essential to the settlement as well as fair and equitable and cannot be entered if the parties would have settled even without the bar order.Regions BankBig Bend Investments Group of Florida, LLC, Case No. 2D19-2530 (Fla. 2d DCA 2020).
Neither insufficient (as opposed to none) notice of a hearing nor failure of a prior court to deal with all affirmative defenses make a prior judgment void under a Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.540 motion.Shoma Coral Gables, LLC v. Gables Investment Holdings, LLC, Case Nos. 3D18-1655 & 3D18-1654 (Fla. 3d DCA 2020).
“Good faith” and “reasonable belief” can qualify contractual duties under Delaware law.The Arbitrage Fund v. Petty, Case No. 3D19-797 (Fla. 3d DCA 2020).
A shareholder suffers direct injury under Dinuro Investments, LLC v. Camacho, 141So. 3d 731 (Fla. 3d DCA 2014), and may bring a direct (not derivative) action if the board of directors accepts a lower price for sale of the company than a competing offer.GVK International Business Group, Inc., v. Levkovitz, Case No. 3D19-1119 (Fla. 3d DCA 2020).
In the absence of fraud or a fiduciary relationship, a party’s nondisclosure of material facts in an arm’s length transaction is not actionable.Nader + Museu I, LLLP v. Miami Dade College, Case No. 3D19-1427 (Fla. 3d DCA 2020).
A Notice of Voluntary Dismissal is insufficient to dismiss a case under Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.420 where property has been seized or is in the custody of the court, and thus a Motion for Attorney’s Fees is timely under Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.525 if it is filed within thirty days of the court ruling on a construction bond held in the court registry but not within thirty days of the filing of the Notice of Voluntary Dismissal.City of Miami Beach, Florida v. Nichols, Case No. 3D19-1954 (Fla. 3d DCA 2020).
A municipality may not levy fines in excess of those set forth in the LocalGovernment Code Enforcement Boards Act, Florida Statute sections 162.01-.13, despite having an alternate code enforcement system pursuant to Florida Statute section 162.03.Broward County, Florida v. CH2M Hill, Inc., Case No. 4D18-3401 (Fla. 4th DCA 2020).
Despite its language stating it applies to “negligence actions,” apportionment of damages under Florida Statute section 768.71 may apply to contract actions.UOWEIT, LLC v. Fleming, Case No. 4D19-270 (Fla. 4th DCA 2020).
The Fraudulent Conveyance Act, Florida Statutes Chapter 726 governs the timeliness of a fraudulent conveyance claim brought under Florida Statutes section 56.29(9).Cornerstone 417, LLC v. Cornerstone Condominium Association, Inc., Case No. 5D19-1621 (Fla. 5th DCA 2020).
A unit owner contesting a plan of termination must first seek nonbinding arbitration despite alleging claims for unjust enrichment, breach of fiduciary duty, and declaratory judgment, i.e., claims arguably outside the scope of arbitration.
