Florida Bar Journal articles from April 2008

Florida Bar Journal archives from April 2008

The National Flood Insurance Program: a "flood" of controversy.
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] In recent years, the doctrine of preemption has taken on a life of its own, becoming one of the most widely used and controversial defenses in litigation. (1) Derived from the Supremacy Clause of the U. S....

So I finally understand the "impact rule" but why does It still exist?(Florida)
April 1, 2008... In reading the Florida Supreme Court's recent decision in Willis v. Gami Golden Glades, LLC, 967 So. 2d 846 (Fla. 2007), I was catapulted back to a chilly auditorium in Gainesville, back in December of 1990, taking my final exam in Professor...

After Chicone: blasting the bedrock of the criminal law.
April 1, 2008... In Chicone v. State, 684 So. 2d 736 (Fla. 1996), the Florida Supreme Court recited a bedrock principle of criminal law. Mens rea is the rule of, rather than the exception to, the principles of Anglo-American criminal jurisprudence. (1) In other...

We're back: the appellate court said you didn't find anything.(Florida)
April 1, 2008... Every diligent trial attorney strives to prevent grounds for reversal on appeal. Especially in the divorce arena, where the personal lives of the spouses and children have been turned upside down by a trial, the pressure to bring finality to...

The Plaza East trilogy: not a nursery rhyme, but scary warfare.(Florida condominium insurance coverage)
April 1, 2008... "If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be. And what it wouldn't be, it would. You see?" "It would be so...

Appellate court trends in permanent alimony for "Gray Area" divorces: 1997-2007.(Florida)
April 1, 2008... In 1980, the Florida Supreme Court defined the purpose of permanent alimony: "to provide the needs and necessities of life to a former spouse as they have been established by the marriage of the parties." (1) This purpose is achieved by...

Predispute agreements to arbitrate legal malpractice claims: skating on thin ice in Florida's ethical twilight zone?
April 1, 2008... We begin by stating the obvious: Arbitration is firmly rooted in our culture as a means of resolving disputes. Anyone who has recently purchased "pricey" products or services knows that predispute agreements to arbitrate are typically...

Eliminating IRS tax debts - why bankruptcy may be better than an OIC to resolve your client's tax debts.
April 1, 2008... Does your client owe taxes to the IRS? If so, you probably think the solution to your client's nightmare is simply to file an offer in compromise to reach a settlement with the IRS. Must be easy, too, because everywhere you look nowadays,...

A Most Disorderly Court.(Book review)
April 1, 2008... A Most Disorderly Court By Martin A. Dyckman In what reads more like a novel than a history book, A Most Disorderly Court recounts a dark period in Florida politics and traces the reform efforts that ultimately led to a constitutional...

From Law School to Law Practice: The New Associate's Guide, 3d ed.(Brief article)(Book review)
April 1, 2008... From Law School to Law Practice By Suzanne B. O'Neill, Catherine G. Sparkman & Ronald L. Jones From Law School to Law Practice, Third Edition, is designed to help new associates and in-house lawyers bridge the gap between law school...

If It Takes All Summer: Martin Luther King, the KKK, and States' Rights in St. Augustine, 1964.(Brief article)(Book review)
April 1, 2008... If It Takes All Summer--Martin Luther King, the KKK, and States' Rights in St. Augustine, 1964 By Dan R. Warren If It Takes All Summer recounts the struggle against segregation in St. Augustine, Florida, during the 1960s. In the summer...

The new constitutional cabinet - "Florida's four".
April 1, 2008... This is a follow-up article to a review of the Florida Cabinet system previously published in The Florida Bar Journal, November 2000. (1) The 2000 article gave the reader a quick understanding of the cabinet system in Florida and acknowledged...

Repairing faults. (public school segregation) (President's page)
April 1, 2008... As president, I always seem to be on the road or in the air traveling on behalf of The Florida Bar. But a confluence of two trips within two weeks last fall struck a historical chord I wanted to share with you. Traveling to Arkansas for a...