Florida Bar Journal articles from January 2003

Florida Bar Journal archives from January 2003

Ethical and liability risks in auditor response letters.
January 1, 2003... Your client writes a letter, asking you to send to its auditor information about certain types of loss contingencies, such as litigation and unasserted claims. As you draft a response, you are entering a minefield, thick with issues relating to...

The pen is mightier than the sword or why the media should exercise self-restraint in time of war.
January 1, 2003... On September 11, 2001, shortly after airplanes struck the Twin Towers, the media revealed the deployment of the U.S.S. Theodore Roosevelt, an aircraft carrier, to New York City. At a time when an identifiable enemy could not be located--when...

The expanding criminalization of environmental laws: the recent decisions in Hanousek, Hong and Hansen.
January 1, 2003... The criminalization of environmental law continues to be one of the fastest growing components of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's enforcement program. During fiscal year 2001, the EPA initiated 482 criminal cases and referred 256 of...

Is expert testimony really needed in attorneys' fees litigation? Island Hoppers' call for change and other ways to reduce the burdens of fees hearings.(Florida)
January 1, 2003... The Fourth District Court of Appeal's recent opinion in Island Hoppers, Ltd. v. Keith, 820 So. 2d 967 (Fla. 4th DCA 2002), brings to the forefront the issue of whether expert testimony should be required to support a court's award of attorneys'...

IRS starting to challenge popular tax deferral technique.(variable prepaid forward contracts)
January 1, 2003... A recent article in Forbes magazine refers to it as a "tax trick" and a "kinky forward" contract. (1) In particular, the article describes a transaction entered into in January 1998 by Bobby Stevenson, CEO of Ciber, Inc., in which he received...

Water, water everywhere? (part 2) (environmental land and water management in Florida and California)
January 1, 2003... In 1972, Florida enacted the Florida Environmental Land and Water Management Act, (1) the Florida Water Resources Act, (2) and the Land Conservation Act, (3) thereby becoming one of 11 growth management states. (4) While these statutes provide...

Diversity jurisdiction removal in Florida.
January 1, 2003... There can be a certain allure about proceeding in federal court when an opposing party initiates its lawsuit in state court. The decision whether to remove a lawsuit, however, cannot be made without first giving careful consideration to the...

Florida's unlimited homestead exemption does have some limits. (part 1)
January 1, 2003... In recent articles discussing high-profile corporate malfeasance and accounting scandals, the use of Florida's unlimited homestead exemption to avoid creditors' claims has been noted with concern. (1) Often referring to it as a legal loophole,...

Burdens of proof of reasonableness and undue hardship under Titles I, II, and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act.(part 1)
January 1, 2003... For nearly two decades McDonnell Douglas v. Green, 409 U.S. 792 (1973), and its progeny have provided employment lawyers with a road map to follow in proving and defending discrimination cases under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act (1) as...

Legally Speaking: 40 Powerful Presentation Principles Lawyers Need to Know.(Book Review)
January 1, 2003... Atlanta attorney David J. Dempsey once dreamed of being as dynamic a speaker as his television idols Perry Mason and Ben Matlock. Television's legendary litigators fueled Dempsey's passion to become a lawyer, but he would soon find out the true...

The Art and Science of Trial Advocacy.(Book Review)
January 1, 2003... In a new book entitled The Art and Science of Trial Advocacy, Pepperdine University School of Law professors Tim Perrin, Harry Caldwell, and Carol Chase explore both the theoretical and practical dimensions of trial advocacy. The book teaches...