Florida Bar Journal articles from November 2003

Florida Bar Journal archives from November 2003

My neighbor, Chesterfield.(influence of lawyer Chesterfield Smith)(Florida)(President's Page)
November 1, 2003... Shortly after Hurricane Andrew, Patty and I moved in to our home in Coral Gables. It is on a quaint little street called Santa Maria. Being an early riser, I was out the next morning picking up my newspaper around 5:30 a.m. when I was...

Chesterfield Smith 1917-2003.(Obituary)
November 1, 2003... In his best Southern drawl, with a hearty laugh that revealed the glint of gold teeth, Chesterfield Smith liked to say he was a "cracker from Arcadia and "just a country lawyer." More like cracker with cosmopolitan connections who earned a...

"The dish": a symbol of his zest for life and his love to be loved. (Chesterfield Smith) (Testimonial)
November 1, 2003... Half of Chet Smith's freezer is filled with Bradley's Country Sausage, a memento from the last time his father visited Tallahassee. Once again, they made the required trek up moss-draped, oak-canopied Centerville Road to the old country...

Who's that knocking at your door? Third party consents to police entry.
November 1, 2003... Searches by consent make a police officer's job easier because neither probable cause nor a search warrant is required. But what should be a rather cut-and-dried area of the law to understand and apply is anything but, as "consent searches" are...

Gore, Cooper Industries, and State Farm v. Campbell: game, set, and match for exorbitant punitive damage awards.
November 1, 2003... Few decisions of the past quarter century are as likely to alter the way in which civil litigation is conducted as much as State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company v. Inez Preece Campbell, 123 S. Ct. 1513 (April 7, 2003). In Campbell, the...

When the king does wrong: failing to fulfill implied duties.
November 1, 2003... Although the doctrine of sovereign immunity has long been with us, its application did not become prominent in construction litigation until the decision in Southern Roadbuilders v. Lee County, 495 So. 2d 189 (Fla. 2d DCA 1986), rev. denied,...

Putting the brakes on litigation: stays pending review.
November 1, 2003... Obtaining a stay pending review is a critical, but often confusing, component of appellate proceedings. Although a stay is not required to perfect appellate rights, continuing proceedings pending appeal may undermine or even eliminate the very...

The value of high quality, comprehensive information to decisionmakers in juvenile cases.
November 1, 2003... Casey P., (1) a 16-year-old, has no family. Abandoned by his mother; he has lived in innumerable foster homes, Department of Juvenile Justice facilities, and residential mental health treatment centers. The local school board diagnosed him as a...

Bankruptcy lawyers: if you want attorneys' fees from the IRS, exhaust your administrative remedies (It might not be a bad idea anyway).
November 1, 2003... Dealing with creditor violations of the automatic stay under 11 U.S.C. [section]362(a) is part of the job for debtor's counsel. One saving grace of those situations for debtor's counsel is that the offending creditor is often ordered to pay the...

9/11 and agricultural security.
November 1, 2003... The events of September 11 accelerated congressional focus on the necessity of counterterrorism efforts and strengthening of critical infrastructure to better protect American agricultural production and resources. Because of the importance of...

The evolution of declaratory statements.(Florida Administrative Procedure Act)
November 1, 2003... The Florida Administrative Procedure Act contains a seemingly straightforward remedy for persons in need of state agency guidance regarding interpretation of an agency's regulatory response to a particular fact pattern. A declaratory statement...

Drafting trusts that include broad invasion powers.(Real Property, Probate and Trust Law)
November 1, 2003... From time to time a client might want to include an invasion standard in his or her trust that is broader in scope that the typical "health, support, education or maintenance" provision. In light of the enactment of F.S. [section]...

Reasonable consideration of Medicare's interests in workers' compensation settlements: a comprehensive analysis of significant developments affecting injured workers, employers, carriers, physicians, and their attorneys.
November 1, 2003... The United States administers the Medicare program through the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). HHS administers Medicare through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMMS), formerly known as the Health Care Financing...

An update on Florida alimony case law: are alimony guidelines a part of our future? .(part 2)
November 1, 2003... Many state legislatures are considering the use of alimony guidelines, but few have adopted specific formulas to determine alimony awards. The Georgia and Nevada supreme courts have recommended the adoption of alimony guidelines. Michigan has...