Florida Bar Journal articles from November 2008

Florida Bar Journal archives from November 2008

The concept of arbitrability under the Florida Arbitration Code.
November 1, 2008... The procedural defense of arbitration can be the first matter sophisticated defendants assert in public trial courts during commercial lawsuits. In Florida, decisions on the question of what commercial lawyers call arbitrability (1) give rise...

Section 522(f): forward to the past or back to the future?
November 1, 2008... Recent jurisprudence has provided a division of the authority in the state of Florida regarding the avoidance of judgment liens against exempt property. In bankruptcy, liens are avoided by a motion guided under 11 U.S.C. [section] 522(f) which...

"I must dissent." Why?
November 1, 2008... The English judiciary has a tradition of seriatim opinions to decide a case in which each judge offers his or her own opinion. (1) Chief Justice John Marshall, who broke from that practice "to adopt the precedent of a single opinion of the...

Udder nonsense? The emerging issue of raw milk sales in Florida.(Legal Liability, part 2)
November 1, 2008... Producers of unpasteurized "raw" milk face significant legal liability. Pasteurization is "the application of heat to destroy human pathogens in foods." (1) The process can significantly reduce milk's disease risks; yet the process can also...

Accelerating losses with an assignment for the benefit of creditors.
November 1, 2008... When a flow-through entity for federal income tax purposes (such as a partnership or Subchapter S corporation) has losses, such losses are allocable to the entity's owners. If the owners have sufficient tax basis in their equity to utilize such...

The end of custody in Florida: finally parents are just parents.
November 1, 2008... In 2004, the Family Law Section of The Florida Bar undertook the task of investigating the merit of revamping the custody statutes in Florida. The label system of primary and secondary residential parent was causing much costly litigation....

Invoking "the rule" during depositions? Absolutely "maybe".(Florida)
November 1, 2008... "Your Honor, I'd like to go ahead and invoke 'the rule.'" Most litigators have uttered these words during a trial, or conversely, heard the phrase come from the direction of opposing counsel's table. There comes little astonishment when the...

Availability of class actions in arbitration.(part 1)
November 1, 2008... Certain rights conferred by statute are not susceptible to being waived by individuals on whom the statute confers those rights. Employment lawyers who deal in Fair Labor Standards Act (the FLSA) (1) cases are made aware of this fact by the...

The Appeal.(Book review)
November 1, 2008... The Appeal By John Grisham After two detours in Italy, John Grisham returns to his native Mississippi in The Appeal. His story begins as a small-town jury deliberates over a water contamination case. Brought by a widow whose husband...

The Law of Florida Homeowners Associations, 7th ed.(Brief article)(Book review)
November 1, 2008... The Law of Florida Homeowners Associations, 7th Ed. By Peter M. Dunbar and Charles F. Dudley Now in its seventh edition, The Law of Florida Homeowners Associations is a guide for the operation of Florida homeowners...

A Practical Guide to Drafting Marital Deduction Trusts, Including 2008 Cumulative Supplement.(Brief article)(Book review)
November 1, 2008... A Practical Guide to Drafting Marital Deduction Trusts, Including 2008 Cumulative Supplement By Sebastian Grassi, Jr. Both presidential candidates and Congress have made it clear that the federal estate tax is here to...

Convictions: A Prosecutor's Battles Against Mafia Killers, Drug Kingpins, and Enron Thieves.(Book review)
November 1, 2008... Convictions: A Prosecutor's Battles Against Mafia Killers, Drug Kingpins, and Enron Thieves By John Kroger Assistant U.S. attorneys typically enjoy a lot of leeway and a low profile as they prosecute some of the country's...

Exercise your right to vote.(President's page)
November 1, 2008... Soon it will be time to vote in an election that will decide who becomes the new president of the United States during a time of economic crisis and our divided nation at war. For the first time in our history, an African-American male will...

Back to the future: how Rodriguez v. Lagomasino got it right in 2008 and why modern voir dire should be guided by 1929's Johnson v. Reynolds.
November 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] It is a fundamental (1) notion of the American legal system that all matters tried to a jury, both civil and criminal, (2) shall be heard by a panel of impartial jurors with no interest in the proceeding, who have...