Florida Bar Journal articles from October 2005

Florida Bar Journal archives from October 2005

Responding to tragedy.(legal aid for disaster victims)(President's Page)
October 1, 2005... For this October President's Page I had planned to write on what some of the rank and file of our profession think about The Florida Bar. I wanted to (and still do) dispel myths about the Bar, the Board of Governors, sections, and committees. I...

Condo casino! Gambling law and the Florida community association.
October 1, 2005... "It can be argued that man's instinct to gamble is the only reason he is still not a monkey up in the trees."--Mario Puzo (1) Speaking before the British House of Commons in 1780, Edmund Burke said, "Gambling is a principle inherent in...

Conservation easements as qualified conservation contributions.
October 1, 2005... Preservation of aesthetic, environmental, historic, and recreational values on private lands is difficult to accomplish. Government entities often do not have the funding to purchase and preserve these lands in an undeveloped state. As a...

The puzzle of memory: reflections on the divergence of truth and accuracy.
October 1, 2005... An experienced judge can tell when it's coming. A lawyer has progressed in his or her cross-examination of a witness to the point where an inconsistency has finally reared its ugly head. The lawyer casts an "Ah hah" look at the jury, affects a...

The "loss of chance" doctrine of damages for breach of contract.
October 1, 2005... The Florida Supreme Court held in 1984 that a theory of recovery for "loss of a chance" to survive predicated on alleged medical malpractice is not actionable in Florida. (1) The "loss of chance doctrine" is, however, a viable predicate for...

Global warming: an introduction to the state of the science and a survey of some legal responses.
October 1, 2005... In 1979, James Speth, a member of the President's Counsel on Environmental Quality (CEQ), while completing a report on probable changes in global population, natural resources, and the environment through the end of the century, was asked by...

Senate Bill 360: growth management reform arrives and it is all about infrastructure.
October 1, 2005... After a legislative session where most of the discussion about growth management focused on the inadequacy of state funding for infrastructure, the legislature enacted a bill (S.B. 360) that provides some additional funding, but falls far short...

Crescent - did the Florida Supreme Court effectively repeal the documentary stamp tax on transfers of real estate?
October 1, 2005... The Florida Supreme Court on May 19, 2005, issued a 7-0 decision in Crescent Miami Center, LLC v. Florida Department of Revenue, 903 So. 2d 913 (Fla. 2005), holding that a transfer of real estate from a parent transferor to its wholly owned...

A trustee's duties and responsibilities under discretionary invasion provisions.
October 1, 2005... Most trusts provide the trustee with some degree of discretionary authority over the making of distributions of income and/or principal to beneficiaries. The usual reason for giving a trustee such discretion is to provide flexibility in meeting...

Does a Florida minority shareholder in a closely held corporation owe a fiduciary duty to fellow shareholders?
October 1, 2005... You and your friends form ABC Corp. After a lot of hard work, effort, and time, ABC Corp. becomes very profitable and you and your friends make lots of money. So much money that one of your friends decides that being a 25 percent shareholder in...

Poor on paper: an overview of the ethics and morality of Medicaid planning.
October 1, 2005... Scenario 1: Judy worked as a schoolteacher since the age of 22. She scrimped and saved her entire life and retired at the age of 67. She continued to live within modest means, with the hope that one day she would be able to pass a tidy...

Increasing the number of lawyer-legislators begins with an understanding of campaign finance regulation.
October 1, 2005... [Picture your favorite comedian at the local improv.] [Spotlight to center in 5,4,3,2,1. Spotlight on.] Have you heard the one about the politician and the cow? A politician was campaigning in a rural area. Outside a ramshackle...

Florida's new minimum wage provision: an overview of the amendment to the Florida Constitution.
October 1, 2005... On November 2, 2004, Floridians voted to amend the Florida Constitution by adding a minimum wage provision, and on May 2, 2005, the Minimum Wage Amendment went into effect. The Florida Minimum Wage Amendment, codified as Art. X, [section] 24 of...

Rethinking the application of contingency risk multipliers in fee awards - should Florida courts recede from Quanstrom?
October 1, 2005... In two recent opinions, Florida s Fifth District Court of Appeal affirmed trial court orders that increased attorney's fees from the lodestar by applying a contingency risk multiplier. In Bluegrass Art Cast, Inc., et al., v. Consolidated...

Domestic violence and firearms: a deadly combination: the juxtaposition of federal and Florida laws.
October 1, 2005... "Rose Mary Hollifield is able to walk, talk, and function despite the bullet buried deep within her brain." (1) Rose Mary is both a victim and a survivor of domestic violence. In 1997, she was trying to escape her violent marriage, when her...

Florida Trial Objections: Civil and Criminal.(Book Review)
October 1, 2005... Trial Objections by Judge Paul Siegel Judge Paul Siegel has just completed the 2005 updated edition of his book, Florida Trial Objections Civil and Criminal. It provides a practical and in-depth analysis of the Florida Evidence Code,...

Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance.(Book Review)
October 1, 2005... Dreams From My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance by Barack Obama When Barack Obama graduated from Harvard Law School, magna cum laude and first African-American to be editor of its Law Review, he held the Random House's contract for...

The Biblical Truth About America's Death Penalty.(Book Review)
October 1, 2005... The Biblical Truth About America's Death Penalty by Dale S. Recinella Florida Bar member Dale S. Recinella isn't looking to dodge controversy in his book, The Biblical Truth About America's Death Penalty. In more than 400 pages of...