Florida Commercial Real Estate Litigation Blog

A recent court case (Exclusive Motoring Worldwide, Inc. v. Soral Investments, Inc., 2022 WL 5237093 (Fla. 3d DCA 2022)) serves as a good reminder that a landlord may only be able to obtain funds deposited into the court’s registry “[i]f the landlord is in actual danger of loss of the premises or other hardship resulting from...Read More

A recent case weighed the extent to which a purchaser was able to negotiate terms when exercising a purchase of property under an option in a lease.Read More

In certain landlord-tenant disputes, courts may be open to requiring the landlord to produce leases with other tenants, but also may be open to redactions to those leases.Read More

A hearing on payment into the registry may result in a preliminary ruling as to some of the ultimate issues in an eviction, but it is not the same as a final hearing.Read More

By refusing to accept an environmental activist’s appeal, the US Supreme Court let stand a developer’s damages judgment against the activist for her challenge to the developer’s project.Read More

A Florida court again reiterated that there is no “fairness” exception to the requirement of paying rent on time into the court registry during a commercial eviction.Read More

A Florida court reiterated that there is no “fairness” exception to the statute’s requirement of paying rent on time into the court registry during a commercial eviction.Read More

If you are considering buying a commercial note that is in default because you ultimately want to foreclose to buy the property securing the loan, there are several things to consider as part of your due diligence.Read More

As real estate users consider how Covid will change their space needs, they should also consider what provisions will serve them in future lease-related litigation. Here are 10 questions your litigator may ask about your lease.Read More

Chances are, parties to Florida real estate contracts didn’t give much thought to a force majeure clause when they drafted their agreement, other than to make sure there was one and, possibly, to make sure it covered hurricanes.Read More

Florida courts have not provided a brightline rule for “ordinary wear and tear” means in a commercial lease, but they have provided some guidance. Read More

A Florida court considered whether commercial tenant paid its full share of operating expenses. Read More

A Florida court considered whether commercial tenant paid its full share of operating expenses.Read More

If a tenant wants to renew its lease and fails to send the landlord written notice on time of its intent to renew, is the tenant out of luck?  Not necessarily.Read More

A Florida court considered whether a lease guaranty covered extensions of the lease term not provided for in the original lease.Read More

In a recent case, an appellate court recently threw a wrench into how the collecting of rents works during some foreclosures.Read More

Typically, a tenant is required to pay rent into the court's registry if it seeks to remain in possession of the property during the lawsuit. We'll discuss what can happen if the tenant disputes the amount of rent that needs to be paid. Read More

A new case about an exculpatory clause in a lease is an example of the importance of good drafting. Read More

Options to renew a lease can be worded in a variety of ways, but what happens when a lease doesn't say the amount at the end of the existing term? Read More

Under even the most landlord-favorable standard, can a commercial landlord ever have an absolute right to reject a proposed assignment? Read More

Under even the most landlord-favorable standard, can a commercial landlord ever have an absolute right to reject a proposed assignment? Read More

We have previously discussed what a business should do when it’s hit with a lawsuit over alleged violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), but can a retail tenant be sued only for ADA violations at its physical store?Read More

An update on our May post about a new Florida law meant to help property owners fight ADA lawsuits. Read More

The good news is that, with reasonable care and a bit of common sense, cyber fraud can be prevented. But if the theft occurs because you failed to take precautions to protect your email account, it may be time to call your insurer, or your lawyer. Or both.Read More

Acceleration clauses do not usually cause too much controversy in litigation, but there is room for missteps by the landlord.Read More

If a landlord learns that trademark infringement is occurring on its premises by one of its tenants and fails to stop further violations, the landlord may be held responsible by the trademark holder for damages relating to the infringement of a trademark.Read More

Help may be on the way for property owners sued for alleged violations of Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act.Read More

After the owner of a Florida shopping center found itself getting billed for property taxes on land it does not own, an appellate court had to figure out whether a lease is just a lease.Read More

A foreclosure judgment, followed by sale of the mortgaged property, doesn’t necessarily end a foreclosure case. If the sale proceeds are insufficient to fully pay the debt, the next step is a money judgment against the borrower for the difference (a “deficiency judgment”). Read More

What do you do when you’re sued for having a property alleged to be out of compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act?Read More

The Fourth DCA recently ruled that liens recorded after a lis pendens, but prior to a foreclosure sale, are discharged.Read More

What must a lender do in order to obtain a judgment in Florida when the sale proceeds are not enough to pay off the debt of the property? Al LaSorte explains what a deficiency judgment is and how to navigate the legal landscape in obtaining one. Read More

A Florida landlord recently learned that “self-help” is not allowed for evicting a tenant, even if the parties’ lease says it is. Read More

Many types of contracts require the parties to submit their disputes to arbitration. For example, arbitration clauses are common in consumer agreements, such as car leases and gym memberships. While a consumer can negotiate certain terms, like price, most of the provisions are not negotiable. While the consumer may be stuck...Read More

Before pursuing a tenant for damages, a landlord must decide whether there is value in pursuing a defaulting tenant for money damages. So how does a landlord decide? Read 10 things a landlord should consider in this post.Read More

It’s bad enough having to call your real estate litigator. But it’s worse when he or she tells you that your lease is missing some critical provision that would help you in your current dispute. Here are ten things your litigator wants to see in your commercial lease.Read More

No point in finding a willing buyer for your client’s property unless you get paid for your efforts, right? A lien can be a powerful tool to make sure this happens, but not without risk. Read More

Before a landlord files suit for eviction, it should first consider whether there is any equipment on the premises that could help attract a new tenant. A landlord may prevent a tenant from taking equipment from the premises by filing a distress writ.Read More

When the tenant’s business is made illegal during the term of the lease, the tenant’s business is likely to disappear altogether, leading to a likely default. What that means for the landlord and tenant may come down to drafting.Read More

We’ve helped commercial real estate and leasing brokers deal with many mistakes over the years. Here are ten to avoid. Read More

Taxpayers must remember that filing a lawsuit to challenge your county property appraiser’s valuation of your property, or denial of an exemption from ad valorem taxes, does not get you out of paying while the suit is pending. What happens, though, when the lawsuit covers one tax year but goes on for more than one? Read More

Once you have filed your complaint seeking damages for breach of a lease or guaranty, you are required to serve the party from which you are seeking relief. But what happens when you are having difficulty serving the breaching party because they are either intentionally avoiding service or they have moved out of state?Read More

Because she won the case by claiming she wasn’t a party to the mortgage, she had no right to rely on that mortgage’s fee provision.Read More

Does a marina serve a public purpose? Does it matter if the marina is owned by a city or a private business owner?Read More

Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act (“FDUTPA”) prohibits unfair, deceptive, and unconscionable actors or practices in the conduct of any trade or commerce—including the purchase and sale of real estate.Read More

Even well-drafted partnership and operating agreements often relegate one key topic to boilerplate language: how to remove a manager of the business when the partners disagree on how it is being run.Read More

Florida’s foreclosure statute expressly provides that both foreclosure and deficiency proceedings are the province of the court, not a jury. (Section 702.06, Fla. Stat.)Read More

It’s a common commercial landlord-tenant showdown – a tenant accuses its landlord of failing to make repairs and threatens to withhold rent. But can a tenant legally do that?Read More

A court must enforce a settlement agreement and enter a final judgment of foreclosure when both Parties agree to the terms of an agreement even where the foreclosing party is unable to produce the original promissory note because Florida law highly favors settlement. Read More

What if the owner sells the property and invests the sale proceeds in securities while looking to buy a replacement homestead? Can a judgment creditor grab the proceeds, or are they still protected? Read More

In the 2015 case of Griffin Industries, LLC v. Dixie Southland Corp., the Fourth District Court of Appeal addressed two issues that frequently arise in landlord-tenant litigation: (i) on what basis a tenant may claim constructive eviction; and (ii) a landlord’s damages after a tenant vacates the premises.Read More

Reforeclosure can be an effective tool for eliminating omitted subordinate liens. But it has a catch!Read More

Typically, eviction of a commercial tenant does not terminate a lease under Florida law, or preclude the landlord from exercising its option to accelerate rent payments under the terms of the lease in the absence of any relevant modifying provisions in the lease agreement or evidence of landlord’s retaking possession for...Read More

Even when a party prevails on its claims in an action seeking judicial partition of property, it may not be immediately entitled to a distribution when there is a pending counterclaim that has yet to be adjudicated.Read More

In Genesis Ministries, Inc. v. Brown, Case No. 1D15-1310 (Fla. 1st DCA February 16, 2016), the First District Court of Appeal held that a challenge to a property tax lien does not need to be filed within 60 days of the certification of the tax roll.Read More

A restaurant owner successfully asserted impossibility in defense of a suit seeking to compel it to rebuild a gate in Marathon Sunsets, Inc. v. Coldiron, 41 FLW D685a (Fla. 3rd DCA 2016). Read More

In Caraccia v. U.S. Bank, N.A., the address used by the lender to send the default notice was ruled to be valid even though it was not the current property address because the PO Box address used was considered a valid address since it was provided by the owner to the U.S. Postal Service.Read More

A married couple’s reliance on the protection against forced sale of homestead property in Florida Constitution, Article X, Section 4(a) to defend a specific performance action was rejected in Mirzataheri v. FM East Developers, LLC, 41 FLW D683a (Fla. 3rd DCA 2016). Read More

Sometimes, even where the lender has the original note and introduces it into evidence at a trial in a foreclosure, the borrower challenges standing.Read More

Welcome to the Florida Commercial Real Estate Litigation Blog. Our blog name does not leave much to the imagination as to what we will cover here – all things related to commercial real estate litigation in Florida. There will be case updates and posts about topics of interest to litigators and transactional attorneys, as...Read More