A limited liability company (LLC) provides a flexible mechanism for one or more people to form a business with protection from personal liability for business debts. Unlike a corporation, where shareholders often play no role in the day-to-day management of the business, an LLC may be structured so as to give the individual owners (known […]

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If you own your own home and a car, you likely have insurance on both. There is a critical difference between the two types of insurance. Florida law requires drivers to carry a minimum amount of auto insurance known as personal injury protection (PIP) coverage. As far as your home goes, however, state law imposes no similar requirement. If […]

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Filing a personal injury lawsuit means understanding and following a number of procedural rules. Many of these rules are strictly enforced. This means that failure to comply can result in dismissal of your case regardless of the merits.  One rule that fits within this strict-compliance description is the statute of limitations. This is basically the deadline […]

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Insurance companies often take a proactive stance when asserting they do not have a “duty to defend” or cover a particular policyholder. This normally takes the form of asking a judge to issue a declaratory judgment stating as such. Obviously, the insured party may not be happy with such a judgment. But what about a […]

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The Difference Between an Insurer’s Contractual and Statutory Duties Under Florida Law Insurance companies have two independent duties when it comes to paying a claim filed by a policyholder. The first duty is contractual, i.e., the insurer’s responsibilities under the policy itself. This contractual duty extends to any requirements regarding the evaluation and payment of benefits. […]

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If you own a car in Florida, you should know that you are required to carry a certain minimum amount of auto insurance. Florida is a “no-fault” state, your insurance is expected to pay for any personal injury that you sustain in an accident. But this personal injury protection (PIP) coverage is often insufficient to […]

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Historically, Florida common law has allowed parties to assign their contractual rights to third parties. There are some exceptions–such as agreements involving personal service obligations or that otherwise violate public policy–but generally speaking, one party cannot prohibit the other from assigning their rights under a contract. And although Florida statutes state that a contract for […]

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Even when an insurance company is required to cover some damages arising from a specific event, such as water damage, that does not necessarily mean the policy covers all damages incidental to the event. Of course, an insurer is required to pay a valid claim in good faith. But they are not under any legal […]

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Homeowner’s insurance policies often contain appraisal clauses. Appraisal is a form of alternative dispute resolution similar to arbitration. In its simplest form, an appraisal clause states that if the parties disagree as to the amount of an insured loss, each side will appoint an independent appraiser. If the appraisers cannot agree on a value, they […]

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Insurance disputes often involve complex questions of law and contract interpretation. Yet many cases boil down to a single question: Does the insurance policy actually cover the claim at issue? Sometimes this question proves relatively easy to answer. For example, there is this recent decision from a federal judge in Tampa, Ditech Financial LLC v. AIG […]

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