By: James Guanciale, Esq. For the past week, the global markets have been rocked by the White House’s April 2nd announcement of universally-applied, 10% tariffs, which went into effect on April 5th.  The April 2nd executive order declares that there …

A new bill in Florida, SB 1388, the “Boater Freedom Act,” is making waves in the marine industry. Spearheaded by Governor Ron DeSantis, the bill seeks to limit law enforcement’s ability to stop and board vessels without probable cause or …

By Michael Billmeier, Partner On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission adopted a Final Rule banning employers from imposing non-compete clauses on their employees. The restrictions will be effective 120 days after the Rule’s publication in the Federal Register. …

by Matthew Scarfone, Shareholder (originally published by CLM) Property insurers in Florida must account for a wide variety of natural risks, including hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, and sinkholes. However, growing losses and drastic rate increases are not solely the result of …

By Matthew Scarfone, Shareholder (Originally published by Insurance Information Institute) Florida presents property insurers with a unique set of factors that affect the availability and affordability of insurance coverage. The state boasts the third-largest population in America while simultaneously enduring …

The Florida State Legislature has passed a bill aimed at curbing the theft of catalytic converters from vehicles. The bill has passed through the House and the Senate and will soon be on its way to Governor Ron DeSantis for …

Citing frivolous lawsuits and other adverse conditions contributing to instability in the Florida property insurance market, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis issued a proclamation on April 26, 2022 calling on the Florida Legislature to convene a special session regarding property insurance …

By Wes Strickland, Shareholder & Michael Billmeier, Partner During the 2021 legislative session, Section 626.112 of the Florida Insurance Code was amended by Senate Bill 1598 to create a requirement that any entity may not act as an adjusting firm …

By Amy Koltnow, Shareholder A mitigation company provided emergency water removal services to insured property following a loss. The insurer covered the loss but did not pay the water mitigation invoice. The policy contained a provision requiring all insureds and …

by Amy Koltnow & Michael Billmeier Many eyes were watching the Florida Supreme Court’s review of the “disinterested” appraiser dilemma in the case of State Farm Florida. Ins. Co. v. Sanders, with hopeful anticipation that this issue would be definitively …