Carlton Fields has Florida's largest group of lawyers devoted exclusively to an appellate and trial support practice. Of the group's 33-members, 19 attorneys are involved in appellate and trial support work on a day-to-day basis. This group includes Florida's largest number of Board Certified appellate lawyers.
The depth and breadth of experience results in an efficient and sophisticated appellate practice, allowing the firm's appellate advocates to focus on the procedural rules, unwritten customs, strategies for success, and avoiding traps that exist in practice before the appellate courts.
Our appellate practice, however, is not limited to the traditional work in appellate courts. Our attorneys team with trial counsel (whether from Carlton Fields or another firm), to provide litigation support by drafting and arguing dispositive motions, motions in limine, directed verdict motions, proposed jury instructions and verdict forms, and post-trial motions. In addition, our appellate lawyers attend trials to assist in preserving the record for appeal.
Knowledge & Experience
Carlton Fields has a long and rich history of representing clients in all of Florida's appellate courts, in addition to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and United States Supreme Court. The members of our practice group have participated in more than 1,100 appeals in Florida, including more than 40 in the Florida Supreme Court since 2000. At any time, the practice group is involved in 70-80 ongoing appeals.
The Appellate Practice Group includes:
- John R. Blue, a former Chief Judge of Florida's Second District Court of Appeal, who authored more than 560 decisions, and participated in thousands of other appellate proceedings.
- A former Solicitor General and Deputy Solicitor General for the State of Florida;
- Twenty former appellate judicial clerks, including clerks for the United States Supreme Court, the Florida Supreme Court, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, and Florida's district courts of appeal;
- Seven attorneys board certified by The Florida Bar in Appellate Practice;
- Three Fellows of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers, a national by-invitation-only organization, including a former president of the Academy.
Our attorneys are widely recognized for their knowledge of appellate law and related issues. Attorneys frequently lecture and publish articles and newsletters about appellate law, and participate in numerous professional organizations.
Related Services
Carlton Fields also offers a complete range of appellate related services. Some examples include:
- Specialized Consulting Services: We are proud to offer the specialized consulting services of at least three senior attorneys whose prior experiences gives them a unique, insightful perspective into Florida appellate practice: John R. Blue, former chief judge of the Second District Court of Appeal and circuit court judge; Tom Warner, former Florida Solicitor General; and Sylvia H. Walbolt, appellate practitioner with over 40 years of appellate experience, as well as multiple leadership roles in organizations such as the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers (former President) and the Florida Supreme Court's Committee on Standard Jury Instructions in Civil Cases (former Chair).
- Amicus Briefs: We frequently submit amicus curiae briefs on important industry issues.
- Pro Bono Representation: Our lawyers are also committed to providing pro bono appellate services to those less fortunate in our society and to organizations that serve the disadvantaged.
- Client Seminars: We regularly present free seminars for clients and their trial counsel regarding trends and substantive changes in the law, as well as procedural issues such as preservation of the record.
- Week-At-A-Glance: To help clients and our own attorneys stay current on developments in Florida case law, we offer Week-At-A-Glance, a weekly, one page summary of every precedential decision released by Florida's five intermediate appellate courts and the Florida Supreme Court. This online reference is an excellent way to stay informed on the subjects being addressed each week by Florida's appellate courts.
Representative Industries
- Product manufacturers
- Insurance
- Pharmaceutical
- Health care
- Nursing home providers
- Security services
- Energy
- Commercial and business entities
REPRESENTATIVE MATTERS
Represented cigarette manufacturer in obtaining a reversal of a $145 billion punitive damage award against multiple tobacco companies. The case also addresses significant issues concerning class actions. Engle v. Liggett Group, Inc., 945 So. 2d 1246 (Fla. 2006)
Obtained affirmance of dismissal on economic loss rule grounds on claims for common law fraud in the inducement, negligent misrepresentation and omission, breach of contract, negligent hiring, training, and supervision, and civil conspiracy. Behrman v. Allstate Life Insurance Company, 178 Fed. Appx. 862 (11th Cir. Mar. 6, 2006).
Represented the Florida Senate and Florida House of Representatives in defending against a challenge to the 2004-2005 General Appropriations Act., which changed the method used to calculate the Florida Price Level Index for determining school funding for public schools. The School Board of Miami-Dade County v. James E. King, Jr., 940 So. 2d 593 (Fla. 1st DCA 2006), review pending, Case Nos. SC06-2367 & SC06-2368 (Fla.).
Represented a criminal defendant on a pro bono basis and obtained a reversal based on the erroneous introduction of evidence related to prior bad acts and improper comments during closing arguments. Denmark v. State, 927 So. 2d 1079 (Fla. 2d DCA 2006)
Represented cigarette manufacturer in obtaining reversal of order denying motion to dismiss on grounds of forum non conveniens. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. v. Carter, No. 3D06-2030, 2007 WL 756923 (Fla. 3d DCA Mar. 14, 2007).
Represented Health Care and Retirement Corporation in obtaining affirmance of a motion to compel arbitration in our client's favor involving the enforceability of an arbitration agreement contained in admission documents for nursing home services. Bland v. Health Care & Ret. Corp. of Am., 927 So. 2d 252 (Fla. 2d DCA 2006)
Represented defendant in obtaining a reversal of a $5.5 million jury verdict involving prejudicial comments made by Plaintiff's counsel during course of the trial. Werneck v. Worrall, 918 So. 2d 383 (Fla. 5th DCA 2006)
Obtained affirmance of summary judgment in medical device product defect claim case; rejecting alternative liability/market share liability theories. Vincent v. C.R. Bard, Inc. et al. , 944 So. 2d 1083 (Fla. 2d DCA 2006)
Represented seventeen (17) insurance underwriters in a complex appeal involving the application of theories of liability to policies that were governed by English law. Transamerica Leasing, Inc. v. Institute of London Underwriters, 430 F.3d 1326 (11th Cir. 2005)
Represented gun distributor in affirming a judgment notwithstanding the verdict because the gun distributor had no duty to exercise reasonable care in distributing a non-defective firearm. Grunow v. Valor Corp. of Florida, 904 So. 2d 551 (Fla. 4th DCA 2005)
Obtained reversal and judgment for our client in the appeal of an order granting an equitable lien on real property based on an oral promise to devise homestead property. Collinson v. Miller, 903 So. 2d 221 (Fla. 2d DCA 2005)
Represented General Motors in reversing a $9 million jury verdict in a products liability action based on the improper admission of experiment evidence. Gen. Motors Corp., v. Porritt, 891 So. 2d 1056 (Fla. 2d DCA 2004)
Obtained reversal of a judgment in favor of an injured worker, based on workers' compensation immunity; addressing workers' compensation intentional tort exception. The Bombay Company v. Bakerman, 891 So. 2d 555 (Fla. 3d DCA 2004), review pending, Case No. SC05-358 (Fla.).
Obtained affirmance of judgment challenged by Plaintiff in claim based on post-traumatic stress disorder. Parkerson v. Nanton, 876 So. 2d 1228 (Fla. 1st DCA 2004)
Represented Southwest Airlines in obtaining affirmance of dismissal with prejudice of a complaint alledging the company's website violated sections of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Access Now, Inc. v. Southwest Airlines Company, 385 F.3d 1324 (11th Cir. 2004)
Represented security company in obtaining reversal of a $27 million jury verdict stemming from injuries sustained to a bank teller during a bank robbery on the basis that Plaintiff's fraud and misrepresentation counts should have been dismissed and that the jury should have been instructed on the Slavin doctrine. Foreline Security Corp. v. Scott, 871 So. 2d 906 (Fla. 5th DCA 2004)
Obtained reversal of $1.8 million verdict and order for a new trial based on erroneous jury instructions. Morton Roofing, Inc. v. Prather, 864 So. 2d 64 (Fla. 5th DCA 2003)
Represented a hospital in the Florida Supreme Court review proceeding that led to the bright-line rule that neuropsychologists cannot testify as to medical causation. Grenitz v. Tomlian, 858 So. 2d 999 (Fla. 2003)
Represented Humana Health Ins. in securing a reversal of a $79.6 million jury verdict, which included the largest punitive damages award obtained by an individual plaintiff in Florida history. Reversal was based upon errors in the jury instructions and the improper admission of evidence. Humana Health Ins. of Fla., Inc. v. Chipps, 802 So. 2d 492 (Fla. 4th DCA 2001)
Represented Columbia/HCA in obtaining the reversal of a $22 million jury verdict in favor of two physicians in a medical staff privileges dispute. Univ. of Miami, Inc. v. Spunberg, 784 So. 2d 541 (Fla. 4th DCA 2001)
Represented AT&T in a case of first impression, limiting Florida's prohibition of marital status discrimination. Donato v. AT&T Co., 767 So. 2d 1146 (Fla. 2000)
