"At Some Point in Time, Mr. Jimenez, We Are Going to Have to Talk About It."

That's Judge Cooke to TD Bank lawyer Marco Jimenez, over sanctions motion #5 ("I'll have the #5 with egg drop!") which may involve up to 2600 alerts on Scott Rothstein's accounts that may not have been turned over to plaintiff's counsel David Mandel.

Oy.

That brings up a rant -- is it just me, or is there a general erosion in our communal sense of responsibility to perform acts of civility?

I'm not referring specifically to issues such as turning over bad documents, but more generally gestures like opening doors for frail or pregnant women, or helping someone get their carry on baggage above their seat, small acts like that.

We see that often in our interaction with other lawyers, a general trickling-down of incivility that inevitably winds up affecting how you practice or deal with others.

I recently read of a civility project among elected officials:

 In 2009, author Mark DeMoss launched a Civility Project asking every sitting governor and member of Congress to sign a pledge of civility agreeing to three statements: “1. I will be civil in my public discourse and behavior; 2. I will be respectful of others, whether or not I agree with them; and 3. I will stand against incivility when I see it.” Amazingly, only three elected officials signed it—Sen. Joe Lieberman, Rep. Frank Wolf, and Rep. Sue Myrick. 

Funny thing is, I think Joe "The Weeper" Lieberman is mostly a jerk!

In other news, Wargo French has moved into the old Richman Greer space:

Atlanta-based Wargo French launched its Miami office last August, headed by former long-time Greenberg Traurig shareholder Lori Sochin. Ten associates have been hired including Simon Ferro Jr., a former Lewis Tein lawyer.

The 50-lawyer firm, which also has a Los Angeles office, targeted Miami for growth based on client demand, said managing partner Joe Wargo. Wargo French is a full-service law firm focusing on complex commercial litigation, financial services litigation, labor and employment, class action litigation, creditor's rights and bankruptcy, commercial real estate, construction, general corporate and securities law, among other specialties.

Ok, sounds like a good firm and I wish them well, but what a great name -- "Wargo French" -- that's got to be a character from an old Coen Brothers movie?

3d DCA Watch -- Time to Start a New Book!

Sorry I'm a bit late this morning, as it took some time for me to get through all the 3d DCA opinions published today.

Actually, not all the opinions, just one -- Payne v. City of Miami, which is only 134 pages long!

By way of comparison, it recently took me about a week to finish John Steinbeck's The Pearl, a brilliant, under appreciated novel that is some thirty pages less than the 3d's latest magnum opus.

Is it fair to compare the two?

Well, they're both about fishermen along the river, but that's pretty much where the comparison ends

For those keeping score, Judge Gersten's dissent starts at page 59, and Judge Wells' dissent from the denial of rehearing en banc begins at page 72.

Happy trails!

CDC Builders v. Riviera Almeira:

Judge Freeman gets reversed, and the 3d helps out with some public policy:

This Court is well aware of the impact this decision could have on the construction industry as a whole. If we were to agree with the trial court, the purpose of liens would be undercut as liens could be subject to attack for inaccuracies or simple mathematical errors. This is not what the legislature intended when it enacted the construction lien law, and therefore it is not an outcome this Court can allow.

Inaccurate or math-deficient contractors, your Christmas present has arrived early!

Empire World Towers v. CDR Creances:

My pal Robert Kuntz beats my other pal Marcos Jimenez on a Motion to Vouch.

Hold on -- what the hail is a motion to vouch?

Lawyer: Majority of RRA Attorneys Not Crooks!

Ok, let me start with a few congrats -- Manny Diaz is going to join Richard Lydecker's insurance defense firm, and Marcos Jimenez is leaving Mike Nachwalter's firm to join the Miami office of Kasowitz Benson.

I'm usually leery of out-of-state big firms setting up offices in Miami, but this one has a lot of potential:

Jimenez joins former Akerman partners Lawrence D. Silverman, Scott B. Cosgrove and James G. Sammataro, and former Clarke Silverglate & Campbell partners Kelly Luther and Maria Ruiz. Silverman oversaw Akerman’s Miami litigation department and the firm’s antitrust practice group.

That's a powerhouse crew -- good luck!

Meanwhile, it turns out only 35 RRA lawyers are being investigated by the Bar:

The Florida Bar is investigating at least 35 former senior lawyers in the now-bankrupt Fort Lauderdale law firm headed by Scott Rothstein, who was disbarred before he was criminally charged last month with using the firm to run a $1.2 billion investment racket.

The Bar confirmed to The Miami Herald Wednesday that it is examining whether those members of the former firm -- Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler -- lied about the amount of money in client trust accounts and whether they stole any of it.

According to Howard Greitzer, however, the majority of RRA attorneys did nothing illegal:

``There has been no determination of wrongdoing,'' Greitzer said. ``The majority of the lawyers that I am familiar with from RRA were hard-working, competent colleagues who did nothing illegal, inappropriate or unethical.''

I agree with Howard -- in fact, if you can get a simple majority on something like that you've got yourself a pretty good law firm.

It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Large Legal Fee To Cry.

Legal bills remind me of the old Groucho Marx quip to the great New Yorker essayist S.J. Perelman --

"From the moment I picked up your book until I put it down, I was convulsed with laughter. Some day I intend reading it."

But it's true -- I think many judges and certainly clients often don't realize how expensive litigation is nowadays.

There's a lot to consider in Vanessa Blum's annual South Florida lawyer compensation survey, though as usual the methodology is flawed because the review is of fee submissions to courts in bankruptcy and from Florida government agencies who have retained private counsel, where fees are usually adjusted downward.

Still, as anyone who does this for a living knows, it costs an awful lot to litigate a case.

Consider Marcos (corrected!) Jimenez, who in a year racked up $700k in fees on behalf of the State of Florida in a valiant but unsuccessful effort to defeat class certification in the children's access-to-medical-care suit pending before Judge Jordan.

His team also handled a bunch of discovery and worked up and lost an sj motion.

(And this was at a discounted rate).

Or my pal Marty Steinberg, who -- seriously -- said his firm raises rates like clockwork every April Fool's Day.

Marty also told Vanessa he is worth every cent of his $695 an hour rate:

Hunton & Williams partner Marty Steinberg, who heads the receivership, said firm billing rates are determined centrally. Increases typically kick in April 1. Steinberg’s hourly rate was $695.

“I assume the firm thinks I’m worth that amount based on my track record,” he said. “I’ve tried hundreds of cases, and I’ve gotten pretty good results.”

This is actually true.

But let's not linger on fees. As Betty observed last night on Mad Men -- it's tawdry.

So go hail the conquering explorer Gerard Depardieu, have some fun on the bay with a bunch of drunken sailors, and see you all tomorrow!

aki2ru9cnd

Getting Chronic With Judge Jordan And/Or Drew Barrymore

Sorry I'm a little late with this morning's post, but I became transfixed by Drew Barrymore on the CBS Early Show. What a cutie, I totally understand why some poor schlub would make an entire documentary simply about trying to meet her.

Well, Judge Jordan just won't stay out of the news.

John Pacenti reports on yesterday's orders:

Two medical associations suing on behalf of poor children seeking basic health care from the state earned two critical victories in federal court.

U.S. District Judge Adalberto Jordan in Miami granted class action status Wednesday and denied the state’s dismissal motion.

The Florida Pediatric Society and the Florida Academy of Pediatric Dentistry claimed in the 2005 lawsuit that the state violates federal law by denying preventative health care to more than 1.5 million children.

Jordan said all Medicaid-eligible children under 21 who reside or will reside in Florida are part of the class. He rejected a claim by the state Agency for Health Care Administration that class-action status should be denied because not all class members are known at this time.

Actually, it's a pretty terse order for this Judge.

Stuart Singer was appointed class counsel, and the State was represented by Chesterfield H. Smith, Jr. as well as Marcos Jimenez from Kenny Nachwalter.

Magistrate Judge McAliley prepared an R&R recommending certification, which the defendants objected to.

I'm not too sure the Judge liked the number of objections:

Despite this precedent, the Defendants hurl a litany of objections at the R&R. Though the objections are impressive in number, they lack merit.

The defendants also argued a number of factual disputes exist which must be resolved at the certification stage, something the Judge also rejected:

The defendants argue that the R&R applies an incorrect legal standard to determine whether the proposed class satisfies Rule 23's requirements and that I should conclusively resolve factual disputes where there is conflicting evidence. As is evident from the legal standard applicable to class actions, conclusive resolution of factual disputes is not required. I may accept the plaintiffs’ allegations as true and may “consider the merits of the case to the degree necessary to determine whether the requirements of Rule 23 will be satisfied.” See Vega, 564 F.3d at 1265-66.

Finally, the Judge denied the defendants' motion for summary judgment, and though the order is also somewhat terse, it is lightened by the Court's Gonzaga analysis (a case right up there with Venetian Salami).

It will be very interesting to see where this one leads.

Kendall Coffey Thinks Corruption May Extend Beyond Confines of Palm Beach County.

Hi folks! Yes, it's Monday, might as well get used to it.

Does Kendall Coffey have a microphone permanently affixed to his lapel?

Perhaps that explains the treasure trove of quotes which seem to flow effortlessly from his lips. Here he is on the latest story about corruption charges in Palm Beach County:

"It's certainly not believable to assume that the entirety of the state's corruption is concentrated in Palm Beach," said Kendall Coffey, a Miami lawyer and the former U.S. attorney for South Florida.

It's not? Holy hail, there goes my faith in Miami-Dade County.

Meanwhile, Marcos Jimenez offers his own theory:

"A possibility is that folks [in Palm Beach County] thought they were in a smaller city, rather than Miami, and can do certain things and fly under the radar screen," Jimenez said. "That obviously did not pan out for them."

These guys don't miss anything.