REAL ESTATE CORNER
UPCOMING SECTION NETWORKING EVENTS
REAL ESTATE CORNER
Florida Real Property and Business Litigation Report
MANUEL FARACH
T. M. v. University of Maryland Medical System Corp., Case No. 25-197( S. Ct. 2026). The Rooker-Feldman doctrine bars federal district court jurisdiction over suits brought by state-court losers who complain of injuries caused by a state-court judgment and seek federal review and rejection of that judgment, regardless of whether the judgment remains subject to further state appellate review.
Pung v. Isabella County, Case No. 25-95( S. Ct. 2026). Just compensation under the Fifth Amendment ' s Takings Clause following a fairly conducted government tax sale is measured by the actual auction price rather than the property ' s hypothetical fair market value, and the Eighth Amendment ' s Excessive Fines Clause does not require the government to return more than the surplus sale proceeds.
Smith v. Slott( In re No Rust Rebar, Inc.), Case No. 24-13383( 11th Cir. 2026). A bankruptcy court may substantively consolidate a debtor and non-debtor alterego entities into a single estate when the entities share substantial identity under the Eastgroup Properties factors.
Lil Joe Records, Inc. v. Ross, Case No. 24- 13978( 11th Cir. 2026). An author ' s copyright termination interests under 17 U. S. C. § 203 become property of the bankruptcy estate under 11 U. S. C. § 541 and cannot be exercised by the debtor postdischarge or counted toward the majority required to effect a valid termination of a multi-author grant when those interests were unscheduled and unadministered during the bankruptcy.
Savannah Shoals, LLC v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue, Case No. 24-12661( 11th Cir. 2026). A taxpayer claiming a conservation easement deduction must prove value based on the reasonably probable highest and best use, and a court need not apply a rigid fourfactor appraisal test when the proposed use lacks market support.
Bay United Holdings, LLC v. INXS 7, LLC( In re Aegis Asset Management, LLC), Case No. 25-10331( 11th Cir. 2026). A creditor filing a bankruptcy proof of claim must show that it had the present right under applicable state law to enforce the underlying note when the claim was filed, and a claim is properly disallowed where the claimant did not then own or hold the note.
In re Amendments to Florida Small Claims Rule 7.070, Case No. SC2025-1254( Fla. 2026). Florida Small Claims Rule 7.070 is amended to impose a 120-day deadline for service of the initial process and pleading, requiring mandatory dismissal or an order to complete service if service is untimely, and to require that any waiver of service be reduced to writing in the record.
In re Amendments to Rule Regulating The Florida Bar 5-1.1, Case No. SC2025-1730( Fla. 2026). Rule Regulating the Florida Bar 5-1.1 is amended to require IOTA-participating financial institutions to pay interest, net of fees, at the Wall Street Journal Prime Rate minus 300 basis points, subject to a 0.25 % floor and a 1.50 % ceiling.
Perlmutter v. Federal Insurance Co., Case No. SC2024-0058( Fla. 2026). A plaintiff seeking leave to amend to add a punitive damages claim under section 768.72( 1) need only make a reasonable evidentiary showing supporting intentional misconduct or gross negligence, without demonstrating at the pleading stage that a jury could find liability by clear and convincing evidence.
In re Amendments to Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure, Case No. SC2025-0241( Fla. 2026). Amendments to the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure, effective September 1, require initial briefs to include a jurisdictional statement and per-issue preservation and standard-of-review statements, clarify supersedeas bond amounts for money judgments, and update citation formats and notice-ofappeal forms.
Trace Elements, Inc. v. Mackensen, Case No. SC2024-1274( Fla. 2026). Florida Rule of Civil Procedure 1.442( c)( 3) requires apportionment of any joint proposal for settlement, including one addressing a unified single claim, and noncompliance invalidates the proposal for fee entitlement under section 768.79.
Publix Supermarkets, Inc. v. Goga, Case No. SC2024-0669( Fla. 2026). Trial court dismissals for fraud on the court are reviewed under the traditional, bifurcated standard, with factual findings reviewed for competent substantial evidence, legal conclusions de novo, and the choice of sanction for abuse of discretion, rather than a heightened variant of abuse of discretion.
Monticello Elderly Housing Ltd. v. Borders, Case No. 1D2025-2007( Fla. 1st DCA 2026). A residential tenant who asserts defenses other than payment without depositing accrued rent or filing a motion to determine rent absolutely waives those defenses under section 83.60( 2), entitling the landlord to an immediate default judgment for possession.
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UPCOMING SECTION NETWORKING EVENTS
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