Practice Area Commercial Litigation

RKC’s Business and Commercial Litigation Group handles a wide range of cases, both locally, regionally, and nationally. The Group services a broad spectrum of clients, ranging from local business owners to Fortune 500 companies. The Group's considerable litigation and trial experience ranges from simple contract disputes to the most complex commercial matters.

Businesses need attorneys who can competently and economically handle routine commercial matters. RKC does that.  However, often, businesses require counsel highly capable of handling  unique, sophisticated matters with the potential to dramatically impact their company.  That is where RKC excels. RKC's commercial clients demand and deserve aggressive representation tailored to their overall business goals and objectives. Whatever the objectives, RKC's attorneys are prepared to swiftly and economically service their client's needs, whether through negotiation and mediation, or by undertaking aggressive discovery, motion practice, and defending the case vigorously through trial or arbitration, and all appeals.

While RKC built its outstanding reputation in the courtroom, we recognize that litigation often means lost time and money for many businesses.  As such, RKC works to avoid litigation, counseling its clients on all available methods of dispute avoidance, including contract review and advice, and helping clients to understand the possible legal consequences of agreements before they finalize the transaction.

RKC attorneys conduct commercial litigation in a wide variety of areas, including antitrust, trademark and copyright, contract disputes, securities, construction, and general business tort cases.  Commercial disputes often arise between partners, dealers and distributors, franchisees and franchisors, and buyers and sellers of products or services. 
 

Construction and Real Estate Law

RKC attorneys represent a variety of construction-related clients, including owners, general contractors, subcontractors, suppliers, and design professionals.  We represent these clients through all phases of the construction process, from project design, contract negotiation, construction and administration, through final close out.  RKC understands that, for a client in the construction industry, the costs and interruption of litigation often make avoiding litigation the primary goal.  As such, RKC attorneys provide clients with detailed advice and counseling prior to construction contract execution, with the goal of avoiding or minimizing litigation.  However, should the need arise, RKC attorneys are well equipped to prosecute or defend its clients' cases, involving  the full spectrum of construction law issues, including surety and bond work, extended home office overhead, acceleration and delay damages. 

RKC also regularly assists clients in resolving real estate disputes.  Cases often involve breach of sales contract, failure to close, failure to disclose defects in residential sales, fraud, trespass, nuisance, and homeowner association matters.

Consumer Litigation

RKC regularly handles the defense of consumer claims brought against corporate and business clients.  Plaintiff's attorneys bring these claims under a variety of common law and statutory bases, including fraud, RICO, and the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act (also known as the Florida Little FTC Act).  Often plaintiff’s attorneys will bring these claims as class actions.  

The prospect of an attorneys fee award, treble damages and punitive damages (under RICO and fraud claims) often drives these cases.  RKC was one of the pioneering law firms that persuaded the Florida Supreme Court to adopt the Economic Loss Doctrine, which bars "fraud in the performance of a contract" claims in Florida.  RKC has turned frivolous RICO claims into leverage against Plaintiffs, who face the prospect of paying the RKC client's attorneys fees.

In an extreme example, after a week-long trial, a Plaintiff obtained a Little FTC Act judgment for only $12,000.  The plaintiff then sought an attorney's fee award of $1.8 million.  RKC successfully defended this claim before the United States Magistrate Judge, who criticized the fee request. RKC helped its client settle for a sum more commensurate with the judgment.  In recent years, RKC has developed strategies for limiting such fee awards. 

RKC has also successfully defended against motions to certify class actions suits, undertaking discovery to highlight diverging interests between proposed class representatives and class members.  RKC continues at the forefront of class action litigation, representing clients threatened with class action arbitrations. 
 

Collections

Florida is a debtor's heaven, with homesteads and other devices for evading collections.  RKC attorneys have experience tracking down and seizing assets to satisfy judgments.  RKC provides services in commercial collections--collecting accounts receivable for businesses from their debtors.  Much of this work is repetitive in nature, allowing RKC to collect accounts receivable in a cost-effective, efficient manner. While RKC resolves many cases through an enforceable payment plan filed with the court, when such resolution is not possible, RKC attorneys aggressively pursue judgments through litigation enforce those judgments through the use of garnishments and levies. 
 

Intellectual Property

RKC attorneys have experience handling patent, copyright, trademark, and trade secret litigation. RKC assists a broad range of clients in this area, from institutional clients and insurance companies to individuals and start-up companies seeking to protect their intellectual property rights.  RKC has also stood at the forefront of the emerging area of internet law.  RKC argued one of the landmark cases on internet jurisdiction, Cybersell v. Cybersell, (9th Cir. 1997), and continues to represent clients in domain name disputes and internet defamation. 
 

Hotels, Resorts and Timeshares

Florida has some of the world's most beautiful resorts and timeshares. RKC has gained experience representing this industry in complex commercial litigation. These cases require an understanding of how resorts and timeshares operate from a business perspective. RKC defended a complex series of disputes relating to the division of assets when a timeshare business split into multiple entities. The claims included alleged interference with business relations, breach of contract, and complex tax litigation. RKC also defended a claim relating to alleged losses resulting from a franchisor removing its franchise flag from a resort.
 

Securities Litigation

Rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell's Securities Litigation practice includes defending claims brought under state and federal securities laws. Since the 1980's, RKC has represented securities industry professionals, including broker-dealers, accountants, and lawyers, as well as financial institutions, in suits alleging the sale of unregistered securities, the sale of securities by unregistered salespersons, and aiding and abetting securities violations. The firm’s experience in this area includes the defense of class action securities litigation. Rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell represents clients in these cases before both arbitration panels and state and federal courts.