Florida Business Legal Questions

Generally, a person who is incarcerated in a state must state there until his or her sentence is completed. If the personal is paroled or given supervised release, at that point arrangements can sometimes be made to leave the state, but it can be very difficult or impossible to determine in advance.... Read Answer

Fraud requires that the misstatement or omission be deliberate and "material," which it is impossible to ascertain from your inquiry. Even if this non-disclosure isn't fraudulent, it may nevertheless be a breach of contract entitling you to a replacement or refund. Your personal attorney can advise you about this.... Read Answer

As a general matter, you should be paid for the hours you are performing services for your employer, including travel time for "substantial" travel from your home. If you are staying out of town multiple days in a hotel or similar arrangement, you need not be compensated for time not worked in the evenings, etc., even though it is impossible or impractical for you to return home.... Read Answer

As a general matter, an employer may change the terms of your employment at any time. This is the essence of the "at will" doctrine of employment in the United States. If you remain employed and accept your reduced pay without objection, you are deemed to have accepted the new terms. It seems unlikely that you have suffered this pay reduction for three weeks without any notice. You may have a claim if you received a retroactive pay reduction without any notice. You can complain to your state labor department.... Read Answer

This system does not qualify as an "informal" system because the transfers are made exclusively within conventional banking channels. Nevertheless, you will have to comply with certain applicable laws, including the Electronic Funds Transfer Act and Regulation E. Your attorney can assist you in necessary compliance tasks.... Read Answer

The answer is "maybe." As a general matter, it is lawful to refer to the name of your competitor's trademarked product in advertising. The purpose of trademark law is to avoid consumer confusion regarding the origin or sponsorship of goods. There is no possibility that an ordinarily sophisticated reader of such a site would believe that the site originated or was sponsored by one of the named products. Of course, this result could vary if the content of the site was false or misleading.... Read Answer

You can buy a condo and deed it in your own name.  For title purposes you should recite your correct marital status.  If it is your homestead (permanent residence) then your spouse by statute has an interest even though his name is not on the deed, and it will take his signature to transfer title or place a mortgage lien on the house in the future.... Read Answer

It is extremely difficult to collect a debt this small from afar. The difficulty of actually asserting and perfecting your claim is compounded by the likelihood that the debtor simply doesn't have the money (i.e., is "judgment proof," as lawyers say). You may wish to attempt to retain legal counsel in Florida. However, this matter may be too small for an attorney to be willing to accept on a contingent-fee basis.... Read Answer

These are a number of difficult questions. Since the purpose of workers comp is to pay you when you are unable to work, if you do come to work, then you have no lost wages and do not need the income from workers comp. Likewise, if your wages would have been zero because business is poor, then the workers comp carrier may properly infer that zero is the correct amount of workers comp to be paid to you. These issues are complex and you should see an attorney who specializes in them.... Read Answer

I have advised clients in similar situations and it is very complicated.  Basically, in Florida it is not legal.  There are at least 3 government agencies that would need to be researched. Florida Lottery Florida Division of Pari-Mutual Wagering Florida Division of Consumer Services When I have started out with clients it quickly became clear that it would not be feasible to set something private up in Florida.... Read Answer

There are many issues and I have not done any research on this (which should be done before going forward).  First I think you need to have a commercial license of some sort to drive others for money.  Second, I think there are issues with providing free beer, as opposed to letting them bring their own beer. You need to consult with an attorney to go over all of these facts. This is specific to Florida law and does not constitute legal advice as the facts presented are anonymous and incomplete. This is intended for general education only and does not create an attorney-client relationship. This should not be relied on and you must seek your own attorney client relationship.... Read Answer

These are always difficult questions.  There are a lot of facts that need to be discussed, but it can be difficult to find a successful strategy to protect your assets when you have a judgment against you, or possible.  The creditor will likely be able to reverse any asset protection transaction taken after it was a creditor or a known possible creditor. An S corp is not a good asset protection vehicle.  A multi member LLC may be a little better depending on what you are trying to accomplish.  Whether you can now switch and gain any asset protection is probably still an open question. These matters can be expensive, and there is normally no guaranty of any positive results.  They are very fact and creditor specific. This is specific to Florida law and does not constitute legal advice as the facts presented are anonymous and incomplete. This is intended for general education only and does not create an attorney-client relationship. This should not be relied on and you must seek your own attorney client relationship.... Read Answer

Whether or not you are entitled to overtime depends on your job duties and function. Some kinds of jobs (for example, executive or administrative jobs) are deemed to be "exempt" from the overtime provisions of federal law. Without knowing what you do and for whom you do it, it is not possible to answer this question. By the way, I'm a lawyer and I regularly work 70-90 hours a week. I don't get overtime. :)... Read Answer

If you are an independent contractor who was injured as a result of the misconduct of a fellow independent contractor, you may have claims against the other independent contractor. That contractor may have liability insurance (in general, workers' comp insurance won't apply, since you're not their employee). See an attorney for more information.... Read Answer

Lawyers tend to separate problems of proof ("no proof of paying him any money") from the actual facts. The facts appear to be that you are occupying someone else's property on the understanding that you will pay for the use and occupancy of that property. The possibility that the owner of the property may be in default on his mortgage does not excuse your payment of rent. If you pay the money for March and the bank forecloses (which they can't possibly do without great delay and cost), chances are that the bank will be delighted to have you as its tenant.... Read Answer

As a general matter, a tenant cannot use a landlord's breach of his duties under his mortgage as an excuse to refuse to pay rent. To the contrary, the tenant receives the benefit of his bargain -- the right to use and occupy the space -- whether the landlord discharges his duties to third parties or not. It is not clear what you mean by "leaves" in the context of your question. Whether or not this landlord continues in occupancy of all or a portion of the rented space, he is still the owner, and you must still pay him for your use and occupancy.... Read Answer