On July 11, 2017, the Florida Supreme Court accepted jurisdiction of a case in which it is expected to finally decide, conclusively, whether Florida courts are to apply the Frye or Daubert standard to determine admissibility of expert or scientific evidence. Creed & Gowdy attorneys filed an amicus brief in the case on behalf of the Florida Justice Association.
Read more about the case here.
The 11th Circuit vacated a $1.8m forfeiture order. The Government had charged a husband and wife for conspiracy and substantive counts of tax return fraud. On appeal, the question was whether it violated the Excessive Fines Clause of the 8th Amendment to enter a $1.8M forfeiture order when the facts established a defendant was responsible for only $600k. After briefing concluded, the Supreme Court decided Honeycutt, which said, for a related forfeiture statute, the Government couldn't do that. Thomas Burns, of Burns P.A., filed a Rule 28(j) letter re: Honeycutt, and the Government confessed error.
Read more about the case here.
Bryan Gowdy comments on how errors in the Supreme Court aren't hard to find and can be very complex.
The Florida Justice Association (FJA) has recognized Jessie L. Harrell for her superior achievements in legal writing by honoring her with this year's S. Victor Tipton Award. The S. Victor Tipton Award is awarded for superior achievement in legal writing and is given in honor of S. Victor Tipton, Founder and Editor of the FJA's Journal®. For more on the FJA and Jessie's award recognition, click here. To view Jessie's awards video, click here.
The U.S. Supreme Court denied the petition for certiorari today in Charles, the case in which the Supreme Court of Florida declared the federal PSQIA did not preempt Amendment 7. Read more about the decision at the links below: