An advocate in the true sense of the word, having appeared not only before the State’s trial and appellate courts but as well any number of the State’s agencies including the Division of Administrative Hearings, Jorge concentrates his practice on complex commercial and construction disputes, while also overseeing the firm’s representation of the state’s largest home insurer on a variety of first and third party claims.
Representative Experience
Adminstrative Law and Regulatory Practice – Successfully represented an elected municipal official charged with campaign finance violations, resisting suspension and removal from office; represented a client being investigated by the public corruption unit of the Miami-Dade County State Attorney’s Office for alleged campaign finance related violations; candidate representation including formation and advice regarding political committees, 527 organizations, electioneering communications organizations, advertising, and all aspects of Florida’s election law; represented client in multiple administrative proceedings before the Florida Building Commission resisting newly proposed roof-coating regulations; successfully defended a Florida Keys municipal government in a rule challenge ensuring that it could proceed with new construction as permitted by rules promulgated by the Florida cabinet.
Commercial Disputes – Successfully represented a national insurance company challenging a $1.2 million dollar award issued by an umpire, addressing issues of the insureds’ misrepresentation, concealment and failure to cooperate; defended an employee of an insurance agency alleged to have breached his non-compete agreement with a prior employer; advised a member-owner of an international telecommunications company in multi-million dollar shareholder dispute; successfully defended a well-known national retailer alleged to have breached a non-compete agreement, including claims that the non-competition restrictions were a covenant running with the land and applicable to all subsequent tenants in the same strip mall; successfully defended a well known international bank against a lawsuit seeking a multi-million dollar recovery, with the plaintiff receiving nothing while having to reimburse the bank its fees and costs.
Construction – Successfully defended an electrical engineer sued for allegedly providing defective design plans on a $23 million dollar, design-build, biosolid waste facility project in West Palm Beach, Florida; assisted a general contractor seeking a substantial recovery from a school board for additional work required to be performed in order to timely complete a $14 million dollar high school; on behalf of a municipal client, negotiated and drafted a guaranteed maximum price construction contract for a multi-million dollar public project; represented a well-known national developer defending dozens of supplier lawsuits related to the completion of a new luxury hotel on Miami Beach, saving the developer millions of dollars in the process.
Publications, Presentations and Professional Activities
Speaker, 34th Annual Local Government Law in Florida addressing emerging developments and case law effecting construction contracts on public projects (May 2011).
Getting Paid, Fast; Proyecto Magazine, Latin Builders Association (November – December 2010).
Recognitions and Awards
Chairman – Florida Elections Commission, appointed by Governor Charlie Crist
(2007 – 2011).
Commissioner – Florida Elections Commission, appointed by Governor Jeb Bush (2005 – 2007).
“A” List of top construction lawyers in South Florida, Latin Builders Association, 2009. |
