Robert T. Benton 2

• Corrales v. State

  District Court of Appeal of Florida · 2012-03-29

  The case involved Basilio Corrales appealing his conviction for failing to appear in court under section 843.15(1)(a), Florida Statutes, after missing a scheduled hearing on drug charges. The court reversed the conviction, holding that the state failed to prove willfulness because there was no evidence that Corrales received personal notice of the hearing date, only that his attorney was notified. The reasoning emphasized that notice to counsel alone is insufficient to establish criminal liability for failure to appear without additional evidence of the defendant's knowledge or intent.

  criminal lawprocedure

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• Lance Block, P.A. v. Searcy, Denney, Scarola, Barnhart & Shipley, P.A.

  District Court of Appeal of Florida · 2012-03-14 · cited 4×

  The case involved a dispute between law firms over the division of attorney's fees from a claims bill, where Block filed an interpleader action and Searcy Denney sought to compel arbitration under an employment agreement. The trial court granted the motion to compel arbitration but on the same day the judge entered an order of recusal. The appellate court vacated the arbitration order, reasoning that any order entered simultaneously with a recusal order is void, and since the timing was unclear, they were deemed simultaneous. The matter was remanded for reconsideration by the successor judge.

  procedure

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• Tourelle v. Florida Unemployment Appeals Commission

  District Court of Appeal of Florida · 2012-02-23

  The case concerned Glenn Tourelle's appeal of a Florida Unemployment Appeals Commission order affirming an appeals referee's finding that he had been overpaid $787 in unemployment benefits. After losing his job, Tourelle received benefits while working part-time, but his reported earnings did not match his employer's payroll records for certain weeks in 2010, leading the Agency for Workforce Innovation to determine an overpayment. The court affirmed the decision, holding that Tourelle bore the burden of proving eligibility for benefits by accurately reporting earnings on a Sunday-to-Saturday weekly basis as required by statute and agency rule, and that his difficulty aligning the employer's bi-weekly pay periods with those reporting requirements did not excuse his failure to meet that burden or establish entitlement to the benefits received.

  labor & employmentprocedure

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• Miller v. State

  District Court of Appeal of Florida · 2012-02-14 · cited 5×

  In Miller v. State, the defendant appealed an order revoking his probation and imposing a five-year prison sentence in circuit court case No. 02-306CFA after he was found to have committed a new drug offense. The court noted that a prior appeal in a related case (No. 02-597CFA) had succeeded on the ground that the revocation relied solely on hearsay evidence, leading to reinstatement of probation in that case, but no timely appeal had been filed in the present case. By the time a belated appeal was allowed and briefed, Miller had completed his sentence and been released from custody. The court therefore dismissed the appeal as moot, following precedent that requires dismissal when the appellant has fully served the sentence under review.

  criminal lawprocedure

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• Crain v. State

  District Court of Appeal of Florida · 2012-01-24 · cited 9×

  In Crain v. State, the appellant was convicted of a third-degree felony under Florida Statute section 322.34(5) for driving while his license was revoked as a habitual traffic offender, even though he had never held any driver's license. The District Court of Appeal of Florida, First District, reversed the felony conviction, concluding that the statute requires proof that the defendant's driver's license had been revoked and does not apply to persons who never obtained a license. The court reasoned from the statutory definitions in chapter 322 that "driver's license" refers to an authorizing certificate and "revocation" refers to termination of a licensee's privilege, while driving without a valid license is separately prohibited as a misdemeanor under section 322.03(1). The case was remanded for entry of judgment on the lesser-included misdemeanor offense.

  criminal law

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• Unifirst Corp. v. City of Jacksonville, Tax Collector's Office

  District Court of Appeal of Florida · 2011-12-30 · cited 1×

  The case involves a dispute between Unifirst Corporation and the City of Jacksonville Tax Collector's Office regarding an award of attorney's fees and costs following earlier appellate proceedings. The court granted in part the motion for review of the fees award, directing the circuit court to reduce the amount assessed against attorney Kevin S. Sanders by excluding any fees attributable to litigation outside the specific proceedings in this court that led to the denial of rehearing. It further held that no fees could be awarded for proceedings in the Florida Supreme Court absent a motion requesting such fees there. The court denied the motion for rehearing, clarification, and rehearing en banc. The reasoning rests on established precedents requiring timely motions for fees in each court and limiting awards to relevant appellate work.

  proceduretaxesbusiness & regulatory

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