Civil Trials

Judge Allows Environmental Group To Join Miami-Dade Water and Sewer Lawsuit

As Miami-Dade County moves forward with its $12.6 billion plan to fix the aging water and sewer collection system, Federal Chief Judge Frederico Moreno yesterday awarded a significant victory to the Biscayne Bay Waterkeeper, an environmental group that claims the county proposal does not address sea ... More >>

Braman BMW Sued for Fraud, Forgery, and Wrongful Firings

Judge Throws Out $700,000 Verdict in Miami Beach Firefighter's Sexual Harassment Suit UPDATED

Marlenis Smart describes her seven years as a firefighter as a nightmare. In a lawsuit filed in 2010, she claimed she was sexually harassed by co-workers from her first day on the job. Male firefighters told her "women belong in the kitchen," accused her of being a slut, and walked in on her in the ... More >>

Environmentalists Sue to Block $1.5 Billion Plan to Fix Miami's Sewers

This much is clear: Miami's sewers are deteriorating, and millions of gallons of wastewater are polluting Biscayne Bay. The county has proposed a $1.5 billion fix, but one local environmental group has now filed suit in federal court to stop the plan.Key Biscayne resident Judi Koslen and the environ ... More >>

Pitbull Beats Lindsey Lohan Lawsuit, Defends First Amendment

When she's not appearing in a Los Angeles County criminal courtroom, Lindsey Lohan can be found filing frivolous lawsuits in the state of New York. And for nearly two years, the most frivolous of suits has been the grievance filed against Miami's Pitbull for his use of "disparaging" and "defamator ... More >>

Karlie Tomica Expected To Be Charged with DUI Manslaughter Today

Karlie Tomica, the self-proclaimed "party princess" that allegedly killed Terrazza executive chef Stefano Riccioletti on January 29 in a hit-and-run, is scheduled to appear in court this morning. Tomica is expected to be charged with DUI manslaughter; leaving the scene of an accident involving a dea ... More >>

Miami Photog Leads Lawsuit Against Remington Over Misfiring Model 700 Rifles

Lawsuit Filed in Florida to Challenge Barack Obama's Constitutional Eligibility, Because Apparently People Are Still Doing That

Oh, you thought we were done with all that Birther nonsense? Nope, not by a long shot.Michael Voeltz, a Broward county man who claims to be a registered Democrat, has filed a lawsuit in Florida claiming that Barack Obama was not eligible to be on the state's ballot because he's not a natural born ci ... More >>

Carlos Gimenez, Rebeca Sosa and David Rivera Shower Favors On Ex-Cocaine Trafficker

On July 13, Alexander I. Perez stood underneath a new street sign christening a portion of SE 10th Avenue in front of his Hialeah warehouse as "Banah Sweet Way." A gaggle of local politicos -- including Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez, his Hialeah counterpart Carlos Hernandez, and County Commissione ... More >>

Do Porn Companies "Blackmail" Illegal Downloaders?

Smarte Carte Severs Woman's Finger at Miami International Airport, Lawsuit Claims

A Miami woman is suing airport luggage cart company Smarte Carte after a bizarre and bloody accident at Miami International Airport. It was the day before Thanksgiving of 2009. Fidelina Cordero was traveling to see family when she spotted a Smarte Carte kiosk promising to "maximize the experience of ... More >>

Hebrew National Not Kosher? Lawsuit Filed

ConAgra Foods is being sued over claims that their Hebrew National brand of hot dogs and deli meats are not kosher.A lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court, District of Minnesota (Wallace et al v. ConAgra Foods Inc) alleges that the meat processing plant used by ConAgra, did not adhere to strict Ortho ... More >>

Lawyer Who Spent $19,000 at Goldrush Strip Club Claims Dancers Put Xanax in Drinks

Mark Gold, the lawyer who founded and owns the Ticket Clinic firm, found himself so drunk at the Goldrush strip club in downtown Miami back in 2010 that he wound up charging nearly $19,000 to his credit card. He ended up suing Goldrush, and claimed they never should have accepted his money ... More >>

La Ley Sports Says Little League Coaches Stole Team's Winnings

Junk Cars Text Spam: Attorney to Sue Spammers For $500 a Text

In April, we exposed the junk car kingpin who has been sending incessant text message spam to all of South Florida. (Reminder: Gregorio A. Tejera's number is (305) 303-0119. I'm sure he's enjoyed hearing from all of you for the last month.) Now an attorney is preparing a class-action lawsuit again ... More >>

John "La Ley" Ruiz, TV Lawyer, Claims Baseball Coaches Ripped Him Off

Ah, baseball. The nostalgic green of the outfield grass. The evocative crack of bat hitting ball. The zeal of litigation and the slow slog of civil justice. George Will say whaa?! Three prominent local figures in youth baseball are embroiled in an intriguing lawsuit filed earlier this month. Miam ... More >>

Taco Bell Salmonella Alert

According to the Chinese zodiac, 2012 is the Year of the Dragon, but it should be renamed the "Year of the Salmon--ella outbreak and consequent civil suits."Too long?Two lawsuits due to salmonella poisoning have been filed against Taco Bell this year. The second lawsuit, also filed by Marler Clark, ... More >>

Ronald Reagan High Student Sues After School Newspaper Used His Photo To Illustrate STD Story

A former student at Ronald W. Reagan/Doral Senior High School has filed a lawsuit against the district, claiming that his face was used to illustrate a school newspaper article on sexually transmitted diseases in teenagers. After the article, kids teased him with the nickname "STD Boy".

Dr. Paul Perito, Penis Doc Accused of Botched Surgeries, Threatens Bar Complaint Against Attorney Who Keeps Suing Him

​Dr. Paul Perito has responded to our story which detailed another lawsuit stemming from allegedly destroying a patient's penis, the second time he's been hit with such a suit. We also chronicled past criminal charges against the urologist in which he was accused of selling counterfeit pills out o ... More >>

Andrew Marshall: Miami's Ted Kaczynski, Part 1

Read Part 2: Marshall's answer — build an arsenal of assault rifles and explosives.

Lawyer Sues Tootsie's Strip Club Over Rolex Giveaway

​What is it it with local traffic ticket lawyers and their misadventures at strip clubs? Back in April, Ticket Clinic lawyer Mark S. Gold sued Goldrush strip club, claiming that the establishment got him drunk and made him run up a $18,930 tab. Now, Bret Lusskin, a Ticket Cricket attorne ... More >>

Royal Caribbean Sued After 17-Year-Old Girl Allegedly Raped by Cruise Singer

​A 17-year-old girl is suing Royal Caribbean after one of its employees allegedly plied her with alcohol and raped her during a March cruise.According to the lawsuit, 31-year-old Francisco Piñeda Adames was singing in the band aboard the ship when, two days into the cruise out of Fort Lauderdale, ... More >>

Crash Course: 411-PAIN network will line their pockets with your insurance money

This Jheri-Curled Man Claims He's Ricky Williams Real Daddy, Oh, and He Wants $2.5 Million

photo by Patrick Michels/Dallas Observer​If there's one thing Ricky Williams does well its running form things, and not just on the football field. A Dallas man claiming to be Williams' real father says Ricky has run from him his entire life. Now, he's filed a lawsuit against Williams and his moth ... More >>

Archdiocese of Miami Sued Over Alleged Sexual Abuse by Coral Springs Music Teacher

Michael MillerArchbishop of Miami Thomas Wenski gives a press conference after a recent trip to Cuba​The Archdiocese of Miami is getting hit with yet another lawsuit claiming sexual abuse by an employee of the Church.A lawsuit filed this morning in Miami-Dade Circuit Court alleges that Miguel Cala ... More >>

Shaq Responds to Child Porn Lawsuit: "Complete and Utter Fabrication"

​Yesterday, news broke of a bizarre lawsuit filed in Miami-Dade court that alleged amongst other wrongdoings Basketball star Shaquille O'Neal hatched a plan to plant child porn on a former employee's computer and use his law enforcement connections to have the man arrested. Today Shaq's repre ... More >>

Yelp has buckled to pressure, but it ain't enough

Yelp's Lawsuit Letter To Paid Scouts: Don't Throw Away Your Records

Miami lawyer Jared Beck's lawsuit against Yelp has already led to some real changes at the giant of user-generated reviews. ​On April 5, Yelp's CEO, Jeremy Stoppelman, announced that the company would stop allowing businesses to pay to place a positive review atop their profile, and that ... More >>

Hit-and-run driver Carlos Bertonatti isn't the only troublemaker in his family

Bad Day For Miami Beach Cops: ACLU Lawsuit, Contract Fights, Accusations

Miami Beach Police Chief Carlos Noriega certainly picked a terrible day to leave the Beach for an out-of-state conference. ​First came a fiery meeting with the City Commission, when the police union decried plans to force them to help make up a city budget deficit. Then, lost amidst the sound ... More >>

Club Madonna Owner Sues Miami Beach Over Alleged Extortion Scheme

Miami Beach officials tried to extort $30,000 in legal fees out of a strip club owner in exchange for a liquor license -- so says Leroy Griffith, owner of Club Madonna. Griffith, whose club is the only nudie joint in SoBe, made his claims in a lawsuit filed against city officials last week in U.S. D ... More >>

Family Files Lawsuit Against County for Inmate Death

A Movie Guy's Lies

An L.A. producer heads to court with Jean-Claude Van Damme, French bombshell Lydie Denier, and Miami's Bryan Abboud.

Like Beating an Undead Horse

Religious Conviction

Judge José E. Martinez ruled on a contentious case involving the Archdiocese of Miami. Problem is, he's a Eucharistic minister

Fake Art, Real Money

That beautiful painting by Cuban artist Domingo Ramos? The one you bought from a Miami gallery for $10,000? Ready for some bad news? It's a forgery

Devil or Angel

True or False:

David Collins is Miami's leading bail bondsman.

David Collins has lots of friends in law enforcement.

David Collins says he's put his criminal past behind him.

Barred for Life

The process for restoring the civil rights of felons in Florida works perfectly -- if not restoring their rights is the goal

Loads of Dirty Laundry, Part 2

Mohamed Ibrahim is now a felon, but the spin cycle continues

The Return of Litigious Joe

Miami's mayor is a fool for loot

DeFede

A .22-Caliber Mayor with .357-Magnum Ambitions

Homestead's Dirt

In South Miami-Dade it's all in the land -- the earth, the profits, and the sweet deals

Cleaning Out the Cops

A new lawsuit charges that an accountant tried, and failed, to flimflam Miami's boys in blue

From Bad to Wurst

German citizen Anton Philipp has bought a lot of property on Miami Beach. Now it doesn't look too hot.

News of the Weird

News of the Weird

The Collector

What do Armando Valladares, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Miriam Alonso, Xavier Suarez, Alex Penelas, Steve Clark, and the Miami Herald editorial board have in common? They're just a few of the big names enlisted by accused embezzler Roberto Polo in his fight to a

Never a Price Too High for the Commonwealth

Residents of Coral Gables should be proud of their city fathers for spending untold thousands to battle the scourge of upstart weekly papers

Paul Levine

There Ought to Be a Law