Overview
Carlton Fields represents directors and officers facing breach of fiduciary duty and similar claims in bankruptcies, reorganizations, and other insolvency proceedings, where trustees and other stakeholders look to hold senior management accountable. We have represented directors and officers in this litigation in numerous large insolvency proceedings, helping clients address the claims and defenses involved while limiting their exposure and protecting their reputations and relationships.
Our clients benefit from Carlton Fields' multidisciplinary approach, which combines the experience of our D&O litigators with expertise from lawyers in our corporate governance, white collar, and securities and derivative litigation practices. Additionally, our property and casualty lawyers routinely handle complex coverage issues on behalf of insurers under D&O, errors and omissions (E&O), employment practices liability (EPL), and other professional liability policies.
Our D&O litigation team has represented individuals, corporations, majority shareholders, management teams, boards of directors, and special committees of public and privately held corporations, not-for-profit organizations, and family-owned businesses in all aspects of dispute resolution.
Experience
Defended two former CEOs of Crystal Cruises against breach of fiduciary duty claims, with claimed damages of more than $1 billion, asserted by an assignee in Miami state court.
Defended board of not-for-profit against claims of breaches of fiduciary duties and obtained bar order. In re Health Support Network & Brides Against Breast Cancer LLC, No. 8:15-bk-10969 (M.D. Fla. 2021).
Obtained approval of settlement and bar order in favor of former executive of rehabilitation center. In re Treatment Center of the Palm Beaches, LLC (S.D. Fla.).
Obtained one of Florida's first bar orders in chapter 727 assignment for the benefit of creditors statute. Allied Aerofoam Products, LLC (2021).
Defended six former officers of a bankrupt public aviation company against claims exceeding several hundred million dollars. In re Avantair Inc., No. 8:13-bk-09719 (M.D. Fla. 2020).
Obtained approval of a settlement that includes a bar order precluding claims against our client's insureds, allowing our client to preserve almost 40% of a D&O policy it issued. In re Latitude 360, Inc., No. 3:17-bk-00086 (Bankr. M.D. Fla. May 29, 2019).
Counsel to principal owner and director of Turnberry and Fontainebleau entities in officer and director and related litigation involving the Fontainebleau Las Vegas Hotel and Casino.
Negotiated full settlement, release, and bankruptcy court bar order against future claims for directors and officers of one of the largest former bridal retailers in the United States.
Represented a partner in a dispute involving a Northeast Florida waterfront retail center.
Obtained dismissal with prejudice of claims against individual client in a multiparty suit asserting federal and state securities law violation claims arising from investments in a startup dot-com entity. Temple v. Gorman, 201 F. Supp. 2d 1238 (S.D. Fla. 2002).
Obtained summary judgment for client in a breach of contract and Florida Securities and Investor Protection Act case, which was upheld by the 11th Circuit, resulting in an award of attorneys' fees to defendant client. Warner v. Wireless Broadcasting Systems of America, Inc., No. 8:96-cv-02214 (M.D. Fla. 2000), aff'd, F.3d (11th Cir. 2001).
Obtained summary judgment and directed verdict for a client in a breach of contract, defamation, Florida Whistleblower Act, and ADEA case, which was upheld by the 11th Circuit, resulting in an award of attorneys' fees to defendant client. Molenda v. Hoechst Celanese Corp., 60 F. Supp. 2d 1294 (S.D. Fla. 1999), aff'd, 212 F.3d 600 (11th Cir. 2000).
