Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Florence SnyderJune 1, 2017

An unvarnished, unqualified apology is hard to find these days, so let’s take a moment to thank Duval County Circuit Judge Hugh Carithers for reminding us what it looks like. Last month, the 1st District Court of Appeal repealed an unfortunate order of a Jacksonville-based hearing officer, and replaced it with a reminder that hearing […]

Jim RosicaMay 30, 2017

Initial briefs are due early next month in the Florida Lottery’s appeal of a Tallahassee judge’s decision that invalidated its $700 million contract for new equipment. Circuit Judge Karen Gievers in March had invalidated the Lottery’s arrangement with IGT (International Game Technology), agreeing with House Speaker Richard Corcoran that the agency went on an illegal spending […]

Jim RosicaMay 20, 2017

Jon S. Wheeler, clerk of the Tallahassee-based 1st District Court of Appeal, will retire this October, the court announced Friday. Wheeler, 73, began as the court’s clerk in December 1990, the third person to hold the position. The court was one of the original three state appellate courts created by the Legislature in 1957; until then, the […]

Jim RosicaMay 19, 2017

A unanimous Florida Supreme Court has ruled against a North Florida racetrack seeking to add slot machines. The 20-page decision, released Thursday, means that gambling facilities in Gadsden County’s Gretna and in seven other counties that passed local referendums allowing slots also will not be able to offer them. In doing so, the court upheld […]

Michael MolineMay 9, 2017

A state appeals court has upheld a 14.5 percent increase in workers’ compensation insurance premiums, rejecting legal arguments that it was approved in violation of Florida’s open-government laws. “This argument ignores the plain language of the statute and the ordinary meaning of the terms within it,” a three-judge panel of the 1st District Court of […]

Jim RosicaApril 13, 2017

Satellite-television service can be taxed at a higher rate than cable TV, the Florida Supreme Court decided Thursday. Satellite companies had challenged the state’s 16-year-old Communications Services Tax (CST), which now taxes cable service at 4.92 percent and satellite at 9.07 percent. Those concerns, led by DirecTV, said that difference was unconstitutional and asked for a refund. But […]

Jim RosicaApril 4, 2017

An appellate court’s ruling promises to further muddy the legal landscape of gambling in Florida. A 1st District Court of Appeal opinion released Tuesday reversed the Department of Business and Professional Regulation and ordered the reinstatement of a South Florida casino’s application for a new “summer jai alai” permit. The department regulates gambling. Pari-mutuels, particularly in Broward and Miami-Dade […]

Gary FineoutMarch 7, 2017

In a blow to parents seeking to have their children “opt out” of Florida’s high-stakes tests, an appeals court Tuesday ruled that school districts have a right to hold third-graders back when they score badly on a state reading test. The 1st District Court of Appeal threw out a ruling by a lower court judge […]

Michael MolineFebruary 24, 2017

A state appeals court removed a workers’ compensation judge from a case Friday after he was caught on a hot mic discussing one of the attorneys. Following a lengthy videoteleconference hearing, the 1st District Court of Appeal said in its ruling, Judge Edward Almeyda turned to someone off camera and said, “Was I nice and […]

Michael MolineFebruary 7, 2017

The Office of Insurance Regulation and an organization that proposes workers’ compensation premium rates have filed legal briefs refuting arguments that they calculated Florida’s recent 14.5 percent rate hike in violation of the Sunshine Law. James Fee, a Miami workers’ compensation attorney fighting the increase, and a group of press and press-freedom organizations, had argued […]

Tag: 1st District Court of Appeal
Crowds gather to see Atlantis at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. (Gabrielle Russon)

Florence Snyder: A Valentine to Judge Carithers — thank you for being embarrassed

Legal briefs due soon in Florida Lottery appeal

Jon Wheeler to retire as 1st DCA clerk

Florida Supreme Court rules against Gretna track, slots expansion

State appeals court upholds 14.5 percent workers’ comp premium increase

Supreme Court OKs taxing satellite TV higher than cable

Court ruling could result in explosion of gambling permits

Court: Hold back 3rd graders who do poorly on reading test

Workers’ comp judge tossed from case over comment caught on open microphone

Insurance office, NCCI refute Sunshine Law claims in workers’ comp appeal