Mary Hladky

March 13, 2000 | Law.com

The decision by New York-based White & Case and Virginia-based Hunton & Williams to sharply boost their associate pay rates has unleashed a powerful force in South Florida: greed.

By Mary Hladky

4 minute read

September 17, 1999 | Law.com

A Florida Bar committee, worried that insurance companies are cutting costs by providing inadequate legal representation to their customers, is scheduled today to debate three proposals intended to safeguard policyholders. The proposals are certain to be hotly debated as members of the Bar's Professional Ethics Committee meet in Tampa. At issue is who a lawyer working for an insurance company actually represents - the policyholder or the insurance company.

By Mary Hladky

4 minute read

December 30, 1999 | Law.com

Five former and current employees of Columbia/HCA Healthcare Corp. and Olsten Corp. got an early Christmas present: The U.S. attorney's office in Miami notified them on Dec. 23 that it would not prosecute them on allegations relating to illegal Medicare kickbacks. The decision culminates more than two years of investigation of the two health care agencies. Columbia alone has been the target of the largest health care fraud investigation in history.

By Susan R. Miller and Mary Hladky

4 minute read

March 26, 1999 | Law.com

After receiving a 10-year federal prison sentence for a racketeering and money laundering conviction, Cali cartel operative Eddy Martinez has sued his lawyer. Martinez was convicted in a 1997 trial that marked a major effort to cripple the drug cartel. Miami car dealer Martinez now says he didn't get the courtroom representation he expected. While he hired attorney Samuel Burstyn and paid him more than $175,500, he claims it was another lawyer who took the lead at trial.

By Mary Hladky

2 minute read

July 26, 1999 | Law.com

The DuPont Co., embroiled in decade-long litigation over its fungicide Benlate, is once again facing accusations of wrongdoing. In 1996, a Fla. judge ruled that the chemical giant had destroyed evidence, thwarted discovery and engaged in "semantic tricks" to hide the truth about company field tests. Now, a new group of lawyers in a different case is asking the same judge to punish DuPont again. Last week, the lawyers said they had unearthed new evidence that shows DuPont withheld information and lied.

By Mary Hladky

3 minute read

December 23, 1999 | Law.com

By Mary Hladky

3 minute read

June 08, 1999 | Law.com

In a stunning blow to the prosecution, U.S. District Judge Donald M. Middlebrooks on Monday dismissed all charges against former Miami seaport director Carmen Lunetta, California financier Calvin Grigsby and port businessman Neal Harrington. The judge concluded the government did not have enough evidence to warrant a jury conviction. Still, Middlebrooks said the prosecutors "presented substantial evidence of greed and public corruption, the placement of private interests over those of the public."

By Mary Hladky

2 minute read

August 26, 1999 | Law.com

Gun manufacturers have lost the first skirmish in their legal battle with Miami-Dade County, which wants the companies to pay for costs related to gun violence. U.S. District Judge Federico Moreno last week rebuffed the manufacturers' effort to move the case to federal court, concluding that the industry offered no valid reason for removing the massive lawsuit from state court. "We looked at it as a delay tactic," said assistant county attorney Javier A. Soto.

By Mary Hladky

3 minute read

September 30, 1999 | Law.com

Relatives of 13 people who died in the 1998 Swissair Flight 111 crash off the coast of Nova Scotia have sued the airline and its aircraft manufacturer in Miami federal court. They join more than 160 other families who are seeking $16 billion in damages for the wrongful deaths of their loved ones, with most of the suits filed in federal courts for the Eastern and Southern districts of New York.

By Mary Hladky

2 minute read

May 04, 2000 | Law.com

Talk to the women lawyers at Holland & Knight and you will find some happy campers. Many are in leadership roles at Florida's largest law firm, heading offices and practice areas. They are bringing in business. And they aren't necessarily working 80-hour weeks. Holland & Knight launched its Women's Initiative in the mid-1990s hoping to retain women, who tend to leave big firms after five to seven years because of the pressures of raising a family.

By Mary Hladky

3 minute read