Messer & Caparello, P.A.

The U.S. Department of Labor issued a final rule implementing two important expansions of FMLA protections. In 2008 the FMLA was amended to provide employees with family members serving in the Armed Forces, National Guard and…more

In the wake of the recent recession, a number of states, including Florida, are exploring new and innovative solutions to the problem of insufficient funding for the construction and improvement of public facilities. At the same…more

More than a decade has passed since the Al-Qaeda terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 — a critical turning point in U.S. history which had a strong impact on many U.S. policies. One of those policies was the USA Patriot Act…more

On January 25, 2013 the Department of Health and Human Services issued a final rule modifying the HIPAA Privacy, Security and Enforcement rules. The effective date of the final rule was March 26, 2013, however, covered entities…more

Granting a motion for rehearing, the First District reconsidered its prior opinion concerning what constitutes a "student record" under the Family Educational Rights & Privacy Act (FERPA), Title 20 U.S.C. s. 1232g, and the…more

On April 9, 2013 the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit issued an opinion regarding HIPAA preemption in the case of Opis Management Resources, LLC v. Florida Agency for Care Administration. Opis Management,…more

The Family Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) is a federal law that requires qualifying employers to provide 12 workweeks of unpaid leave during any 12-month period of time for qualified medical and family reasons such as personal…more

It is still first quarter, and it is a good time for Florida businesses to make sure they are ready to comply with the federal and state statutory workplace posting requirements for 2013…more

Florida has the highest foreclosure rate in the country, with some sources showing a 3.11% foreclosure rate in 2012 – more than double the national average. At the end of 2009, with nearly 500,000 pending foreclosures and a…more

With the establishment of the 1982 Enterprise Zone Program, Florida became one of the first states in the country to enact an economic revitalization program offering investment assistance, tax advantages and regulatory relief…more

Mediation is an excellent method for resolving disputes outside of litigation. As mediation gains in popularity, rules governing its participants are continually being clarified and redefined…more

Filed with the Florida House of Representatives on December 20, 2012, HM 59 is an appeal to Congress to replace individual and corporate income, payroll and estate & gift taxes with a uniform national retail sales tax, as per…more

Employers need to be aware of a new tool in the plaintiff’s employment lawyer’s arsenal: the Florida Minimum Wage Law (FMWL). Although Florida voters passed the law in 2004 as an amendment to Florida’s Constitution,…more

The Fourth District Court of Appeal recently held that the due process rights of a party are not violated in the circumstance where the administrative law judge who issued the recommended order was not the same administrative…more