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Michael Moline - page 34

Michael Moline has 306 articles published.

Michael Moline is a former assistant managing editor of The National Law Journal and managing editor of the San Francisco Daily Journal. Previously, he reported on politics and the courts in Tallahassee for United Press International. He is a graduate of Florida State University, where he served as editor of the Florida Flambeau. His family’s roots in Jackson County date back many generations.

Lauralee Westine appointed to Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Court

in The Bay and the 'Burg by

Gov. Rick Scott on Tuesday named local-government and land-use attorney Lauralee Westine to replace retiring Judge Bruce Boyer on the Sixth Judicial Circuit Court. Westine, 45, of Palm Harbor, concentrates on zoning and permitting for cell towers and other towers through the Law Office of Lauralee G. Westine, according to her practice’s website. She has worked in private practice since 2000, the Governor’s Office said. Earlier, she was a prosecutor in the Sixth Circuit, which includes Pinellas and Pasco counties. Westine is married to Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri.…

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Florida Supreme Court rejects shift in insurance claims law

in Statewide by

The Florida Supreme Court has overturned a lower-court ruling that would have made it harder for policyholders to collect on insurance policies when there is more than one cause for their losses. At issue in Sebo v. American Home Assurance Co. was competing doctrines for resolving claims under all-risk policies in those circumstances. Under the so-called “efficient proximate cause” theory, if the first cause of any damage — say, construction defects — isn’t explicitly covered, nothing else is. Under the…

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Appeals court allows workers’ compensation premium hike to take effect

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

A state appeals court allowed a 14.5 percent increase in workers’ compensation insurance premiums to take effect on schedule Thursday, amid legal scrambling over whether the hike was illegal. The 1st District Court of Appeal acted even before a trial judge could decide on a request to delay her ruling last week invalidating the increase under Florida’s open-government laws. For her part, Leon County Circuit Judge Karen Gievers ruled following a brief hearing in her chambers that no stay was warranted.…

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Business confronts workers’ comp rate increase amid legal skirmishing

in Statewide by

A 14.5 percent increase in worker’s compensation insurance premiums appeared to take effect in Florida Thursday, amid legal scrambling over whether the hike was illegal. The legal situation was unresolved as of Thursday afternoon, but businesses were treating the increase as a fact of life. The Florida Chamber of Commerce, for example, issued a written statement complaining that the increase, as applied to new and renewal policies written during the next 12 months, would cost employers $1.5 billion. “Many businesses are…

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Steve Schale reflects on a ‘race-to-the-bottom’ election year

in 2017/Top Headlines by

Democratic political strategist Steve Schale realized that Donald Trump would win Florida 45 minutes after the polling places closed. “Going into Election Day, I thought that Hillary Clinton had a 200,000 vote lead,” Schale, who managed Barack Obama’s Florida campaigns in 2008 and 2012, but sat out 2016, told the Tiger Bay Club in Tallahassee Wednesday. “By comparison, Barack Obama had a 150,000 vote lead going into Election Day in 2008. Donald Trump would have to win Election Day by…

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The end for SaintPetersBlog

Ever since I acquired the rights to the perfect domain for my efforts — FloridaPolitics.com — I knew that one

Insurance office appeals ruling blocking workers’ comp premium hike

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation has appealed a trial court ruling blocking a 14.5 percent increase in workers’ compensation insurance premiums, putting that ruling on hold pending review by a state appeals court. The office filed its notice of appeal Monday with the 1st District Court of Appeal. Leon County Circuit Judge Karen Gievers ruled on Friday that the National Council on Compensation Insurance, or NCCI, which proposes rates for workers’ compensation insurers in Florida, failed to open its deliberations to…

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Search narrows for next president of Enterprise Florida

in Statewide by

The search for the next leader of Enterprise Florida is down to two candidates, after a third candidate withdrew. Michael Finney, former president and chief executive officer of the Michigan Economic Development Corp., has taken his name out of contention, according to Michael Grissom, spokesman for Enterprise Florida. Instead, Finney has indicated he will seek a teaching position at the University of Michigan, Grissom said. The Michigan agency is the equivalent of Enterprise Florida — the state’s economic development organ.…

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