Download this newsletter as a PDF
View News & Notes Archive
News & Notes
Occupational License Fees for Lawyers
The Florida Association of Counties is participating, along with the League of Cities, Leon County, and the Cities of Coral Gables and Gainesville, as amici curiae in the City of Tampa v. Addison case.
This case is the one where several attorneys in the City of Tampa challenged the City's imposition of an occupational license tax on attorneys and sought class certification on both the plaintiff class (all attorneys in cities and counties imposing an occupational licensing tax on attorneys) and a defendant class (all cities and counties imposing an occupational license tax on attorneys). The decision issued by the Second District Court of Appeal on August 9, deals strictly with the circuit court's order certifying both the plaintiff and defendant classes.
The Second District court stated that all of the issues raised by the City were without merit, and affirmed the order of class certification for both the plaintiff and defendant classes. The opinion sets out the standards for both a plaintiff and defendant class certification order. The court noted a "determination that a class meets the requirements of a class-action is … within the trial court's discretion and will be reversed on appeal only if an abuse of discretion is shown." The court specifically noted that it would not address the underlying merits of this case and reviewed strictly the certification of the classes. The court determined that there was no abuse of discretion by the circuit court in determining that the City was an adequate representative for the defendant class (consisting of all cities and counties imposing an occupational license tax on attorneys). The amici participants are currently discussing various options with the City of Tampa lawyers. (Delegal: gdelegal@ fl-counties.com)