Kluger Peretz Kaplan & Berlin Client, Sturon, Inc., wins first case under revised Florida license and bond law

KLUGER PERETZ KAPLAN & BERLIN CLIENT, STURON, INC., WINS FIRST CASE UNDER REVISED FLORIDA LICENSE AND BOND LAW GIVING PROTECTION TO PRODUCERS AND DEALERS FO AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS.

MIAMI – August 2007 – Kluger Peretz Kaplan & Berlin attorney, Michael S. Perse, claimed a victory for his client, Sturon, Inc., a South Florida agricultural plant nursery, in the first of its kind ruling under the revised and expanded Florida License and Bond Law which affords market protection for tropical foliage growers since 2005.

An administrative law judge with the state Division of Administrative Hearings ordered Pasco County agricultural dealer, Garden World of Holiday Inc., to pay more than $97,000 to Sturon Inc. for tropical foliage products it purchased but failed to pay for. The ruling is the first against an agricultural dealer who defaulted on payment for this type of commodity since tropical foliage growers were afforded protection under Florida’s License and Bond Law in 2005.

The Florida License and Bond Law gives market protection to producers of perishable agricultural commodities. Since its enactment in 1941, producers have been able to conduct business with the safeguards afforded by this law, which is administered by FDACS. The law was revised in 2005 to increase protections to producers and dealers. The revisions included expanding the definition of "agricultural products" to include tropical foliage.

" Florida's License and Bond Law affords protection to agricultural producers who could otherwise suffer huge financial losses if a buyer failed to live up to the terms of the purchase," stated Perse.  "My client’s perishable commodities cannot be repossessed. Smaller farming operations like Sturon could literally be put out of business by a buyer who does not pay for shipments.”

“We are very pleased with the decision of the administrative law judge,” added Perse. 

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About Kluger, Peretz, Kaplan & Berlin, P.L.

Florida-based Kluger, Peretz, Kaplan & Berlin P.L. is a boutique law firm with offices in Miami and Boca Raton.  Providing a broad range of legal services across a diverse and global business portfolio, the firm’s 50-plus attorneys are engaged principally in the practice of commercial litigation and dispute resolution, bankruptcy and creditors' rights, intellectual property law, and corporate and real estate transactions.  Please visit us at www.kpkb.com for more information.