PAUL BREITNER
Partner
With more than 40 years of civil litigation experience, Paul has successfully tried a number of large dollar cases before both judges and juries in South Florida. His trial experience runs the gamut of commercial and construction litigation, condominium and association law, personal injury and the defense of premises liability and negligent security claims.
Paul holds the highest recommendation provided by Martindale Hubbell and is admitted to the United States District Courts for the Southern and Middle Districts of Florida, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeal, and Florida's state courts where he has engaged in an extensive and wide ranging trial practice. Paul obtained his B.A. from the University of Maryland in 1971 and his J.D. from the University of Florida in 1974. His professional associations have included the American Trial Lawyers Association, Trial Lawyers Section of the Florida Bar, Dade County Bar Association (where he was a recipient of the 1995 Pro Bono Award), the Coral Gables Bar Association (where he was a Director and Treasurer), and the Florida Bar's Standing Committee on Professionalism. He has also served as president of the American Jewish Congress for the Southeastern United States.
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Background
Education
- B.A., 1971, University of Maryland
- J.D., 1974, University of Florida
Admissions
- Florida’s state courts
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida
- U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida
Recognition, Awards And Certifications
- Board Certified in Condominium and Planned Development Law, Florida Bar
- AV Preeminent rated by Martindale-Hubbell
- President, American Jewish Congress, Southeastern United States (2001-2005)
- Chair, Commission on Law & Social Action (1996-2001)
- Member, Florida Bar Standing Committee on Professionalism (2000, 2001)
- Member, Community Relations Council, Greater Miami Jewish Federation (1998-2001)
- Florida Supreme Court Certified Circuit Civil Mediator
- 1995 Dade County Bar Association, Pro-Bono Award for Civil Litigation (1995)
Publications, Presentations And Professional Activities
- Use Restrictions - The Why and The How, Florida Lawyers Network (2014)
- Can't We All Get Along? - The Challenge of Condominium Living, Florida Lawyers Network (2013)
- Community Association Law - How to Ensure Peaceful and Harmonious Living, Hammocks Citizens Advisory Committee - Miami Dade Police (2013)
- Co-authored the chapter entitled Construction Defect Litigation, Matthew Bender's Florida's Condominium Law and Practice
- Work Product and the Attorney's Selection Process: Spoon-feeding the Opposition or Preserving the Adversary System, Florida Bar Journal (2005)
- Solving Water Intrusion and Mold Problems in Florida, Lorman Education Services (2002)
Representative Experience
Construction
Successfully defended an engineering firm accused of professional negligence for providing inaccurate estimates to a municipality for a road construction project; defended an engineering firm against allegations that it had performed inadequate construction inspection and contract administration services on a public project for the erection of a highway overpass; handled the defense of an internationally known architecture firm accused of preparing defective design plans for a facility housing thoroughbred jockeys and groomers; obtained a zero verdict in the defense of a multi-million dollar breach of contract claim brought against a large, international engineering firm.
Commercial Disputes
Co-counseled a high profile arbitration defense over 16 days resulting in a substantial reduction of liability for client; obtained a federal court jury verdict against a foreign bank for wrongful trespass to and invasion of safe deposit box leased by an individual currently in federal prison; six figure jury verdict against seller of commercial real property based on fraud and misrepresentation; successfully tried to a jury, a long-standing real estate easement dispute involving elements of fraudulent and negligent non-disclosure resulting in the extinguishment of a permanent easement burden upon the client's commercial property; selected as counsel to court-appointed custodian of two affiliated corporations with multi-million dollar assets facing dissolution as a result of shareholder deadlock; acted as special counsel to court-appointed receiver in turn-around of dysfunctional 300-unit condominium community experiencing serious financial problems resulting from large scale fraud, self-dealing and neglect to building's operational systems.
Community Associations
Board Certified in Condominium and Planned Development Law; Lead defense counsel in multi-million dollar claim brought against association board for failure to adequately repair and maintain commercial facility, eventually negotiating a settlement on behalf of six involved insurance carriers; coordinated a city-mandated evacuation and subsequent move back of over 160 families at a high-rise condominium experiencing structural deficiencies in the building’s common elements; general governance counsel at numerous homeowner and condominium associations; negotiated successful developer turnovers on behalf of associations at luxury oceanfront condominiums; put in place effective collection techniques for many associations involving lien filings, foreclosures, creative repayment plans and enforcement of judgments; served as special collections counsel to state court receiver and subsequent bankruptcy trustee involving a luxury hotel condominium with serious delinquency problems; acted as special counsel to court-appointed receiver in turn-around of dysfunctional 300-unit condominium community experiencing serious financial problems resulting from large scale fraud, self-dealing and neglect, working to bring the community back to health and normalcy.
Premises Liability and Negligent Security
Paul actively defends a variety of premises liability and negligent security claims in Florida’s courts. Among his successes is the recent defense of a security company which provided unarmed security services to a hospital. A visitor in the lobby waiting room was suddenly shot four times in the abdomen arm and face by another visitor, after which the shooter turned the gun on himself. Surviving the criminal attack with significant permanent injuries, the victim brought suit. We were able to win a judgment in favor of the security company, the court ruling that given its limited undertaking to provide specific and limited unarmed services, the company’s guard had no duty or ability to prevent a sudden and unforeseeable criminal act by a third-party.